Description

Book Synopsis

Sex is as fascinating to scientists as it is to the rest of us. A vast pool of knowledge, therefore, has been gleaned from research into the nature of sex, from the contentious problem of why the wasteful reproductive process exists at all, to how individuals choose their mates and what traits they find attractive. This fascinating book explores those findings, and their implications for the sexual behaviour of our own species. It uses the Red Queen from Alice in Wonderland' who has to run at full speed to stay where she is as a metaphor for a whole range of sexual behaviours. The book was shortlisted for the 1994 Rhone-Poulenc Prize for Science Books.

Animals and plants evolved sex to fend off parasitic infection. Now look where it has got us. Men want BMWs, power and money in order to pair-bond with women who are blonde, youthful and narrow-waisted a brilliant examination of the scientific debates on the hows and whys of sex and evolution' Independent.



Table of Contents
Human nature; the enigma; the power of parasites; genetic mutiny and gender; the peacock's tale; polygamy and the nature of men; monogamy and the nature of women; sexing the mind; the uses of beauty; the intellectual chess game; the self-domesticated ape.

The Red Queen Sex and the Evolution of Human

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Order before 4pm today for delivery by Fri 19 Dec 2025.

A Paperback / softback by Matt Ridley

2 in stock


    View other formats and editions of The Red Queen Sex and the Evolution of Human by Matt Ridley

    Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
    Publication Date: 06/10/1994
    ISBN13: 9780140167726, 978-0140167726
    ISBN10: 0140167722

    Description

    Book Synopsis

    Sex is as fascinating to scientists as it is to the rest of us. A vast pool of knowledge, therefore, has been gleaned from research into the nature of sex, from the contentious problem of why the wasteful reproductive process exists at all, to how individuals choose their mates and what traits they find attractive. This fascinating book explores those findings, and their implications for the sexual behaviour of our own species. It uses the Red Queen from Alice in Wonderland' who has to run at full speed to stay where she is as a metaphor for a whole range of sexual behaviours. The book was shortlisted for the 1994 Rhone-Poulenc Prize for Science Books.

    Animals and plants evolved sex to fend off parasitic infection. Now look where it has got us. Men want BMWs, power and money in order to pair-bond with women who are blonde, youthful and narrow-waisted a brilliant examination of the scientific debates on the hows and whys of sex and evolution' Independent.



    Table of Contents
    Human nature; the enigma; the power of parasites; genetic mutiny and gender; the peacock's tale; polygamy and the nature of men; monogamy and the nature of women; sexing the mind; the uses of beauty; the intellectual chess game; the self-domesticated ape.

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