Evolution / Evolutionary biology Books

Book SynopsisGroundbreaking mathematician Gregory Chaitin gives us the first book to posit that we can prove how Darwin’s theory of evolution works on a mathematical level. For years it has been received wisdom among most scientists that, just as Darwin claimed, all of the Earth’s life-forms evolved by blind chance. But does Darwin’s theory function on a purely mathematical level? Has there been enough time for evolution to produce the remarkable biological diversity we see around us? It’s a question no one has yet answered—in fact, no one has attempted to answer it until now. In this illuminating and provocative book, Gregory Chaitin elucidates the mathematical scheme he’s developed that can explain life itself, and examines the works of mathematical pioneers John von Neumann and Alan Turing through the lens of biology. Fascinating and thought-provoking, Proving Darwin makes clear how biology may have found its greatest ally in mathematics

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Book SynopsisNew in paperback (originally published as Human by Design): At the cutting edge of science and spirituality, New York Times best-selling author Gregg Braden explains that evolution is not the whole story of humanity--and offers a new understanding of our origins that can help us tap the extraordinary abilities we already have.What would it mean to discover we're designed to live extraordinary lives of self-healing, longevity, and deep intuition? Is it possible that the advanced awareness achieved by monks, nuns, and mystics--considered rare in the past--is actually meant to be a normal part of our daily lives? In this revelatory book, now available for the first time in paperback, five-time New York Times best-selling author and 2018 Templeton Award nominee Gregg Braden explains that we no longer need to ask these questions as What if? Recent discoveries ranging from human evolution and genetics to the new science of neuro-cardiology (the bri

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Book SynopsisGenes, Culture, and Human Evolution: A Synthesisis a textbook on human evolution that offers students a unique combination of cultural anthropology and genetics. Written by two geneticistsincluding a world-renowned scientist and founder of the Human Genome Diversity Projectand a socio-cultural anthropologist. Based on recent findings in genetics and anthropology that indicate the analysis of human culture and evolution demands an integration of these fields of study. Focuses on evolutionor, rather, co-evolutionviewed from the standpoint of genes and culture, and their inescapable interactions. Unifies cultural and genetic concepts rather than rehashing nonempirical sociobiological musings. Demonstrates that empirical genetic evidence, based on modern DNA analysis and population studies, provides an excellent foundation for understanding human cultural diversity. Trade Review"This book lives up to its title. It provides an invigorating and well-informed overview of human genetic and cultural evolution, one that transcends the disciplinary boundaries that become an irrelevance to a full understanding of where we come from, out nature and origins." (Anthropos, 2009) "The important branch of evolutionary anthropology that concentrates on the co-evolution of genes and culture has been in need of its definitive textbook. Here it has found its perfect expression in one of those rare texts that is also a grand synthesis and a contribution in its own right."—Robin Fox, University Professor of Social Theory, Rutgers University "Stone and Lurquin have integrated what we know about bones, genes, and languages to produce a uniquely valuable account. By focusing on the science of human evolution, the authors avoid the stultifying debates about what is culture and does it evolve. With this volume, evolutionary anthropology becomes a coherent discipline accessible to all students and scholars in the human sciences."—Marc Feldman, Stanford University "The first textbook that uses evolutionary theory to combine the study of human culture and genetics." (Australian Journal of Anthropology)Table of ContentsFigures. Plates. Preface. Introduction by L. Luca Cavalli-Sforza. 1. Genetic and Cultural Theory: A Brief Overview. 2. Human Descent and Paleoanthropology. 3. Foundations of Classical and Molecular Genetics. 4. Genetics as a Key to Human Origins and Prehistory. 5. Fundamentals of Human Evolution: Mutation and Natural Selection. 6. Fundamentals of Human Evolution: Drift, Migration, and Quantitative Analysis of Human Genetic Diversity. 7. Cultural Evolution. 8. Geography of Human Genes and Correlation with Languages. 9. The Prehistory of Human Genes. 10. Voyages: Prehistoric Human Expansions. 11. The Neolithic Transition in Europe and the Peopling of the Americas. 12. Genes, Kinship, and Identity. 13. Cultural Clines, Clades, Cycles, and Waves: The Process of Cultural Evolution. 14. Genes and Culture in Medicine. General Conclusion. Appendix 1. The Denaturing High Performance Liquid Chromatography (DHPLC) Technique. Appendix 2. The Hardy–Weinberg Theorem. Appendix 3. A Simulation of Drift. Appendix 4. The Diversification of Languages. Notes. Key References. Glossary. Index.

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Trade Review[W]ritten in a very accessible and easy-to-read style . . . this book would be appropriate for libraries serving psychology departments that focus on evolutionary psychology. * ARBA *Table of ContentsPreface Part I: Understanding Beauty 1. Defining Beauty 2. The Benefits of Beauty 3. Buying Beauty 4. Changes in Beauty Trends over Time 5. Evolution's Impact on Modern Attraction: The Interaction of Genes and Environment 6. The Impact of Attractiveness on Behavior and Relationship Satisfaction 7. Psychological Effects of the Preoccupation with Beauty Part II: Beauty from Head to Toe Head, Facial, and Body Hair Skin Face Shape and Structure Eyes Nose Ears Lips Teeth Hands Body Shape and Proportions Breasts and Buttocks Muscularity Inguinal Crease Male Genitalia Feet Hormonal Influences on Attraction Psychological Traits Glossary References and Further Reading Index

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Book SynopsisEvolution of the Human Brain.- Why the Brain Works the Way it Does: Evolution and Cognition from Movement.- The and.- The.- The.- The and the Evolution of the Cerebral Cortex.- The Cerebral Cortex.- Sings and Symptoms of Neurobehavioral Disorders of Childhood.- Causation from an Evolutionary Perspective.- Therapeutic Theory and Strategy.Table of ContentsEvolution of the Human Brain.- Why the Brain Works the Way it Does: Evolution and Cognition from Movement.- The and.- The.- The.- The and the Evolution of the Cerebral Cortex.- The Cerebral Cortex.- Sings and Symptoms of Neurobehavioral Disorders of Childhood.- Causation from an Evolutionary Perspective.- Therapeutic Theory and Strategy.

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Book SynopsisIt has been twelve years since a work relating to the long-tailed African monkeys known as the guenons has been published and fifteen years have passed since the last major scientific symposium was held that was solely dedicated to current research on members of this monkey group living in the wild. Since that time, new guenon species and subspecies have been discovered, previously unstudied guenon species have become the subject of long-term research projects, and knowledge of the more well-known guenon species has greatly increased. This volume presents novel information and keen insight on research previously studied and newly discovered. A wide range of topics related to guenon biology is presented, including evolution, taxonomy, biogeography, reproductive physiology, social and positional behavior, ecology, and conservation. Composed of 26 chapters compiled by 47 authors, maTrade Review`The Guenons is encyclopedic in its coverage of this remarkably diverse group of primates. From chapters on evolutionary history, behavior, ecology, and conservation, The Guenons also offers a window into the world of primatology, as seen through the lenses of these monkeys and the researchers who study them. Glenn and Cords should be commended for assembling such an impressive set of contributions from so many guenon experts. This volume will be the standard reference on the guenons for many years to come.' Karen B. Strier, University of Wisconsin-Madison `This book is a cornucopia of recently-gathered knowledge about the natural history of Africas most species-rich group of anthropoids. The volume is particularly strong on behavioral ecology, but it also presents important new evolutionary analyses and, in a useful section on conservation, makes practical suggestions to address the growing threats posed to the survival of African primates by ever-increasing habitat loss and hunting.' John F. Oates, Hunter College `Guenons are one of the most specifically diverse groups of living primates, but the true extent of their behavioral, ecological, and phylogenetic diversity has remained largely unappreciated. This exciting volume describes many new aspects of guenon biology. The authors use the diversity of guenons to address, and often question, several major tenets of primate socioecology. Most significantly, this volume thoroughly demolishes the view that guenons are a uniform radiation.' John G. Fleagle, State University of New York at Stony Brook `A comprehensive and valuable collection and an essential reference for any primatologists. Highly recommended.' L. Swedell, CUNY Queens College in Choice, November 2003 Table of ContentsList of Contributors. Preface. Part I: Evolutionary Biology and Biogeography. 1. The Guenons: An Overview of Taxonomy and Diversity; T.M. Butynski. 2. Y-chromosomal Window onto the History of Terrestrial Adaptation in the Cercopithecini; A.J. Tosi, et al. 3. Molecular Timescale and Gene Tree Incongruence in the Guenons; T. Disotell, R. Raaum. 4. Phylogeny of the Cercopithecus lhoesti Group Revisited: Combining Multiple Character sets; J.-P. Gautier, et al. 5. Terrestriality and the Maintenance of the Disjunct Geographical Distribution in the lhoesti group; B. Kaplin. 6. A Biogeographical Analysis of Central African Guenons; M. Colyn, P. Deleporte. 7. Hybridization Between Red-tailed Monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius) and Blue Monkeys (C. mitis) in East African forests; K. Detwiler. 8. Genetic Study of Translocated Guenons: Cercopithecus mona on Grenada; K.A. Horsburgh, et al. Part II: Behavior. 9. Diversity of Guenon Positional Behavior; W.S. McGraw. 10. Unique Behavior of Mona Monkeys, Cercopithecus mona: All-male Groups and Copulation Calls; M.E. Glenn, et al. 11. Group Fission in Red-tailed Guenons (Cercopithecus ascanius) in the Kibale National Park, Uganda; T. Windfelder, J.S. Lwanga. 12. Interindividual Proximity and Surveillance of Associates in Comparative Perspective; A. Treves, P. Baguma. 13. Why Vervets (Cercopithecus aethiops) Live in Multi-male Groups; L.A. Isbell, et al. 14. When are There Influxes in Blue Monkey Groups? M. Cords. 15. Costs and Benefits of Alternative Mating Strategies in Samango Monkey Males; M.C. Macleod, et al. 16. Female Reproductive Endocrinology in Wild Blue Monkeys: a Preliminary Assessment and Discussion of Potential Adaptive Functions; K. Pazol, et al. 17. Grooming and Social Cohesion in Patas Monkeys and Other Female-bonded Guenons; J. Chism, W. Rogers. 18. Development of Mother-infant Relationships and Infant Behavior in Wild Blue Monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis); S. Förster, M. Cords. 19. Influence of Foraging Adaptations on Play Activity in Red-tailed and Blue Monkeys with Comparisons to Colobus Monkey; E.A. Worch. 20. Effects of Natural and Sexual Selection on the Evolution of Guenon Loud Calls; K. Zuberbühler. Part III: Ecology. 21. Resource Switching in Guenons: a Community Analysis of Dietary Flexiblity; J. Lambert. 22. Variation in the Diet of Cercopithecus species: Differences Within Forests, Among Forests and Across Species; C.A. Chapman, et al. 23. Diet of the Roloway Monkey, Cercopithecus diana roloway, in Bia National Park, Ghana; S. Hunt Curtin. Part IV: Conservation. 24. Conservation of Fragmented Populations of Cercopithecus mitis in South Africa: the Role of Reintroduction, Corridors and Metapopulation Ecology; M.J. Lawes. 25. Assessing Extinction Risk in Cercopithecus monkeys; T. Ukizintambara, C. Thebaud. 26. Conservation of the Guenons: An Overview of Status, Threats, and Recommendations; T.M. Butynski. Editors' Conclusion. Literature Cited. Index.

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Book SynopsisThis Human Evolutionary Biology Lab Manual assembles several valuable references into one convenient text. Created specifically with the non-specialist in mind, this manual offers focused reviews of key concepts, vocabulary terms and lab activities designed to complement in-class lecture material. Written by faculty members with extensive teaching and research experience across multiple physical anthropology sub disciplines, it follows an intuitive format designed to optimize student learning.Practical features, like dedicated note-taking sections and a variety of supplementary charts, insure students are able to maximize the manual's use as an additional study aid and lab companion. Arranged by topic, the manual is easy to navigate and the material remains accessible despite its specialized content. Perforated pages also provide clean removal of lab exercises for easy grading by instructors and more flexibility for students.

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Book SynopsisHow did human beings acquire imaginations that can conjure up untrue possibilities? How did the Universe become self-aware? In The Runes of Evolution, Simon Conway Morris revitalizes the study of evolution from the perspective of convergence, providing us with compelling new evidence to support the mounting scientific view that the history of life is far more predictable than once thought. A leading evolutionary biologist at the University of Cambridge, Conway Morris came into international prominence for his work on the Cambrian explosion (especially fossils of the Burgess Shale) and evolutionary convergence, which is the process whereby organisms not closely related (not monophyletic), independently evolve similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches. In The Runes of Evolution, he illustrates how the ubiquity of convergence hints at an underlying framework whereby many outcomes, not least brains and intelligence, are virtually guaranteed on any Earth-like planet. Conway Morris also emphasizes how much of the complexity of advanced biological systems is inherent in microbial forms. By casting a wider net, The Runes of Evolution explores many neglected evolutionary questions. Some are remarkably general. Why, for example, are convergences such as parasitism, carnivory, and nitrogen fixation in plants concentrated in particular taxonomic hot spots? Why do certain groups have a particular propensity to evolve toward particular states? Some questions lead to unexpected evolutionary insights: If bees sleep (as they do), do they dream? Why is that insect copulating with an orchid? Why have sponges evolved a system of fiber optics? What do mantis shrimps and submarines have in common? If dinosaurs had not gone extinct what would have happened next? Will a saber-toothed cat ever re-evolve? Cona Morris observes: “Even amongst the mammals, let alone the entire tree of life, humans represent one minute twig of a vast (and largely fossilized) arborescence. Every living species is a linear descendant of an immense string of now-vanished ancestors, but evolution itself is the very reverse of linear. Rather it is endlessly exploratory, probing the vast spaces of biological hyperspace. Indeed this book is a celebration of how our world is (and was) populated by a riot of forms, a coruscating tapestry of life.” The Runes of Evolution is the most definitive synthesis of evolutionary convergence to be published to date.Trade Review"The runes of evolution spell out a surprising message: Some evolutionary outcomes are virtually inevitable. Or, so goes the argument of Cambridge palaeontologist Simon Conway Morris, resting on two key premises: Evolution repeats itself in unexpected ways: Very different lineages evolve to have similar traits. Conway Morris calls this 'convergence.' Precursors of complex traits, such as a nervous system, are found in much simpler organisms. Conway Morris calls this 'evolutionary inherency.' The premises are supported with a wealth of data—thousands of references across the book’s 27 chapters. The intriguing tale is told by way of a journey over many different areas in which we find convergence and inherency, with touches of humour along the way." —Zachary Ardern, BioLogos“Conway Morris’s exploration of the phenomenon of convergence in biological evolution is rife with implications for Christian theology. It lends credence to a Christian view of God’s providential action in history, and it supports an ecological view of the interdependence of all things in God’s creation. It also fits with a scriptural account of a story-shaped world.” —Ian Curran, Christian Century "This is a very good book. The author is most effective when presenting his evidence as both glaringly obvious and unfairly maligned. Not everyone will like the volume’s familiar tone, but the overall excellence of the writing is hard to deny. Many of the book’s grandest ideas were already covered in his previous publications, but The Runes of Evolution is nevertheless Conway Morris’ most comprehensive statement on convergence to date, and is thus well worth reading." —Abraham H. Gibson, Quarterly Review of Biology (September 2017)This book was presumably written by Morris more for fellow natural scientists than for philosophers and theologians, but in each case so as to prove that his hypothesis of ongoing convergence in evolution is not a series of fortuitous coinci-dences but empirical evidence of established patterns or in-built mechanisms within the evolutionary process. Three hundred pages of text with double columns of print on each page and 150 pages of endnotes make that clear. Names of different species, genera, families, orders, classes, and so on turn up on virtually every page so that the nonprofessional reader ends up hunting for summary statements by Morris at the end of each major subdivision within the 26 chapters. Yet despite its obvious density and degree of detail for the ordinary reader, the implications of this book for philosophical/theological understanding of the God–world relationship and for the classic distinction between the natural and the supernatural within creation are in my judgment very significant. —Joseph A. Bracken, SJ, Xavier University, Cincinnati

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Book SynopsisThere is a saying among off-world people that is based on eons of experience and wisdom. It goes: There is no point in trying to change the world. Instead, change the people. They are the ones who make the world. Accompanying this dictum is a matching bit of advice that goes: When a new world is being born, help the people to become new humans. A new world is being born here, and those who want to survive and thrive will have to become new humans. We cannot do this without deeply assessing who and how we are and what we want our lives to be. The Revival was written to help us walk the path to that new world, hopefully a 4th dimensional system. The paradigm shift now occurring on our planet is one of major proportions, one in which every aspect of life is changing. The task now in front of us will be to come together in conversations, take responsibility for our lives, assess the reality we have been living in for many years, and navigate the changes with our eyes on the future. We all know that change over time is continuous. We also know that trying to force change is very difficult when things are running smoothly and quietly. It is during periods of upheaval and challenge that windows of opportunity open and old habits and routines come to an end. These are the moments to embrace new structures in every sector of life from food, education, governance, and medicine to science, the arts, technology, and our view of the planet and solar system. These are the times to seize the day, make new decisions, try new things, introduce new thinking, and become a new human living in a new and revitalized reality system on Planet Earth. The Revival is about taking the opportunity to explore yourself, what you contribute, how you think, what your attitudes and biases are, The goal is to make you more conscious of what we are doing and what we could be doing, must be doing. Join in and become a new human!   

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Book SynopsisThese pages include the final edition of Charles Darwin’s groundbreaking work that introduced the theory of evolution by means of natural selection.First published in 1859, Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species introduced the scientific theory of evolution by means of natural selection, a revolutionary idea at the time. Fiercely debated on its release, Darwin’s famous work was revised several times over the following decade, partly to refute the scientific and religious objections of the author’s contemporaries. In this sixth edition of On the Origin of Species, Darwin lays out his theory by citing his studies done in the Galápagos aboard the HMS Beagle in the 1830s, as well as his follow-up research over the ensuing two decades. 

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