Chapter Four: Teeth Everywhere

Shubin first started out the fourth chapter describing how the value of teeth are overlooked by only having 5 minutes of discussion in anatomy class. He then continued on to work to finally seal the connection of human evolution from animals with his example of teeth. It was intriguing to read how Shubin went on to explain how teeth are able to all work as one, and each specific tooth has a desired function within the mouth of animal. Teeth also allows insight into not only the animal's diet, but can give insight to the animal itself. Shubin also went on to mention that the formation of the tooth also led to the formation of other body parts and glands. It was shocking to read that the way a tooth forms with the two layers of tissue can also be seen in the creation of feathers, hair, and even breasts. Just by the mention and function of teeth, and almost all animals having teeth, it showed how truly connected every animal are together. Shubin was completely right in stating that "the diverse inhabitants of our world are just variations on a theme".