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The Oxford Handbook of Evolution, Biology, and Society by
Evolution, biology, and society is a catch-all phrase encompassing any scholarly work that utilizes evolutionary theory and/or biological or behavioral genetic methods in the study of the human social group, and The Oxford Handbook of Evolution, Biology, and Society contains an much neededoverview of research in the area by sociologists and other social scientists. The examined topics cover a wide variety of issues, including the origins of social solidarity; religious beliefs; sex differences; gender inequality; determinants of human happiness; the nature of social stratificationand inequality and its effects; identity, status, and other group processes; race, ethnicity, and race discrimination; fertility and family processes; crime and deviance; and cultural and social change.The scholars whose work is presented in this volume come from a variety of disciplines in addition to sociology, including psychology, political science, and criminology. Yet, as the essays in this volume demonstrate, the potential of theory and methods from biology for illuminating social phenomenais clear, and sociologists stand to gain from learning more about them and using them in their own work. The theory focuses on evolution by natural selection, the primary paradigm of the biological sciences, while the methods include the statistical analyses sociologists are familiar with, as wellas other methods that they may not be familiar with, such as behavioral genetic methods, methods for including genetic factors in statistical analyses, gene-wide association studies, candidate gene studies, and methods for testing levels of hormones and other biochemicals in blood and saliva andincluding these factors in analyses.This work will be of interest to any sociologist with an interest in exploring the interaction of biological and sociological processes. As an introduction to the field it is useful for teaching upper-level or graduate students in sociology or a related social science.
Unsolved Problems in Ecology by
Leading ecologists discuss some of the most compelling open questions in the field today Unsolved Problems in Ecology brings together many of the world's leading ecologists to discuss the most fundamental research questions confronting the field today. This diverse and thought-provoking collection of essays spans virtually all of the key subfields of the discipline, from behavioral and evolutionary ecology to population biology, community ecology, ecosystem ecology, disease ecology, and conservation biology. These essays are intended to stoke curiosity, challenge prevailing wisdom, and provoke new ways of thinking about ecology in light of new technologies and unprecedented environmental challenges brought on by climate and land-use change. Authoritative and accessible, Unsolved Problems in Ecology is ideal for graduate students in the early stages of their scientific careers and an essential resource for seasoned ecologists looking for exciting new directions to take their research. Sheds light on modern ecology's most important and compelling open questions Features thought-provoking contributions from more than two dozen world-class ecologists Covers behavior, evolution, communities, ecosystems, resource management, and more Discusses ways to raise the financial and intellectual profile of the discipline An invaluable resource for graduate students as well as seasoned ecologists
Life's Engines by
The marvelous microbes that made life on Earth possible and support our very existence For almost four billion years, microbes had the primordial oceans all to themselves. The stewards of Earth, these organisms transformed the chemistry of our planet to make it habitable for plants, animals, and us. Life's Engines takes readers deep into the microscopic world to explore how these marvelous creatures made life on Earth possible--and how human life today would cease to exist without them. Paul Falkowski looks "under the hood" of microbes to find the engines of life, the actual working parts that do the biochemical heavy lifting for every living organism on Earth. With insight and humor, he explains how these miniature engines are built--and how they have been appropriated by and assembled like Lego sets within every creature that walks, swims, or flies. Falkowski shows how evolution works to maintain this core machinery of life, and how we and other animals are veritable conglomerations of microbes. A vibrantly entertaining book about the microbes that support our very existence, Life's Engines will inspire wonder about these elegantly complex nanomachines that have driven life since its origin. It also issues a timely warning about the dangers of tinkering with that machinery to make it more "efficient" at meeting the ever-growing demands of humans in the coming century.
Extended Heredity by
How genes are not the only basis of heredity--and what this means for evolution, human life, and disease For much of the twentieth century it was assumed that genes alone mediate the transmission of biological information across generations and provide the raw material for natural selection. In Extended Heredity, leading evolutionary biologists Russell Bonduriansky and Troy Day challenge this premise. Drawing on the latest research, they demonstrate that what happens during our lifetimes--and even our grandparents' and great-grandparents' lifetimes--can influence the features of our descendants. On the basis of these discoveries, Bonduriansky and Day develop an extended concept of heredity that upends ideas about how traits can and cannot be transmitted across generations. By examining the history of the gene-centered view in modern biology and reassessing fundamental tenets of evolutionary theory, Bonduriansky and Day show that nongenetic inheritance--involving epigenetic, environmental, behavioral, and cultural factors--could play an important role in evolution. The discovery of nongenetic inheritance therefore has major implications for key questions in evolutionary biology, as well as human health. Extended Heredity reappraises long-held ideas and opens the door to a new understanding of inheritance and evolution.
Rethinking Evolution: the Revolution That's Hiding in Plain Sight by
Rethinking Evolution links Darwin's early insights to the molecular realm inside living cells. This updated evolutionary synthesis provides an accessible explanation for biological complexity that cuts through the confusion surrounding evolutionary theory in a practical way.In addition to a wide-ranging survey of proposed updates to the modern synthesis, this title provides extraordinary new insights including emergent evolutionary potential and the generative phenotype. Drawing on well-characterized empirical facts, Rethinking Evolution transcends classical Darwinian natural selection while retaining those core principles that have stood the test of time.The updated synthesis brings a broad spectrum of specialized research together to provide a more plausible naturalistic explanation for biological evolution than ever before. Perspectives ranging from the role of energy in the origin of life to the networks of protein-DNA interactions that govern multicellular development are woven together in a robust conceptual fabric consistent with 21st century cutting-edge research.Inspired in part by the surprising ways that DNA sequences change -- such as his early discovery of a fundamental mispairing mechanism by which DNA sequences expand -- and drawing on a career's worth of experience both as a research scientist as well as a biology and chemistry tutor -- the author provides an engaging account that is essential reading -- both for the public awareness and understanding of the science of evolution and for students and professionals in the biomedical sciences.
The Story of Genetics, Development and Evolution by
This unique story offers an introductory conversation to genetics, embryology and evolution, taking us on a historical journey of biology through the ages. Using a series of dialogues between the Greek philosopher Democritus and his disciple Alkimos, we travel through time visiting eminent scientists throughout the centuries, from Lazzaro Spallanzani and Theodor Boveri to Francis Crick, Max Perutz and Christiane N sslein-Volhard. We find ourselves at the intersection of competing theories in biology and witness the progression from the debunking the theory of spontaneous generation to the mapping of the genome. Attention is given not only to the great successes in the field but also to the equally important and exciting failures.Originally published in Hungarian, The Story of Genetics, Development and Evolution provides a historical background to the life sciences, with complex scientific concepts stripped down and explained carefully for academics and anyone interested in going back to the roots and philosophies of scientific progress.Translated from: J kely G Master, are you awake? A fictitious dialogue on genetics, development and evolution. 2006, Bratislava: Kalligram
The sixth extinction : an unnatural history
Over the last half billion years, there have been five major mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on Earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around the cataclysm is us. In this book the author tells us why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before. She provides a moving account of the disappearances of various species occurring all around us and traces the evolution of extinction as concept, from its first articulation by Georges Cuvier in revolutionary Paris up to Lyell and Darwin, and through the present day. The sixth extinction is likely to be mankind's most lasting legacy, compelling us to rethink the fundamental question of what it means to be human
A new history of life : the radical new discoveries about the origins and evolution of life on earth
"The history of life on Earth is, in some form or another, known to us all-- or so we think. [This book] offers a provocative new account, based on the latest scientific research, of how modern lifeforms evolved"--Amazon.com
Keeping the wild : against the domestication of earth
Introduction. Lives not our own / Tom Butler -- Part One. Clashing worldviews. Rise of the neo-greens / Paul Kingsnorth ; The conceptual assassination of wilderness / David W. Kidner ; Ptolemaic environmentalism / Eileen Crist ; With friends like these, wilderness and biodiversity do not need enemies / David Johns ; What's so new about the "new conservation"? / Curt Meine ; Conservation in no-man's-land / Claudio Campagna and Daniel Guevara ; The "new conservation" / Michael Soulé -- Part Two. Against domestication. The fable of managed earth / David Ehrenfeld ; Conservation in the Anthropocene / Tim Caro, Jack Darwin, Tavis Forrester, Cynthia Ledoux-Bloom, and Caitlin Wells ; The myth of the humanized pre-Columbian landscape / Dave Foreman ; The future of conservation : an Australian perspective / Brendan Mackey ; Expanding parks, reducing human numbers, and preserving all the wild nature we can : a superior alternative to embracing the Anthropocene era / Philip Cafaro ; Green postmodernism and the attempted highjacking of conservation / Harvey Locke ; Why the working landscape isn't working / George Wuerthner ; Valuing naturalness in the "Anthropocene" : now more than ever / Ned Hettinger -- Part Three. The value of the wild. Wild world / Roderick Frazier Nash ; Living beauty / Sandra Lubarsky ; Wilderness : what and why? / Howie Wolke ; Resistance / Lisi Krall ; An open letter to Major John Wesley Powell / Terry Tempest Williams -- Epilogue. The road to Cape Perpetua / Kathleen Dean Moore