Evolution for Everyone

Zusatztext "In this age of mounting mistrust between science and religion in American societyespecially in America's classroomsDavid Sloan Wilson's Evolution for Everyone comes as a breath of fresh air. Without stooping to condemn those whose religious beliefs lead them to reject evolution! Wilson clearly but gently shows how evolution is essential to understanding all aspects of our daily lives. Wilson knows the power of a good storyand most of his 36 chapters are short! riveting accounts of evolution and the scientists who have puzzled out the intricacies! and importance! of understanding evolution in human life. Evolution for Everyone fills a gap in understanding evolution! and will help in the much-needed bridge building across the divide that has threatened educational values in recent years." Niles Eldredge! Division of Paleontology The American Museum of Natural History New York! New York " Evolution for Everyone is a remarkable contribution. No other author has managed to combine mastery of the subject with such a clear and interesting explanation of what it all means for human self-understanding. Aimed at the general reader! yet peppered with ideas original enough to engage scholars! it is truly a book for our time. " Edward O. Wilson! Pulitzer Prize-winning author of On Human Nature "A mind-stretching and unforgettable synthesis of biology! psychology! religion! and politics! this engrossing story is evolutionary biology at its very best." Martin Seligman! author Learned Optimism and Authentic Happiness "There tend to be two types of science books! those for professional scientists and those for the general public. Every once in awhile a book comes along that bridges this gap! and David Sloan Wilson's Evolution for Everyone is just such a booka well written! page-turning narrative that can be enjoyed by anyone! that also contains original ideas that simply must be read by professional scientists because they push the science forward. I was amazed by how much new ground Wilson covers! how many new ideas he presents! so in this case "everyone" means just that: general readers and professional scientists alike." Michael Shermer! Publisher of Skeptic magazine! columnist for Scientific American ! and the author of Why Darwin Matters Evolution for Everyone is tremendous fun. But don't be deceived. David Sloan Wilson is a master biologist! who just happens to be a wonderful story teller. Sarah B. Hrdy! author of Mother Nature Wilson does for evolution what Steve Levitt does for economics in his book Freakonomics .... Evolution for Everyone is full of gripping stories about the natural world! related with humor and a rare flair for language. Chicago Sun Times "With a clear passion for the subject! Wilson shows that understanding evolution is easy! even intuitiveit really is for everyone. If only everyone would read his book." New Scientist Should be read by everyone interested in the natural world. Buffalo News Informationen zum Autor David Sloan Wilson Klappentext With stories that entertain as much as they inform, renowned evolutionist David Sloan Wilson outlines the basic principles of evolution and shows how, when properly understood, they can illuminate the length and breadth of creation, from the origin of life to the nature of religion. What is the biological reason for gossip? For laughter? For the creation of art? Why do dogs have curly tails? What can microbes tell us about morality? These and many other questions are tackled by Wilson in this witty and groundbreaking new book. Now everyone can move beyond the sterile debates about creationism and intelligent ...

Autorentext

David Sloan Wilson

Klappentext

With stories that entertain as much as they inform, renowned evolutionist David Sloan Wilson outlines the basic principles of evolution and shows how, when properly understood, they can illuminate the length and breadth of creation, from the origin of life to the nature of religion.

What is the biological reason for gossip? For laughter? For the creation of art? Why do dogs have curly tails? What can microbes tell us about morality?

These and many other questions are tackled by Wilson in this witty and groundbreaking new book. Now everyone can move beyond the sterile debates about creationism and intelligent design to share Darwin's panoramic view of animal and human life, seamlessly connected to each other.

Evolution, as Wilson explains, is not just about dinosaurs and human origins, but about why all species behave as they do-from beetles that devour their own young, to bees that function as a collective brain, to dogs that are smarter in some respects than our closest ape relatives. And basic evolutionary principles are also the foundation for humanity's capacity for symbolic thought, culture, and morality.

In example after example, Wilson sheds new light on Darwin' s grand theory and how it can be applied to daily life. By turns thoughtful, provocative, and daringly funny, Evolution for Everyone addresses some of the deepest philosophical and social issues of this or any age. In helping us come to a deeper understanding of human beings and our place in the world, it might also help us to improve that world.

Leseprobe
1 The Future Can Differ from the PastThis is a book of tall claims about evolution: that it can become uncontroversial; that the basic principles are easy to learn; that everyone should want to learn them, once their implications are understood; that evolution and religion, those old enemies who currently occupy opposite corners of human thought, can be brought harmoniously together.Can these claims possibly be true? Isn’t evolution the most controversial theory the world has ever seen? Since it’s a scientific subject, isn’t it hard to learn? If the implications are benign, then why all the fear and trembling? And how on earth can the old enemies of evolution and religion do anything other than come out of their opposite corners fighting?I might be an optimist, but I am not naive. Allow me to introduce myself: I am an evolutionist, which means that I use the principles of evolution to understand the world around me. I would be an evolutionary biologist if I restricted myself to the topics typically associated with biology, but I include all things human along with the rest of life. That makes me an evolutionist without any qualifiers. I and my fellow evolutionists study the length and breadth of creation, from the origin of life to religion. I therefore have a pretty good idea of what people think about evolution, and I can report that the situation is much worse than you probably think. Let me show you how bad it is before explaining why I remain confident about accomplishing the objectives of this book.Most people are familiar with the reluctance of the general public to accept the theory of evolution, especially in the United States of America. According to the most recent Harris Poll, 54 percent of U.S. adults believe that humans did not develop from earlier species. That is up from 46 percent in 1994. Rejection of evolution extends to beliefs about the origin of other species, the fossil record as evidence for evolution, and the constant refrain that evolution is “just a theory.”To make matters worse, most people who do accept evolutionary theory don’t use it to understand the world around them. For them it’s about dinosaurs, fossils, and humans evolving from apes, not the current environment or human condition. The polls don’t measure the fraction of people who relate evolution to their daily lives, but it would be minuscule.It’s easy for scientists and intellectuals to smile at the ignorance of religious believers and the general public, but the fact is that they’re not much better. The Ivory Tower would be more aptly named the Ivory Archipelago. It consists of hundreds of isolated subjects, …