Ends of the Earth

Journeys to the Polar Regions in Search of Life, the Cosmos, and Our Future

De: Neil Shubin

Narrado por: Fred Berman

The bestselling author of Your Inner Fish takes listeners on an epic adventure to the North and South Poles to reveal the secrets locked in the ice about life, the cosmos, and our planet’s future.

“Urgent [and] prescient…The book captures Shubin’s reverence for both the beauty and the mysteries hidden in the cold, barren tundra.”—The New Yorker

Renowned scientist Neil Shubin has made extraordinary discoveries by leading scientific expeditions to the sweeping ice landscapes of the Arctic and Antarctic. He’s survived polar storms, traveled in temperatures that can freeze flesh in seconds, and worked hundreds of miles from the nearest humans, all to deepen our understanding of our world.

Written with infectious enthusiasm and irresistible curiosity, Ends of the Earth blends travel writing, science, and history in a book brimming with surprising and wonderful discoveries. Shubin retraces his steps on a “dinosaur dance floor,” showing us where these beasts had populated the once tropical lands at the poles. He takes listeners meteor hunting, as meteorites preserved in the ice can be older than our planet and can tell us about our galaxy’s formation. Listeners also encounter insects and fish that develop their own anti-freeze, and aquatic life in ancient lakes hidden miles under the ice that haven’t seen the surface in centuries. It turns out that explorers and scientists have found these extreme environments as prime ground for making scientific breakthroughs across a vast range of knowledge.

Shubin shares unforgettable moments from centuries of expeditions to reveal just how far scientists will go to understand polar regions. In the end, what happens at the poles does not stay in the poles—the ends of the earth offer profound stories that will forever change our view of life and the entire planet.

©2025 Neil Shubin (P)2025 Penguin Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

"In this comprehensive yet concise history of modern polar exploration, Shubin, a professor of evolutionary biology, mixes urgent scientific findings about glaciers and sea-level rise with prescient geopolitical histories of Arctic territorial disputes. Throughout, Shubin relates stories from his own field expeditions: a pilot lands a propeller plane in an icy valley; a crew member stumbles on kaleidoscopic hues of blue while spelunking in Antarctic crevasses; Shubin’s team discovers a field of dinosaur footprints that had been miraculously preserved under layers of ice. Such descriptions enliven the book, and capture Shubin’s reverence for both the beauty and the mysteries hidden in the cold, barren tundra."—The New Yorker

"Paleontologist Neil Shubin's Ends of the Earth offers readers a comprehensive overview of the geology, oceanography, glaciology, geopolitics, and climatology of the planet's polar regions: Antarctica and the Arctic. Shubin writes clearly and understandably about various complex topics, incorporating stories about his own fieldwork experiences in these places and arguing that polar science offers a "lens to see the natural world and the extraordinary ways we have come to know it.""—Science

"Shubin brings the polar world to life through a combination of travel and immersive science writing.... As Shubin demonstrates in Ends of the Earth, the stark polar regions present extreme challenges not only to humans, but to all living things. Yet, through adaptation, life finds a way."
—Undark Magazine

Excellent scientific view of the poles

I loved that Dr. Shubin writes about often overlooked women scientists and indigenous communities living in polar regions. I was unaware of the active scramble for the Arctic among various nations and the magnitude of change happening in glaciers even at the poles. I really enjoyed the book and learned a lot.

not bad but not the most interesting subjects

it's a bit long winded and the book could've covered everything in half the length. the early explorers of antarctica were not heroes like the author made them sound like. they went there because of their own volitions, and their cruelty of using dogs as slaves to carry supplies and then killing and eating them one by one was beyond inhumane, unethical and despicable. the only useful and interesting knowledge acquired from antarctica came from recent, more humane visits there. even then, the part about the meteorites and how they move went on for a long time. the details of their studies were just not that interesting, but the results were kinda interesting. overall it's just ok and i learned very little new knowledge.