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Contents:
1 - Extinction in the fossil record; 2 - Fitness landscape model; 3 - Self-organised critical models; 4 - Interspecies connection models; 5 - Environmental stress models; 6 - Non-equilibrium models; 7 - Summary
Review:
This book is part of a series from the Santa Fe Institute dealing with issues of complexity. As such this is a theoretical volume: an attempt to review work in this new area. Much of the work in extinction has been traditionally carried out through palaeontological research but in recent years, mathematics has tried to find answers to fundamental questions such as extinctions. In chapter one we have an overview of extinction in terms of conventional palaeontology. The authors look at two areas: data, trends, biases i.e. more theoretical concerns and origination, diversity etc. in terms of a more practical orientation. This is a very good overview of the subject and covers far more ground than usually seen in such summaries. Chapter two looks at the models which focus on the biotic aspects of extinction whilst chapter three considers models which suggest a tenancy towards a given state irrespective of the initial conditions. Chapter four follows the idea that species that are 'connected' in some way might follow each other into extinction. Chapter five looks at models dealing with environmental stress. Chapter six deals with models that assume extinction is not an even event but varies. The point to the fact, for example, that rates of extinction in some areas have decreased since early geological time. A final chapter summarises the work.
This is a highly detailed and complex monograph on a newly emerging topic. The first chapter is an excellent overview but the remainder is aimed squarely at more advanced students. The succinct nature of the text means it covers considerable ground in a small space making it ideal as an overview.