Tiktaalik and Lucy
After discovering the skeleton of the fish which Neil calls Tiktaalik, he goes to his son’s school where he shows the fossil to his son’s classmates. In that classroom, Neil realizes that Tiktaalik is just as important as Lucy, the first human ancestor to be discovered. Neil claims that just like Lucy offered a glimpse into the evolution of humanity and humans, the fish is able to provide the same information about the animals that came before and after it. The comparison also shows just how important the discovery was for the science world.
A child in the womb and an ancient amphibian
In the third chapter, the author talks about the development of a human’s hand inside the womb and how it develops until it resembles a normal hand. In the first stage, the author notes, the hand develops little nubs that will later develop and become fingers. The little nubs are compared with little paddles to suggest just how similar they are to the limbs of an animals and how it is multifunctional.
Like an assembly line
In the fourth chapter, the author analyzes the process through which teeth are formed and notices how the process is composed of two different parts. The same process is also used when other parts such as bones and skin are formed. To make the reader understand how the process is similar, he compares it with an assembly line. Just like an assembly line uses the same process but in different ways, living organisms do the same thing to produce different outcomes.
Metaphor for the complexity of the human body
In the fifth chapter, Shubin analyzes the human head and brain and marvels at its complexity. He also analyzes the complexity of certain nerves in the human body and the complexity of the nervous system. The complexity of the nervous system and of the human head is used here as a metaphor for the complexity of the human body in general and to suggest the complexity of the process that resulted in the development of the human body as we know it today.
