Research

This comprehensive and scholarly text covers a wide variety of parasitic protozoans found in humans and other animal species. The articles, written by a variety of expert authors, contain thorough and detailed descriptions. This text is used by veterinarians and pathologists, including the staff of Smithsonian's National Zoological Park, to identify and manage parasitic protozoa.

This magnificently illustrated book describes and depicts images of paleo art from the inception of the field, in the 1830s, to the modern era. Paleoart, unique in its literary field, includes beautifully reproduced paintings, drawings, tile mosaics, etc. from collections around the world. Each example represents a mixture of science and fantasy as artists have attempted to visualize extinct life in its long-ago environment. Some art used in this volume was taken from the archives and collection of the Smithsonian’s Paleobiology collection. 

You might be wondering why the Smithsonian Libraries would choose a book based on beasts from fantasy, but behind every myth is some truth. The family of “cryptids” includes such familiar creatures as Bigfoot, Yeti, and the Loch Ness Monster, plus several other questionable beasts of land and sea. This book, illustrated with black-and-white photos and drawings, attempts to apply the scientific method to reports of these mythological creatures. The goal is to separate fact from fiction, i.e., what is pure imagination from what is actually possible.

A compilation of physics-related knowledge from the late 18^th century, this text by Augustino A. Messano was likely penned by the scribe Petrus ab Albavilla. Little is known about Messano or his scribe. Bound with the hundreds of pages of text are 15 illustrations, engraved by the Italian wood-engraver Iganazio Lucchesini, demonstrating dozens of physics-related experiments. Unfortunately, the paper size of the engravings is slightly larger than of the paper used for the text, resulting in a book sorely in need of treatment.

This beautifully illustrated monograph describes the excavation and research of an ancient Ixil Maya Indian town in a Guatemalan valley. The archeologists involved in this project describe their field work and findings with scholarly attention to detail, but also with obvious enthusiasm for their discoveries. The Discussion chapter highlights their fascination with ongoing exploration to fill in the historical blanks.

With classic British understatement, Harold Maxwell-Lefroy (1877-1925) describes this two-volume, 800 page guide as an “imperfect” attempt to describe the insects of the Indian subcontinent. Published in 1909, Indian Insect Life is “largely a product of [Maxwell-Lefroy’s] spare time and scanty holidays.” One wonders what he would produce if he were able to devote his full time and energy.

This rare second edition of Journal of researches... is the final definitive text of Darwin's "first literary child," revised to reflect his developing ideas on evolution. It chronicles his historic five-year voyage on the Beagle to Brazil, Argentina, Tierra del Fuego, Chile, Peru, the Galapagos Islands, New Zealand, Australia, and other countries and islands along the way. This journey was the most important event in Darwin's intellectual life.

This book takes an illustrative scientific approach towards understanding how interwoven conditions such as hydrology, oxygen levels, and plant canopies impact the types of species that can be found in freshwater wetlands. These ‘abiotic’ factors contribute to the overall development and adaptation of microorganisms, invertebrates, vertebrates, and plants in wetlands. Even with the scientific approach, The Biology of Freshwater Wetlands is easy to read for researchers, students, and others interested in ecology.

Dinoflagellates are single celled organisms in the kingdom ‘Protista.’ They are important primary producers (make food through photosynthesis), symbionts (live dependently but peacefully with/on other organisms), consumers (they eat things), and parasites. Some produce harmful toxins which can impact humans. Yet there has been a lack of comprehensive taxonomic studies on these species.

This is the first edition of Alfred Russel Wallace’s (1823-1913) work on biodiversity, a subject of study that wasn’t as popular 130 years ago. Wallace is referred to as the “father of biogeography” due to his extensive fieldwork around the world documenting species' distribution based on their locations. He is also considered Charles Darwin’s biggest influencer and proponent when Darwin was writing On the Origins of a Species, based on Wallace's theories of natural selection.

Biologist Ernest Everett Just (1883-1941) is considered to be one of the most brilliant African American scientists of his era.  Born in Charleston, SC, he earned scholarships to attend northern schools, graduating top of his class at Dartmouth. He taught at Howard University where he became head of the new zoology department. He also studied fertilization in marine invertebrates at the Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratories and eventually earned his Ph.D. in experimental embryology at the University of Chicago in 1916.

Number 68 of just 200 copies, this whimsical semi-autobiography of expert naturalist and taxidermist Oliver Davie is interspersed with encyclopedia-esque entries minutely describing species particular to the author’s career. The pebbled, green cover is embossed in black and gold, and the book is printed on thick, embossed paper with visible chain lines. Lithographs, photos, and illustrations dot its text, including a photograph of the author at work.

In 1913 Martha Ornstein, a Barnard College and Columbia University graduate, published her pioneering doctoral thesis on the intersection of scientific advancement and the rise of scientific societies. Her work helped form what would become the "New History" movement of the 20^th century, which helped broaden the study of history and allowed for more diverse and inclusive interpretations of it. This volume is a third edition of her thesis, published in 1938 and acquired by the Smithsonian in 1944. It offers a concise history of the rise and role of certain scientists, societies, j

"Pursuing the wonder of discovery" is an apt tagline for Frank A. Garcia. Despite having no formal education, Mr. Garcia has become one of America’s foremost paleontologists, discovering more than 30 previously unknown species (including two which were named after him). He slid down into phosphate pits with a broken leg, dug up massive prehistoric turtle bones with his dog Webster, and even went digging while recovering from back surgery.

“The pleasant month of July had again come round, and for full five weeks I was free” – so begins this delightful little tome on the expeditions of self-taught geologist Hugh Miller. Though Mr.