G. Evelyn Hutchinson and the Invention of Modern Ecology

Stephen J. Gould declared G. Evelyn Hutchinson the most important ecologist of the twentieth century. E. O. Wilson pronounced him “one of the few scientists who could unabashedly be called a genius.” In this fascinating book, Nancy G. Slack presents for the first time the full life story of this brilliant scientist who was also a master teacher, a polymath, and a delightful friend and correspondent. Based on full access to Hutchinson’s archives and extensive interviews with him and many who knew him, the author evaluates his important contributions to modern ecology and his profound influence as a mentor. Filled with information available nowhere else, the book draws a vibrant portrait of an original scientific thinker who was also a man of remarkable personal appeal. "Stephen J. Gould declared G. Evelyn Hutchinson the most important ecologist of the twentieth century. E.O. Wilson pronounced him "one of the few scientists who could unabashedly be called a genius." In this fascinating book, Nancy G. Slack presents for the first time the full life story of this brilliant scientist who was also a master teacher, a polymath with interests ranging from medieval art to the dangers of eutrophication, and a delightful friend and correspondent" "Slack enjoyed full access to Hutchinson's archives and conducted extensive interviews both with Hutchinson himself and with his students, colleagues, and friends. She evaluates his contributions to theoretical ecology, limnology (the study of fresh-water ecosystems), biogeochemistry, population ecology, and the creation of the new fields of systems ecology and radiation ecology, and she discusses his profound influence as a mentor. The book also looks into his personal life, which included three very different wives, a refugee baby under his care during World War II, friendships with such contemporaries as Rebecca West, Margaret Mead, and Gregory Bateson, and a host of colleagues and friends on four continents. Filled with information available nowhere else, this book draws a vibrant portrait of a giant in the discipline of twentieth-century ecology who was also a man of remarkable personal appeal."--Jacket Contents 7 Foreword 9 Preface 11 Acknowledgments 17 1. A Man So Various 19 2. “The Circumstances of My Upbringing” 33 3. Becoming A Zoologist: The Hunter and Gatherer 60 4. From Naples to South Africa: A Failed Career? 81 5. First Years at Yale 107 6. Chief Biologist: The Yale North India Expedition 118 7. The First Crop: W. T. Edmondson, Gordon Riley, Ed Deevey, And Max Dunbar 133 8. The Old and the New Limnology 156 9. Radioisotopes: Radiation Ecology and Systems Ecology 177 10. Biogeochemistry: From Linsley Pond to the Guano Islands 189 11. The Three Wives and Yemaiel 217 12. Good Friends: Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson 253 13. Fond Correspondents: Rebecca West and Evelyn Hutchinson 268 14. From The N-Dimensional Niche to Santa Rosalia 293 15. Hutchinson the Environmentalist 312 16. The Polymath: Art History and Many Other Fields 338 17. The Last Years—From Yale to England 352 18. Concluding Remarks: Hutchinson’s Legacy in Ecology 389 Notes 413 Bibliography 449 Index 461