A Key Question for evolutionary biology is whether evolution is inevitable or haphazard. Does natural selection follow the same predictable paths over and over or can the finiest change-a random mutation or shift in climate-cause evolution to take a completely different course? This is one of the greatest ongoing debates in science. In Improbable Destinies Jonathan Losos explains why this question is so important to our understanding of ourselves and the natural world. He takes us around the globe to meet the researchers who like him are solving the deepest mysteries of life an Earth through their work in experimental evolutionary science. This book will change the way you think and talk about evolution. Book jacket.