The question of the origin and early evolution of the vertebrates is very
much on the agenda again. Before the Backbone by Henry Gee (Chapman & Hall,
£35, ISBN 0 412 48300 9) provides an excellent review of the main
contenders and themes in the debate. No clear winners yet: the arthropods,
echinoderms and hemichordates are still in with a chance of being our
ancestors.
More from ¿ìè¶ÌÊÓƵ
Explore the latest news, articles and features
Popular articles
Trending ¿ìè¶ÌÊÓƵ articles
1
The best new science-fiction books of June 2026
2
Pancreatic cancer halted by virus injection in three patients
3
Glaciers in the 'roof of the world' have suddenly started melting
4
How a radical new view of life could reveal its origin – and aliens
5
Aim high but don't shoot for the moon, mathematicians advise
6
Photons behave very strangely if you try to cut them
7
Does gravity create reality? A shocking path to a theory of everything
8
Mathematical AI helps researchers crack 50-year-old problem
9
Millions of planets might form around supermassive black holes
10
Q-Day could destroy bitcoin – and our retirement savings
