Evolution produced the elephant and the shrew. It invented bird migration, whale songs and hibernation. It concocted the venom of cobras and gave rise to viruses and bacteria. Mammoths and dinosaurs had their opportunity, but were wiped out again. Evolution tells the story of life. It spans a period of four billion years and all seven continents. Mankind is also a product of evolution. With the help of fossils and modern genetics, scientists reconstruct the genealogy of life – in a remarkably accurate way. On our journey to the defining moments of evolution, we meet the most distinguished researchers of our time. They tell us what we know today about the big questions of life: why there is sex and love, how good and evil came about, what language animals speak, and the role we humans play in the grand scheme of things.
