While the basic pattern of hominid evolution is well documented, the recent evolutionary history of homo sapiens is less clear. Application of molecular genetics techniques has great potential for resolving issues over this period, but as the complexity of such data increases, the quantitative methods used for its analysis are becoming more important. This phase is also one of the richest for biological and behavioural evidence derived from both fossils and archaeology. The book will contain expository and state-of-the-art research contributions from experts in these diverse areas, covering data and its interpretation, and experimental and analytical techniques.

Provides a broad snapshot of recent findings showing how the environment and genes influence behavior The great debate of nature versus nurture rages on — but our understanding of the genetic basis of many behaviors has expanded over the last decade, and there is now very good evidence showing that seemingly complex behaviours can have relatively simple genetic underpinnings, but also that most behaviours have very complicated genetic and environmental architecture. Studies have also clearly shown that behaviors, and other traits, are influenced not just by genes and the environment, but also by the statistical interaction between the two. This book aims to end the nature versus nurture argument by showing that behaviors are nature and nurture and the interaction between the two, and by illustrating how single genes can explain some of the variation in behaviors even when they are seemingly complex. Genes and Behaviour: Beyond Nature-Nurture puts to rest the nature versus nurture dichotomy, providing an up-to-date synopsis of where we are, how far we've come and where we are headed. It considers the effects of a dual-inheritance of genes and culture, and genes and social environment, and highlights how indirect genetic effects can affect the evolution of behavior. It also examines the effect of non-self genes on the behavior of hosts, shines a light on the nature and nurturing of animal minds and invites us to embrace all the complexity nature and nurture generates, and more. Explores exciting new findings about behavior and where we go from here Features contributions by top scholars of the subject Seeks to end the nature versus nurture debate forever Genes and Behaviour: Beyond Nature-Nurture is a unique, and eye-opening read that will appeal to Ph.D. Students, post-doctoral fellows, and researchers in evolution and behavior. Additionally, the book will also be of interest to geneticists, sociologists and philosophers.

Books such as Richard Dawkins's The Selfish Gene have aroused fierce controversy by arguing for the powerful influence of genes on human behavior. But are we entirely at the mercy of our chromosomes? In Are We Hardwired?, scientists William R. Clark and Michael Grunstein say the answer is both yes--and no. The power and fascination of Are We Hardwired? lie in their explanation of that deceptively simple answer. Using eye-opening examples of genetically identical twins who, though raised in different families, have had remarkably parallel lives, the authors show that indeed roughly half of human behavior can be accounted for by DNA. But the picture is quite complicated. Clark and Grunstein take us on a tour of modern genetics and behavioral science, revealing that few elements of behavior depend upon a single gene; complexes of genes, often across chromosomes, drive most of our heredity-based actions. To illustrate this point, they examine the genetic basis, and quirks, of individual behavioral traits--including aggression, sexuality, mental function, eating disorders, alcoholism, and drug abuse. They show that genes and environment are not opposing forces; heredity shapes how we interpret our surroundings, which in turn changes the very structure of our brain. Clearly we are not simply puppets of either influence. Perhaps most interesting, the book suggests that the source of our ability to choose, to act unexpectedly, may lie in the chaos principle: the most minute differences during activation of a single neuron may lead to utterly unpredictable actions. This masterful account of the nature-nurture controversy--at once provocative and informative--answers some of our oldest questions in unexpected new ways

New edition of a reader developed for an undergraduate anthropology course. The 59 contributions look at genetics, the various interpretations of the early evolution of human behavior, new attempts to link human physical variation to behavioral differences between people, modern evolutionary psychology, and the influences of hormones and the brain on behavior. The emphasis is on providing students with the background information necessary for understanding human universals and the biological bases of the modern social sciences. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.

Over the past century, we have made great strides in reducing rates of disease and enhancing people's general health. Public health measures such as sanitation, improved hygiene, and vaccines; reduced hazards in the workplace; new drugs and clinical procedures; and, more recently, a growing understanding of the human genome have each played a role in extending the duration and raising the quality of human life. But research conducted over the past few decades shows us that this progress, much of which was based on investigating one causative factor at a time—often, through a single discipline or by a narrow range of practitioners—can only go so far. Genes, Behavior, and the Social Environment examines a number of well-described gene-environment interactions, reviews the state of the science in researching such interactions, and recommends priorities not only for research itself but also for its workforce, resource, and infrastructural needs.

Animal Traditions maintains that the assumption that the selection of genes supplies both a sufficient explanation of the evolution and a true description of its course is, despite its almost universal acclaim, wrong. Eytan Avital and Eva Jablonka contend that evolutionary explanations must take into account the well-established fact that in mammals and birds, the transfer of learnt information is both ubiquitous and indispensable. The introduction of the behavioural inheritance system into the Darwinian explanatory scheme enables the authors to offer new interpretations for common behaviours such as maternal behaviours, behavioural conflicts within families, adoption and helping. This approach offers a richer view of heredity and evolution, integrates developmental and evolutionary processes, suggests new lines for research, and provides a constructive alternative to both the selfish gene and meme views of the world. It will make stimulating reading for all those interested in evolutionary biology, sociobiology, behavioural ecology and psychology.

The Arthur M. Sackler Colloquia of the National Academy of Sciences address scientific topics of broad and current interest, cutting across the boundaries of traditional disciplines. Each year, four or five such colloquia are scheduled, typically two days in length and international in scope. Colloquia are organized by a member of the Academy, often with the assistance of an organizing committee, and feature presentations by leading scientists in the field and discussions with a hundred or more researchers with an interest in the topic. Colloquia presentations are recorded and posted on the National Academy of Sciences Sackler colloquia website and published on CD-ROM. These Colloquia are made possible by a generous gift from Mrs. Jill Sackler, in memory of her husband, Arthur M. Sackler.

Do our genes determine our behavior? Do humans occupy a unique position in evolution? To clarify these provoking questions, the author takes the reader on an ambitious and entertaining journey through a variety of scientific disciplines. In doing so, he creates an image of human evolution that argues that our entire individual knowledge is determined - to the smallest detail - by phylogeny. A provoking and controversial analysis of the theory of our inability to learn something new and of the extent to which our behavior is determined by our genes.

Originally published in 1987, Human Evolution looks at theories of the evolution of human behaviour (contemporary at the time of publication). The book reviews competing theories of psychological and social evolution and provides a detailed historical introduction to the subject. A key theoretical concern which emerges in the book includes the psychological significance of the human evolution issue itself. The period of human evolution covered ranges from the demise of the Miocene hominoids, to the emergence of ‘civilization’. Topics covered include: functions of ‘origin myths’, history of the study of human evolution, methods and data-bases, theories of the nature of ‘hominisation’, origins of bipedalism, language and tool-use, theories of social evolution, theories of cave art and the spread of Homo sapiens to America and Australia.