The Hobbit Trap: How New Species Are Invented

228 Pages·2010·3.492 MB·English

by  Maciej Henneberg, Robert B. Eckhardt, John Schofield

THE HOBBIT TRAP
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Maciej Henneberg,Robert B.Eckhardt,and John Schofield
THE
HOBBIT
TRAP
How New Species
Are Invented
SECOND EDITION
First published 2011 by Left Coast Press, Inc.
Published 2016 by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Copyright © 2011 Maciej Henneberg, Robert B. Eckhardt, and John Schofield
First edition published in 2008 in Australia as The Hobbit Trap: Money, Fame, Science and
the Discovery of a ‘New Species’by Wakefield Press, 1 The Parade West, Kent Town, South
Australia, 5067
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Notice:
Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used
only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file
ISBN 978-1-59874-572-6 paperback
ISBN 978-1-59874-571-9 hardcover
This book is dedicated in general to seekers
of scientific truth, and in particular to
Professor Teuku Jacob (1930–2007)
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Contents
Foreword by Phillip V. Tobias / ix
Acknowledgements / xii
1 RefleCting on oRigins / 1
2 thinking small / 28
3 null hypotheses and faiRytales / 61
4 a lot to Chew oveR / 69
5 Random skulduggeRy / 85
6 Collegiality and line management / 99
7 the moRe things Change / 112
8 degRees of sepaRation and
laboRatoRy slaves / 128
9 out of sight, out of mind / 143
10 moRe of the same / 152
11 pseudo-sCienCe and bRuised egos / 163
12 the debate that isn’t / 169
13 the sum of the paRts / 193
Authors’ Note / 199
Bibliography / 201
Index / 209
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FOREWORD
The first edition of this book was written in late 2007. Since then, further
debate and research have taken place regarding the skeletal material exca-
vated on Flores in 2004, although the general nature of the debate and its
broader context remain unchanged. This edition updates developments in
the years since. The Foreword to the original edition follows: the principal
sentiments still apply.
The Authors
This is the extraordinary tale of the last three years in the history of
humankind’s evolution. The island of Flores, one of thousands of
islands that comprise Indonesia, was the scene of some human
discoveries in the cave of the Liang Bua. An Australian archaeolo-
gist, who had previously worked in Flores, led the excavation team
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