Were dinosaurs really dumber than lizards? Why are approximately the same number of boys and girls born? How did the famous Dr. Down come to his theory and its racist implications? In what way does the development of Mickey Mouse reflect our own evolution? What do the magical thumb of the panda and the endless migration of the sea turtle tell us about the imperfections that prove evolution? Despite the diversity of their topics, the brilliant essays of Stephen Jay Gould are all precisely interconnected: in their relation to the theory of evolution, which Gould represents in its most advanced form.