The Adapted Mind: Evolutionary Psychology and the Generation of Culture

Book Description

Although researchers have long been aware that the species-typical architecture of the human mind is the product of our evolutionary history, it has only been in the last three decades that advances in such fields as evolutionary biology, cognitive psychology, and paleoanthropology have made the fact of our evolution illuminating. Converging findings from a variety of disciplines are leading to the emergence of a fundamentally new view of the human mind, and with it a new framework for the behavioral and social sciences. First, with the advent of the cognitive revolution, human nature can finally be defined precisely as the set of universal, species-typical information-processing programs that operate beneath the surface of expressed cultural variability. Second, this collection of cognitive programs evolved in the Pleistocene to solve the adaptive problems regularly faced by our hunter-gatherer ancestors--problems such as mate selection, language acquisition, cooperation, and sexual infidelity. Consequently, the traditional view of the mind as a general-purpose computer, tabula rasa, or passive recipient of culture is being replaced by the view that the mind resembles an intricate network of functionally specialized computers, each of which imposes contentful structure on human mental organization and culture. The Adapted Mind explores this new approach--evolutionary psychology--and its implications for a new view of culture.

Customer Reviews:

An important introduction to evolutionary psychology.......2007-03-17

This is one of the earliest texts in the field called Evolutionary Psychology (EP). This specialization evolved from what Edward O. Wilson termed "Sociobiology" in the mid-1970s. EP applies the logic of sociobiology to human psychology. That is, how has natural selection shaped how humans think and make decisions? As editors Leda Cosmides, John Tooby, and Jerome Barkow put it (page 7): "Evolutionary psychology is psychology informed by the fact that the inherited architecture of the human mind is the product of the evolutionary process." The book, in their conceptualization, has two goals (page 3): "The first is to introduce the newly crystallizing field of evolutionary psychology to a wider audience. . .The second goal of this volume is to clarify how this new field. . .supplies the necessary connection between evolutionary biology and the complex, irreducible social and cultural phenomena studied by anthropologists, economists, and historians."

They locate their perspective by juxtaposing evolutionary psychology with what the term "the standard social scientific model." The chapter by Tooby and Cosmides (Chapter 1) outlines this model in much more detail.
As we know, the SSSM insists that, for all practical purposes, human nature - and thus human behavior - is shaped by culture. Put less laconically, the SSSM rests on three cardinal tenets - two of them explicit, the third usually implicit. These are: (1) that humans have no innate behavioral tendencies; (2) that, consequently, human nature is solely the product of learning and socialization (in short, of "nurture"); from which it follows (3) that human nature (and consequently human behavior) is essentially quite malleable (my rendering of the perspective). Of course, evolutionary psychology moves in a different direction, emphasizing the effects of the evolutionary process on human behavior and thinking.

This edited volume includes a series of chapters exploring different aspects of human behavior. The section titles illustrate the variety of topics covered: Section II focuses on cooperation and social exchange, noting that these have evolutionary bases; III examines the psychology of mating and sex; IV looks at parental care and children; V considers perception and language as evolutionary adaptations; VI takes a look at environmental aesthetics (such as evolved responses to landscapes); VII has only one chapter--looking at the evolution of psychodynamic mechanisms. The volume closes with an essay by Jerome Barkow.

Not all readers will be convinced by the arguments raised in this volume. However, it serves an important purpose by unapologetically claiming that we cannot understand much of human psychology (and other social behaviors) without considering human evolution. Indeed, it is hard to complain about this overarching perspective. However, readers may well dispute specific applications of the perspective. In the end, this is a rich volume and will prod the reader to think differently about "human nature."

Evolution from Several Vantages.......2002-06-10

This book is a massive tome on evolutionary factors that influence human behavior. It begins with clarification of the kind of Darwinism the authors appeal to, so that everyone is on the same page, and considers the general psychological foundations of Darwinism on culture.

The book then moves on to discuss cognitive adaptations for social exchange, citing human and non-human examples. The book also includes the evolutionary psychology of mating and sex, examining preferences for mate selection and competition, mechanisms for sexual attraction, and the evolutionary use of women as chattel (something any Old Testament and Quran reader can relate to).

A significant portion of the book is devoted to parental care and children, examining how pregnancy sickness, patterns between twins, maternal-infant vocalizations, and child play in the form of chasing each other are all evolutionary mechanisms that continue to be featured.

Steven Pinker adds an essay on natural language and natural selection; Roger Shepard contributes an essay on the man's perceptual adaptation to the natural world; both of which demonstrate the interconnectedness between perception, language, and adaptation.

The book concludes with some of its most esoteric issues: environmental aesthetics, intrapsychic processes, and the theoretical implications of culural phenomena.

The whole book, while not necessarily over-academic, is ultimately dense reading. Most of the concepts and conceptualizations require mental work to apprehend, while the statistics and empirical evidence are clearly described. While drawing from many disparate areas of evolutionary biology, all the essays find their ultimate significance in how the mind, in particular, has adapted to environmental forces. A demanding, but facinating, read.

A fresh start.......2000-04-26

The argument - and it is an argument - is that human behaviour is strongly influenced by evolved psychological mechanisms, and that those mechanisms are numerous and specific, rather than just one general learning mechanism - ie a human baby comes with an installed operating system and quite a lot of free software, and is definitely not a blank slate. What makes the argument persuasive is the attempt to import the scientific method - hypotheses falsifiable by experiment - to an area previously characterised by mumbojumbo and pseudoscience. Not all the attempts are successful, but as they say it's a start. 100 years late (for psychology) it is saying (a) the brain is an organ so it must have evolved too - let's think about it in a Darwinian fashion and (b) let's try to make pyschology a science not a humanity. It is potentially very offensive to existing psychology practitioners, because it implies that most existing psychologists are witch doctors. It is also very offensive to large bodies of public policy wonks (let's not beat about the bush here - in American speak this book is very offensive to liberal Democrats), essentially saying that most of the "science" behind social and educational policy has no foundation. And because it is polemical - it is shooting at a century of vested interests after all - it overstates its case in some places, although the writers are usually very careful to stress that while behavioural programmes may be partly pre installed, behaviour itself is not hardwired.

It was the start for me of looking at the way we think in a completely different light and led me to later, more detailed, more balanced statements of the case.

It is pretty hard going in places, particularly as they do rather tiresomely go out of their way trying to avoid giving direct offence, but they're not fooling anyone (not mss67 for a start.)But in reality they are yelling that the Emperor ("learning/nurture is all") has no clothes. For all its faults it's the book that has most influenced my thinking in the last 10 years, and definitely a five star performance.

Great work.......2000-03-22

Finally, a branch of psychology which does not use the standard psycho-babble which distorted our views of human-kind in the 20th century.

More Tooby & Cosmides, please.......2000-02-07

I was prompted to respond by the review from the individual in Virginia. He or she didn't like the Tooby & Cosmides chapters whereas I feel they were by far the most interesting chapters in the book. Reading their long essay (Chapter 2)is one of the best favors psychologists can do for themselves. Being a psychology major, I know that I was often confused about psychology before reading it, but their combination of cognitive psychology with evolutionary biology finally gave me an idea of where psychology should be going in the future. If only social psychologists and domain-general cognitive psychologists would read it, their research and approach might not be so sterile and boring. My only regret is that the book contained some chapters that were not as strong as the early chapters, but the importance of the good chapters greatly outweighs any weaknesses in the other ones.

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Fantastic

Cognition, Evolution, and Behavior
Sara J. Shettleworth
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Cognitive Ecology: The Evolutionary Ecology of Information Processing and Decision Making
The Essentials of Learning and Conditioning
Animal Cognition: The Mental Lives of Animals
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ASIN: 019511048X

Book Description

How do animals perceive the world, learn, remember, search for food or mates, and find their way around? Do any non-human animals count, imitate one another, use a language, or think as we do? What use is cognition in nature and how might it have evolved? Historically, research on such questions has been fragmented between psychology, where the emphasis has been on theoretical models and lab experiments, and biology, where studies focus on evolution and the adaptive use of perception, learning, and decision-making in the field. Cognition, Evolution and the Study of Behavior integrates research from psychology, behavioral ecology, and ethology in a wide-ranging synthesis of theory and research about animal cognition in the broadest sense, from species-specific adaptations in fish to cognitive mapping in rats and honeybees to theories of mind for chimpanzees. As a major contribution to the emerging discipline of comparative cognition, the book is an invaluable resource for all students and researchers in psychology, zoology, and behavioral neuroscience. It will also interest general readers curious about the details of how and why animals--including humans--process, retain, and use information as they do.

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic.......2003-01-28

This was the required textbook for a class on Animal Intelligence at the University of Kansas. Contained various examples from a broad range of animal intelligence. Illustrated quite well how little we know about intelligence.

Catching Ourselves in the Act: Situated Activity, Interactive Emergence, Evolution, and Human Thought

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Brings latest arguments in the lit together in one place

Catching Ourselves in the Act: Situated Activity, Interactive Emergence, Evolution, and Human Thought
Horst Hendriks-Jansen
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Being There: Putting Brain, Body, and World Together Again

ASIN: 0262082462

Book Description

Catching Ourselves in the Act uses situated robotics, ethology, and developmental psychology to erect a new framework for explaining human behavior. Rejecting the cognitive science orthodoxy that formal task-descriptions and their implementation are fundamental to an explanation of mind, Horst Hendriks-Jansen argues for an alternative model based on the notion of interactive emergence.

Situated activity and interactive emergence are concepts that derive from the new discipline of autonomous agent research. Hendriks-Jansen puts these notions on a firm philosophical basis and uses them to anchor a "genetic" or "historical" explanation of mental phenomena in species-typical activity patterns that have been selected by a cultural environment of artifacts, language, and intentional scaffolding by adults. Situated robotics, allied with techniques and principles from ethology, allows the testing of hypotheses framed in terms of natural kinds that can be grounded through the theory of natural selection. This approach negotiates the "nature versus nurture" dispute in a radically new way.

Catching Ourselves in the Act provides a thorough overview of autonomous agent research in America and Europe, focusing in particular on work by such eminent researchers as Rodney Brooks, Pattie Maes, Maja Mataric, and Rolf Pfeifer. It reassesses the basic principles of artificial life and explores the repercussions of autonomous agent research for human psychology and the philosophy of mind, as well as its affinities with the "contextual revolution" in sociology and anthropology.

Customer Reviews:

Brings latest arguments in the lit together in one place.......1999-11-10

Horst Hendriks-Jansen demonstrates a clear understanding of all the modern arguments about the nature of intelligence and how they relate to each other. He has a clear and logical writing style that explains and debunks many important theories. Although many of these theories and criticisisms have appeared in other places, this book brings them all together and relates them. He describes his theory of interactive emergence and the notion of language as scaffolding for learning. This weaves together many contemporary ideas into a consistient whole. A great deal of the book is devoted to debunking existing theories - I would have liked to see a more detailed exploration of interactive emergence and how language as scaffolding might work. Definitely worth a read, especially if you are interested in clear arguments against symbol-systems hypothesis etc.

Baboon Metaphysics: The Evolution of a Social Mind

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Into the minds of baboons...
What would the baboons say?
konrad lorentz, move over

Baboon Metaphysics: The Evolution of a Social Mind
Dorothy L. Cheney , and Robert M. Seyfarth
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
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Binding: Hardcover

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Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved (The University Center for Human Values Series)
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An Introduction to Nervous Systems
The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language

ASIN: 0226102432

Book Description

In 1838 Charles Darwin jotted in a notebook, “He who understands baboon would do more towards metaphysics than Locke.” Fifteen years ago, following the extraordinary success of their How Monkeys See the World, Dorothy Cheney and Robert Seyfarth set out to take up Darwin’s challenge. Baboon Metaphysics is their fascinating response.

Cheney and Seyfarth set up camp in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, where they could intimately observe baboons and their social world. Baboons are a perfect model for such a study because they live in groups of up to 150, including a handful of males and eight or nine matrilineal families of females. Such numbers force baboons to form a complicated mix of short-term bonds for mating and longer-term friendships based on careful calculations of status and individual need. The result is enough interpersonal drama to rival Jane Austen, as the baboons make and break alliances and try to anticipate the actions of their friends and rivals, all while avoiding frequent attacks by predators.

But Baboon Metaphysics is concerned with much more than just baboons’ social organization—Cheney and Seyfarth aim to fully comprehend the intelligence that underlies it. How do baboons actually conceive of the world and their place in it? Using innovative field experiments, the authors test whether baboons understand kinship relations, how they make use of vocal communication, and how they manage the stress and dangers of life in the wild. They learn that for baboons, just as for humans, family and friends hold the key to mitigating the ill effects of grief, stress, and anxiety.

Written with a scientist’s precision and a nature-lover’s eye, Baboon Metaphysics gives us an unprecedented and compelling glimpse into the mind of another species.

Customer Reviews:

Into the minds of baboons..........2007-07-19

Humans have minds. We know this indirectly, or a least we think we do. By examining the actions and vocalizations of others we seem able to infer, or at least to guess at, the mental states of others. If we witness some moral degenerate kicking a cat out a window while yelling "%$!# cat!" we may assume that the kicker had a negative mental attitude towards the now plummeting feline. In such cases humans engage more in "mind inferring" than "mind reading." As of now we seem capable of little else, for other's mental states sit locked in the Fort Knox of their minds. Not much hope there. So what about other animals? Do they infer thoughts from actions? How could anyone prove this? The authors of "Baboon Metaphysics" take up this challenge and follow Darwin in their choice of "brute" to study. The father of modern evolution, Darwin was also a budding metaphysician. He thought that baboons provided a good model for the early evolution of the human mind. The authors agree and so begin with the premise: Baboons, like humans, have minds. Building off this, they then ask a series of questions: Can baboons infer the mental states of other baboons? Do they feel empathy? Do baboons have a sense of self? What do baboons "know" about their environment and their existence? Do baboons utilize an internal or external language? And, finally, what do the answers to these questions tell us about human minds?

In the first chapter the authors divide the book into three sections: Chapters 1 through 5 discuss general information on baboons; chapters 6 through 11 delineate scientific research carried out on a group of baboons in the Okavango Delta in Botswana; Chapter 12 summarizes the research findings and explores the implications of these studies for the human mind. After a short historical survey of baboons, which includes the eyebrow raising tale of a baboon "hired" as a railroad track switcher and the equally intriguing Ahla the goat-herder, the book delves into baboon culture. They have rather stressful lives. Lion attacks. Crocodile attacks. Uncertain and dangerous water crossings. Not to mention the wandering alpha males. When a female with an infant sees a new male enter into her social network, she runs away as fast as she can. And who can blame her? Males dominate each other, and thus increase their reproductive success, not only by rigorous wahoo contests but also by killing the infants of previous alpha males. Given the data presented, Shakespeare could have penned a gripping baboon drama. While the males dominate, procreate, and murder, the females hold together an intricate, almost inexplicable, social nexus. With a dizzying complexity that would make Gödel proud, the women maintain numerous social strata, protect their infants via platonic male friendships, and maintain a steadfast, almost chivalric, loyalty to their kin. Their main stressors remain changes in the social rank, which creates uncertainty, wandering power hungry alpha males, and loss of a loved one through predation or infanticide. The text reveals some startling correlations between baboon and human life, which peaks when a member of the royal family visits the research site. After they relate baboon life and social rankings to the young aristocrat, she screams with glee that baboons provide evolutionary proof for her own elevated position. "Shortly thereafter," the authors relate, "she returned to her entourage, spirits lifted, leaving us to ponder the wider implications of our work." Did the authors point out to her that alpha male baboons typically reign for only six to seven months? Then, like ancient kings, they get deposed by a bigger wahoo.

Next, the book takes a decisive philosophical turn. The authors turn their focus from baboon life and biology to baboon theory of mind (the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others), self-awareness, social intelligence, communication, and language. To what extent are baboons "aware" of their standing in the world and their relation to other baboons? By measuring glucocortocoid levels, an indication of stress, and performing sound experiments within the group itself, the authors draw several conclusions, though several require further experimentation. Baboons don't seem able to attribute mental states to others. As such, empathy seems beyond them. Though the authors do find some evidence for attribution of basic intentions. Looking at language, baboons use grunts and vocalizations, but not in the way that humans use language. Both humans and baboons do possess great amounts of social knowledge, and the authors argue that this intelligence provides a possible foundation for language. The basis of this argument lies in "the language of thought" that the authors claim predated spoken language. Over time mental concepts relating to objects, events, and relations in the world became vocalized. Thought first, then language. Thus, baboons may represent a living model of our evolutionary linguistic development. From this basis humans evolved into beings with a theory of mind that then spurred the development of language and vocabulary. Recursive thought then allowed our ancestors and us to form mental representations of themselves, others, and even of thoughts (i.e., we can think about the thoughts of others).

Accessible enough for most general readers, "Baboon Metaphysics" does not assume prior knowledge of baboons, biology, or philosophy. Anyone dedicated enough can pick it up and digest its fascinating contents. Nonetheless, the book has its challenges as it prods into new territory and the mental states of animals. Doubtless others will follow the path that this book has trodden and build upon the experiments and observations of a team that spent fourteen years with a group of baboons in Africa. Anyone seeking appreciation of the complexities of both animal and human life will find it here. Rev up your recursive thinking abilities and dive in.

What would the baboons say?.......2007-07-06

The intrepid team of Cheney and Seyfarth has done it again. Their work has a long-standing and deserved reputation for being both pioneering and sensible, a rather rare combination. This book traces implications for human evolution of their research on baboons in the Okavango Delta of Botswana. I have had my camps in the Delta raided by baboons who must be close relatives of Cheney and Seyfarth's friends. I formed a healthy respect for their intelligence. They can bring off a raid with military precision and scientific thoroughness, taking advantage of the least opportunity to steal everything usable and wreck everything else.
The title comes from Darwin: "he who understands baboon would do more towards metaphysics than Locke." Of course, we don't really learn about the baboons' metaphysics here; we learn how their behavior can change our metaphysics, as Darwin intended. (I don't know if baboons have metaphysics or not, but if they do, they surely believe that God is a huge dominant male baboon who mercifully sends endless parties of humans with crackers and bacon and peanuts.)
This book describes baboon social behavior and communication, and then goes on to show how it is and is not similar to human equivalents. They argue, convincingly, that human communication, complex thought, and high intelligence could and did evolve from primate social interaction. We need our smarts for our social life more than for toolmaking or feeding or avoiding predators. Their discussion of language is particularly good--a really thoughtful, excellent, up-to-date discussion of how human language differs from animal communication, and how this might have come about.
The authors also compare baboons with dogs, jays, and other highly social creatures. This leads them to many of their best insights.
I have three minor criticisms. First and worst, they take philosophy too seriously. We hear a lot about "theory of mind," "consciousness," "concept of the self," and other ineffable and "metaphysical" entities. The authors do as well as anyone could with these concepts, but one can go only so far in making a plate of cooked spaghetti stand up straight. Daniel Dennett's book CONSCIOUSNESS EXPLAINED pretty well devastated philosophers' talk about consciousness, as opposed to the good old testable folk notion that contrasts being conscious with being knocked out, drunk, or asleep. And how do you really assess what an animal knows? I have spent thousands of hours listening to mockingbirds and still have no idea whether they actually think of or remember a jay or killdeer when they imitate one. I suspect they think only "This is a fun sound to work into my song." I suppose we will never know. At least we can know that they do NOT merely repeat mindlessly; they subtly change the imitations to fit their song patterns, such that the imitations change over time, according to a real if rudimentary plan. Cheney and Seyfarth try bravely to make operational science out of "theories of mind" and "the self," and say some very important things in the process, but one can go only so far in applying abstract, debatable, mentalistic concepts to animals, or even to humans.
Conversely, it seems to me that the real difference between people and baboons (and other animals) is that people can form deep hierarchic plans. We can go from tactics to strategy to goals, or from words to sentences to books to life work to whole literary genres. A baboon has trouble with "to be," and could never discuss how "to be or not to be, that is the question" fits with Shakespeare's oeuvre and the history of western drama. Baboons have tactics, strategy, and goals, but only at a quite simple level. They can raid camps and manage troops brilliantly, but can't do much beyond that. In communication and foraging, their plans are excellent but simple.
Second, somewhat related: The authors are somewhat primate-centric, and a bit unaware of how different other animals' communication and "consciousness" may be. Dogs, notably, live in a world of scent that is closed to humans. Dogs are alleged to have "no self-concept" because they don't make a big deal of mirror images of themselves. But, if you put a dog in front of a mirror for the first time, you learn why: the dog is startled by the strange dog in the mirror, sniffs it, and immediately loses interest--realizing that this is a trick of the light rather than a real dog. Similarly, when dogs meet, they don't communicate just by barking or whining; they interact by visual displays (which are exceedingly complex in their own right) and by pheromone releases. These latter are not detected by humans, so humans don't usually realize how complex the interaction really is.
Third, the baboons' very real abilities get somewhat short-counted here, because the interest is so much on humans. If baboons could talk (and read), they would surely say: "All very well for these stupid humans to talk about what we can't do, but let's see them execute a perfect campsite raid! Let's see them get into a 'guaranteed animal-proof' container in five minutes! Let's see them give up their fancy gear and still detect and escape lions, leopards and crocodiles!" Evolution gives us the minds we need, and documenting that is more interesting to this reviewer than trying to make sense of theories of "theories of mind" and self-consciousness about "consciousness of self."
That said, this is a totally delightful book. Cheney and Seyfarth write well; no dry scientific dullness here. You will find yourself getting fascinated with even the most arcane matters of baboon social life.

konrad lorentz, move over.......2007-06-24

Ok, that's a little hype. But the earlier chapters especially were practically as charming. Several thousand undergraduates will be assigned this book and for many of them it will be one of the most memorable things they read in college. Who's Simon and who's Garfunkle in this team of authors I don't know, but their style is very engaging. This is one aspect of the work, the pure ethology, and it's very good. How many of us have been chased up a tree with a bunch of monkeys by a lion? Me, only once or twice.

Another aspect is a running series of experiments done by the authors interspersed with others carried on by other researchers on monkey (and a little ape) behavior designed to "get inside their minds" in order to obtain a sense of how they view the world. No doubt many readers will have encountered many of these results here and there in their other reading. It's nice to have so many collected in one book and I can't help feeling up to speed on the subject now.

The BIG IDEA is that "social intelligence" is a precursor to language as it appears in humans, and I'll let the reader make her own judgments on that. It at least gives one a lot to think about and despite the remarks of one professional reviewer, it's not a particularly "challenging" book if that means hard-to-read. It is challenging for sure in that it-makes-you-think.Anyone interested in origin of language theory will need to read this book.

((I would only negatively remark as a onetime philosophy teacher that the authors have an inordinate amount of respect for the (current) folk philosophy of D. Dennet and the philosophy speak of intention and recursiveness. That's probably why the book is called "challenging". It's not really part of the science in the book, though reading the book you might think it is. Pain is a "mental state" and it doesn't have a referent. And is "belief" a mental state? Is it really that simple? Oddly, though the title "Baboon Metaphysics" is supposed to refer to the baboon's world-view, it would be more accurate to think of it as a book about baboons PRESUMING a particular metaphysics. Like all metaphysics it assumes a particular epistemology, fashionable but questionable. However, this does little to diminish the book or its interest, the philosophy is mostly irrelevant being mostly a fill-in for ideas that are simple and unexceptional in this domain of science. I hope all non-philosophy people ignore these remarks, it's a great book.))

Human Animal, The: A Personal View of the Human Species

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There is no angels, but simple animals on Earth

Human Animal, The: A Personal View of the Human Species
Desmond Morris
Manufacturer: Crown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Developmental Psychology | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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The Nature of Happiness
The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal
Intimate Behavior: A Zoologist's Classic Study of Human Intimacy
The Naked Woman: A Study of the Female Body
The Human Zoo: A Zoologist's Study of the Urban Animal (Kodansha Globe)

ASIN: 0517700905
Release Date: 1994-12-20

Book Description

This stunningly illustrated book provides new understanding of human behavior based on our almost identical genetic heritage. However much we may think we have evolved from our animal ancestors, Desmond Morris shows that our instinct and behavior are still rooted in our animal past. 140 full-color and 10 black-and-white photographs.

Customer Reviews:

There is no angels, but simple animals on Earth.......1996-09-18

Desmond Morris' contribution to understand some of the consequences of trying to deny our animal heritage and the duty of facing our actual identity.

Book Description

Evolutionary Theory and Human Nature is an original, highly theoretical work dealing with the transition from genes to behavior using general principles of evolution, especially those of sexual selection. It seeks to develop a seamless transition from genes to human motivations as bio-electric brain processes (emotional-cognitive processes), to human nature propensities (various constellations of emotional-cognitive forces, desires and fears) to species typical patterns of behavior.
This work covers two often antagonistic fields: biology and the social sciences. It should be of strong interest to anthropologists, sociologists, sociobiologists, psychobiologists and psychologists who are interested in the question of human nature influences on social behavior.

Strange Behavior: Tales of Evolutionary Neurology

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Great Book ! Cumulation of all of author's writings
Strange Behavior Indeed
Strange Behavior Indeed
The Brain Revealed
Interesting and intelligent.

Strange Behavior: Tales of Evolutionary Neurology
Harold Klawans
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Toscanini's Fumble: And Other Tales of Clinical Neurology
Trials of an Expert Witness
Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind
Defending the Cavewoman: And Other Tales of Evolutionary Neurology
The Physiological Bases of Cognitive and Behavioral Disorders

ASIN: 0393321843

Book Description

A master neurologist's clinical tales—both funny and profound—of the evolution of the brain. As a sympathetic—and brilliant—brain detective, Harold Klawans treated people with a huge array of troubles, all of which boiled down to one complaint: something was wrong with their brains. From the woman suffering from "painful foot and moving toe syndrome" to the Indiana farmer who contacted a variant of mad cow disease from his herds of livestock, Klawans deduced a great deal from his patients, not only about the immediate causes of their ailments, but about the evolutionary underpinnings of their behavior. Praised by Oliver Sacks as "the most versatile of contemporary neurologists," Klawans writes with "such verve and humor ....that readers may not realize they're also getting a carefully structured education on the functioning of the brain and evolution of language skills" (Elle).

Originally published in hardcover as Defending the Cavewoman (ISBN: 0393048314).

Customer Reviews:

Great Book ! Cumulation of all of author's writings.......2004-12-02

This was Dr. Klawans final book, and it was a fitting end to his Neurological non-fiction books. It is a mature work - more dense and conclusive then his prior works. Any fan of Dr. Klawans has to read this last book. New readers would probably find his earlier works easier to read (eg, Newton's Madness). -WGL-

Strange Behavior Indeed.......2002-02-01

Don't get me wrong. I love the case studies by Harold Klawans - even the ones presented in this book. Klawans has a wonderful way of illuminating basic features of the brain, its organization, and its manifestations in terms of neuropathological symptoms. His writing style is clear and compelling. You really get a glimpse at the people whose lives are captured in the case studies he presents, and when you finish reading his books you have a glimpse into the fascinating world of diagnostics as practiced by a master clinical neurologist. I am constantly recommending his books to my students, and I own most of the case studies books that he's authored. Occasionally I have noted that Klawans plaguerized himself - lifting a portion of a case study from a previous one of his books and putting it in a new book. For example, there's a case involving the inheritance of Huntington's Disease that is written up in two different volumes, but it's a piping good story, and Klawans presents some different material regarding this neurological disorder in each volume. So I'm willing to forgive a little self plaguerism in matters such as these. But the problem with Strange Behavior is that the whole volume is just a reissuing of Klawan's earlier book entitled Defending the Cavewoman. Nowhere is there any indication of this fact except for some very small print on the book's title page that reads "Originally published under the title Defending the Cavewoman." This isn't a case of Klawans' self-plaguerism, but a more serious scam by the book's publisher. In my opinion, publishers should not be allowed to do this without someone blowing the whistle on them. So bottom line: I think you'll enjoy this book a great deal -- unless of course, like me, you discover you've already read it!

Strange Behavior Indeed.......2002-02-01

Don't get me wrong. I love the case studies by Harold Klawans - even the ones presented in this book. Klawans has a wonderful way of illuminating basic features of the brain, its organization, and its manifestations in terms of neuropathological symptoms. His writing style is clear and compelling. You really get a glimpse at the people whose lives are captured in the case studies he presents, and when you finish reading his books you have a glimpse into the fascinating world of diagnostics as practiced by a master clinical neurologist. I am constantly recommending his books to my students, and I own most of the case studies books that he's authored. Occasionally I have noted that Klawans plaguerized himself - lifting a portion of a case study from a previous one of his books and putting it in a new book. For example, there's a case involving the inheritance of Huntington's Disease that is written up in two different volumes, but it's a piping good story, and Klawans presents some different material regarding this neurological disorder in each volume. So I'm willing to forgive a little self plaguerism in matters such as these. But the problem with Strange Behavior is that the whole volume is just a reissuing of Klawan's earlier book entitled Defending the Cavewoman. Nowhere is there any indication of this fact except for some very small print on the book's title page that reads "Originally published under the title Defending the Cavewoman."...So bottom line: I think you'll enjoy this book a great deal -- unless of course, like me, you discover you've already read it!

The Brain Revealed.......2002-01-07

Fascinating, enlightening, challenging and highly readable. You will never see the human brain the same again and begin to appreciate both the complexity and mystery that is the human brain. His stories of his patients with neurological disorders are told in a way that is accessible by all, including lay-people, compelling to read, sympathetic to the patients and reveal incredible insights into how the human brain functions and also what can go wrong. This is one of the best books I have read this year.

Interesting and intelligent........2001-12-15

Klawans puts forth many interesting examples and case studies to explain the implications of our ancient evolution. This is not a good starting point for those interested in evolution but a must read for anyone fascinated by current examples of evolutionary mishaps and accomplishments.

Mind and Variability: Mental Darwinism, Memory, and Self (Human Evolution, Behavior, and Intelligence)

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Mind and Variability: Mental Darwinism, Memory, and Self (Human Evolution, Behavior, and Intelligence)
Patrick McNamara
Manufacturer: Praeger Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0275963837

Book Description

Mental Darwinism, a new approach to the study of mental phenomena,applies selectionist ideas to problems of mind and behavior. McNamara challenges the instructivist view that memories occur when information from the environment is transferred into the mind. Current experimental evidence confirms the insights of two turn-of-the-century philosophers, William James and Henri Bergson, who originally proposed applying Darwinian principles to mental processes. The view of the mind that emerges from this approach helps us understand why memory evolves as it does and is not always accurate or veridical, how memory is related to personal identity, and how a large number of neuropsychological disorders develop.

Uniquely Human: The Evolution of Speech, Thought, and Selfless Behavior

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Bigger brains, adapted for speech... what makes us *us*?
language and the ability to cooperate make us human

Uniquely Human: The Evolution of Speech, Thought, and Selfless Behavior
Philip Lieberman
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0674921836

Book Description

In a stimulating synthesis of cognitive science, anthropology, and linguistics, Philip Lieberman tackles the fundamental questions of human nature: How and why are human beings so different from other species? Can the Darwinian theory of evolution explain human linguistic and cognitive ability? How do our processes of language and thought differ from those of Homo erectus 500,000 years ago, or of the Neanderthals 35,000 years ago? What accounts for human moral sense?

Lieberman believes that evolution for rapid, efficient vocal communication forged modern human beings by creating the modern human brain. Earlier hominids lacked fully human speech and syntax, which together allow us to convey complex thoughts rapidly. The author discusses how natural selection acted on older brain mechanisms to produce a structure that can regulate the motor activity necessary for speech and command the complex syntax that enhances the creativity of human language. The unique brain mechanisms underlying human language also enhance human cognitive ability, allowing us to derive abstract concepts and to plan complex activities. These factors are necessary for the development of true altruism and moral behavior.

Lieberman supports his argument about the evolution of speech and the human brain by combining the comparative method of Charles Darwin, insights from archaeology and child development, and the results of high-tech research with computerized brain scanning and computer models that can recreate speech sounds made by our ancestors over 100,000 years ago.

Uniquely Human will stimulate fresh thought and controversy on the basic question of how we came to be.

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Bigger brains, adapted for speech... what makes us *us*?.......2002-03-26

Lieberman was my unofficial mentor when I was an undergraduate at Brown University, and this is the one of his books that made the greatest impression on me. It describes in clear and convincing detail why, how -- and at what cost -- humans evolved not merely the cognitive but also the physiological capacity to use language and speech.

Briefly, Lieberman argues first that language and speech must have co-evolved (as opposed to the capacity for language coming first, perhaps being used in gestural modalities before the capacity for speech came about). The reasons for this are complex, but the gist of it is that a supra-laryngeal vocal tract that permits formation of the sounds of human speech is such a non-survival characteristic (adult humans are the only mammals incapable of breathing and drinking simultaneously (thus also rendering infants subject to SIDS in the period when the larynx drops), small mouth and small teeth make us work harder to ingest food, etc.) that it would never have evolved at all if the capacity to use language had co-evolved with some other adequate modality of language use. In addition, general principles of natural selection tell us that the cognitive capacity for language (probably) did not evolve independent of an ability to use language.

Next, Lieberman argues that the cognitive capacities that make language possible are the very same ones that make possible all of the cognitive "feats" that we consider to be particular to humankind: creativity and innovative thought, as well as our highly-developed hand-eye coordination and digital manipulation abilities.

In my view -- but not Lieberman's -- the third part of his argument is something of an afterthought, not a necessary part of his theory and more speculative than data-driven. However, it remains an extremely important and interesting speculative exercise, namely: what is the origin of "true" altruism (by which I mean something more than "kinship" or other, lesser forms of altruism)? Lieberman implies that the same brain areas that evolved to make efficient, linguistic, syntax-governed communication possible are the same ones responsible for true altruism, a trait found only in human beings (if even there!).

To summarize, this is Lieberman's most readable book, intended for a broad, lay audience, and functions as a terrific counterpoint both to hardline, evidence-be-damned non-Darwinian language theorists such as Chomsky and Pinker and to sloppy evolutionary psychology which fails to distinguish the (admittedly few) qualitative differences between human and nonhuman mammalian decision-making.

language and the ability to cooperate make us human.......2001-03-01

Lieberman, Professor of Linquistics at Brown University, argues that the unique ability of humans to speak and to rapidly process language information gives us our evolutionary edge over other species. (One on one, tigers win.) His account is a rich revisiting of an idea put forth by Darwin as he places at the center of our unique capacity as a species our ability to work together and transmit information through a rich linquistic tradition. Moreover, he supports his argument with an abundance of data on human speech and language ability and traces the evolution of these abilities. A worthwhile antidote to simplistic "selfish gene" thinking which has become too popular.

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