Survival of the Sickest: A Medical Maverick Discovers Why We Need Disease

Book Description

Read it.

You're already living it.

Was diabetes evolution's response to the last Ice Age? Did a deadly genetic disease help our ancestors survive the bubonic plagues of Europe? Will a visit to the tanning salon help lower your cholesterol? Why do we age? Why are some people immune to HIV? Can your genes be turned on -- or off?

Joining the ranks of modern myth busters, Dr. Sharon Moalem turns our current understanding of illness on its head and challenges us to fundamentally change the way we think about our bodies, our health, and our relationship to just about every other living thing on earth, from plants and animals to insects and bacteria.

Through a fresh and engaging examination of our evolutionary history, Dr. Moalem reveals how many of the conditions that are diseases today actually gave our ancestors a leg up in the survival sweepstakes. When the option is a long life with a disease or a short one without it, evolution opts for disease almost every time.

Everything from the climate our ancestors lived in to the crops they planted and ate to their beverage of choice can be seen in our genetic inheritance. But Survival of the Sickest doesn't stop there. It goes on to demonstrate just how little modern medicine really understands about human health, and offers a new way of thinking that can help all of us live longer, healthier lives.

Survival of the Sickest is filled with fascinating insights and cutting-edge research, presented in a way that is both accessible and utterly absorbing. This is a book about the interconnectedness of all life on earth -- and, especially, what that means for us.

Customer Reviews:

Very,very, interesting.......2007-09-21

This is one of those books that is a delightful read, educating, interesting, and entertaining. The author puts forth his theories that many modern diseases are variations of evolutionary traits that were held by our ancestors that enabled them to survive the ice age and bubonic plague. He goes on to describe how viruses cause certain behavior in their carriers to help the viruses survival. The common cold leaves you well enough to stay moving and go to work so you can spread the virus to others, while the parasitic malaria wants you immobile and in bed because mosquitos can continue to carry it even better with you immobile.
The author also presents a case currently making head way in evolutionary science that is challenging the savannah theory. He proposes that we are evolved form aquatic apes as opposed to grassland dwellers, which would explain our hairlessness like other aquatic mammals and being bipedal. We also have fat stored at the skin like water dwellers and our infants have swimming instincts at birth that have been proven by water birthing that is very successful.
And finally I was really fascinated by the finding that what scientists have believed were "junk DNA" is slowly being shown to actually be a creative force that causes mutations in DNA for the benefit of survival of the species. I have always had trouble believing in the evolutionary theory because no mechanism could be created with causing it outside of God, and God would not need it. I also believed that the key was in DNA. Now I have a cause, the DNA itself creates and casues beneficial mutations.
I really can not do this book justice in a review with out making it far to long so buy the book if the above sounds interesting. The book presents an excellent case and has made me a believer.

Evolution in a way you never knew!.......2007-09-08

Everything out there is influencing the evolution of everything else. The bacteria and viruses and parasites that cause disease in us have affected our evolution as we have adapted in ways to cope with their effects. In response they have evolved in turn, and keep on doing so.

There are many dietary diseases that have had an evolutionary advantage in our ancestors but that today do more harm than good. In a person with hemochromatosis, for example, the body always thinks that it doesn't have enough iron and continues to absorb iron unabated. The excess iron can lead to liver failure, heart failure, diabetes, and even cancer.

Why would a disease so deadly be bred into our genetic code? Remember how natural selection works. If a given genetic trait makes you stronger--especially if it makes you stronger before you have children--then you're more likely to survive, reproduce, and pass that trait on. People with hemochromatosis have therefore an evolutionary advantage--protection against the bubonic plague!

On one set of experiments, macrophages from people who had hemochromatosis and macrophages from people who did not were matched against bacteria in separate dishes to test their killing ability. The hemochromatic macrophages crushed the bacteria. They are thought to be significantly better at combating bacteria by limiting the availability of iron than the nonhemochromatic macrophages. So though hemochromatosis will kill those inflicted with it decades later, they are much more likely than people without hemochromatosis to survive plagues, reproduce, and pass the mutation on to their children.

Diabetes also provided an evolutionary advantage to our ancestors by providing superior ability to withstand the cold by eliminating water and driving up sugar levels (like alcohol, sugar is a natural antifreeze). As a theory, it's hotly controversial, but diabetes may have helped our European ancestors survive the sudden cold, including the ice-age.

Malaria is an infectious disease that infects as many as 500 million people every year, killing more than 1 million of them. But not everyone who gets bit by malaria-carrying mosquitoes gets infected. And not everybody who gets infected dies. So what's helping the malaria survivors? People with a genetic tendency for sickle-cell anemia, another inherited blood disorder, had better natural resistance to malaria.

As you've seen with hemochromatosis, diabetes, and sickle-cell anemia, one generation's evolutionary solution is another generation's evolutionary problem.

At the end of the day, every living thing shares two hardwired imperatives: Survive. Reproduce. To achieve this, some organisms have inherited ingenious techniques to manipulate their hosts--the phenomenon that occurs when a parasite provokes its host to behave in a way that helps the parasite to survive and reproduce.

Orb weavers are a family of spiders that experience host manipulation. A wasp bites the spider, temporarily paralyzing it, then deposits its egg in its abdomen. The spider then goes on with his life oblivious to the egg in him. The egg then hatches, and the larva slowly feeds off the blood of the spider. When it is ready to cocoon, it injects chemicals into the spider's bloodstream to manipulate the spider into building a special web for it--instead of building circular webs, it goes back and forth building a rectangular web. Once the web is completed, the larva kills the spider by sucking off all its blood, and then throwing its carcass to the jungle floor below. It then uses the specially built web for it to cocoon by hanging on it.

A worm that infects ants is a classic example of another host manipulator. As the worms being carried by the ant develop, one of them makes its way to the ant's brain where it manipulates the ant's nervous system. Suddenly, the ant behaves in completely uncharacteristic fashion. At night, it leaves its colony and hangs on the tip of a grass, waiting to be eaten by a sheep. If it does not, it returns to its colony only to resume again its journey at night to the tip of a grass waiting to be eaten. Once eaten by a sheep, the worm would have succeeded in its manipulation, and would grow inside the sheep's stomach, its intended host.

The rabies Virus is another interesting host manipulator. It manipulates its host into becoming aggressive, which will make its host bite others and thus also infecting others.

Here is one amazing example of host manipulation: One researcher has discovered that women infected with T. gondii spend more money on clothes and are consistently rated as beings more attractive than women without the infection. Infected women were more easy-going, more warm-hearted, had more friends, and cared more about how they looked. However, they were also less trustworthy and had more relationships with men. Infected men, on the other hand, were less well groomed, more likely to be loners, and more willing to fight. They were also more likely to be suspicious and jealous and less willing to follow rules.

A normal sneeze occurs when the body's self-defense system senses a foreign invader trying to get in through your nasal passages and acts to repel the invasion by expelling it with a sneeze. But sneezing when you've got a cold? There's obviously no way to expel the cold virus which is already lodged in you. The cold virus has learned this reflex so it can infect your colleagues, family and your friends. Your body is actually being manipulated by the virus into sneezing!

The herpes virus may heighten sexual feeling, which will increase the probability of transmission. In other words, sometimes the herpes virus may want you to get some action in order for it to spread to other hosts.

So what if we made it easier for a given type of bacteria to survive in a healthy human than to survive in a sick human? Would this create evolutionary pressure against behavior that harms us? In fact there is an evolutionary advantage for the malaria parasite to push its hosts toward the brink of death. The more parasites swarming through our blood, the more parasites the mosquito is likely to ingest; the more parasites the mosquito ingests, the more likely it will cause an infection when it bites someone else. Cholera is similar--it doesn't need us moving around to find new hosts, so there's no reason for the bacteria to select against virulence. The bottom line is that if an infectious client has allies (such as mosquitoes) or good delivery systems (such as unprotected water supplies), peaceful coexistence with its host becomes a lot less important. In those cases evolution is likely to favor versions of the parasite that best exploit its host's resources, allowing the parasite to multiply as much as possible. Some researchers believe that we can use this understanding to influence the evolution of parasites away from virulence. The basic theory is this: shut down the modes of transmission that don't require human participation and suddenly all the evolutionary pressure is directed at allowing the human host to get up and get out. According to this theory, the virulence of a cholera outbreak in a given population should be directly related to the quality and safety of that population's water supply. If sewage flows easily into rivers that people wash in or drink from, then the cholera strain would evolve toward virulence--it can multiply freely, essentially using up its hosts, relying on its access to the water supply for transmission. But if the water supply is well protected, the organism should evolve away from virulence--the longer it remains in a more mobile host, the better its chance of transmission.

A series of cholera outbreaks that began in Peru in 1991 and spread across South and Central America over the next few years provide compelling evidence that this theory might actually work. The water supply systems from country to country ranged from relatively advanced to seriously rudimentary. Sure enough, when the bacteria invaded nations with poorly protected water supplies, such as Ecuador, the virus became more harmful as it spread. But in countries with safe water supplies, such as Chile, the bacteria evolved downward in virulence and killed fewer people. The implications of this are huge. Instead of challenging bacteria to become stronger and more dangerous through an antibiotic arms race (which we are currently losing), we could essentially challenge them to get along. If mosquitoes didn't have access to bedridden malaria patients, the microbe would be under evolutionary pressure to evolve in a way that allowed the infected person to remain mobile, increasing the opportunity for it to spread.

A series of groundbreaking research has shown that certain compounds can attach themselves to specific genes and suppress their expression. Let's take a look at a few examples. Depending upon the time of year the vole (a type of mouse) is due to give birth, baby voles are born with either a thick coat or a thin coat. The gene for a thick coat is always there--it's just turned on or off depending on the level of light the mother senses in her environment around the time of conception.

One species of lizard is born with a long tail and large body or a small tail and small body depending on one thing only--whether their mother smelled a lizard-eating snake while pregnant. When her babies are entering a snake-filled world, they are born with a long tail and big body, making them less likely to be snake food.

This is a fascinating book and I highly recommend it. I truly enjoyed reading it and I have learnt things I never imagined! Now that's what I call precious reading!

Understanding genetic disease from an evolutionary point of view.......2007-09-01

We really don't "need" disease. This is a bit misleading. It just so happens that some genetic disorders, such as sickle-cell anemia, favism, diabetes, hemochromatosis, the tendency to obesity, etc., confer on the afflicted compensatory advantages. Thus a predilection for getting fat is adaptive if a drought or a long winter beckons, or a person with a genetic tendency toward sickle-cell anemia is less likely to get malaria, and so on. Note that it is only diseases caused by genetic mutations that Dr. Moalem is talking about.

One of the techniques our bodies use when fighting infection is to reduce the amount of iron available to the invaders. Bacteria need iron to reproduce. If there is a lot of it available their numbers can grow quickly. Without iron they can't reproduce at all. Iron is a limiting factor for many kinds of life. Vast stretches of ocean support little in the way of life because the microorganisms that begin the food chain can't grow where there is so little iron. As Dr. Moalem reports in this wide-ranging and eyebrow-lifting book, sprinkle some iron onto those patches of ocean and they will quickly turn green with microorganisms.

So it is a bit of an irony that people who have hemochromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes them to retain large amounts of iron in their bodies, are able to survival infections like the plague. This is because they starve the invading microbes through "iron locking." They have a lot of iron in their bodies, but they keep it away from the bacteria. Other people who have low levels of iron in their bodies are able to withstand bacterial attacks because they also keep what little iron they have away from the germs. In fact, one of the body's initial responses to microbial invasion is to limit the amount of free iron in the system.

Genetic coding for levels of iron in the body is an example of evolutionary adaptation, part of the ongoing arms race between us and the microbes that live in and on our bodies. This is just one of several interesting and new ideas coming from the growing science of evolutionary medicine that I found in Survival of the Sickest. Incidentally, one way to manage hemochromatosis is through donating blood on a regular basis, which explains in part why physicians of old were sometimes successful when they bled their patients.

This got me to thinking about "only women bleed" which led me to think about hemorrhoids (which prove that it isn't only women who bleed). Perhaps bleeding instead of retaining blood, which seems like the more natural thing for our bodies to do, has adaptive value in some people in some environments.

Another interesting idea is this from page 58: "ACHOO syndrome--its full name is autosomal dominant compelling heliopthalmic outburst syndrome." It is a "disorder that causes uncontrolled sneezing when someone is exposed to bright light, usually sunlight, after being in the dark." Dr. Moalem suggests that "way back when our ancestors spent more time in caves, this reflex helped them to clear out any molds or microbes that might have lodged in their noses or upper respiratory tract." Now this may sound a bit far fetched, but I have suffered from low grade allergies all my life, and used to have asthmatic attacks. I came to believe that the buildup in my lungs and the sneezing were signals to me to move on! Of course now I clean and vacuum like a germaphobe, but the idea is the same. My symptoms were adaptive. They more or less forced me to reduce the level of potential irritants and microbes in my environment.

But there is more. I noticed long ago that sometimes the sun in the morning would cause me to sneeze. I never figured out why until I read the above from Dr. Moalem. I am just the kind of person who would need to sneeze those molds out.

Later on in the book Moalem returns to an evolutionary idea that has been kicking around for decades. Beginning with the work of Elaine Morgan from the 1970s the public became aware of the notion that we humans had an aquatic past. She got the idea from marine biologist Alister Hardy. Through such books as The Descent of Woman (1972) and The Aquatic Ape: A Theory of Human Evolution (1982) Morgan argued that some of our unusual adaptations came about because we had an aquatic past. Taking up the idea, Moalem writes, "Every hairless mammal is aquatic or at least plays in the mud--think of hippos, elephants and the African warthog. But there aren't any hairless primates." (p. 198) Furthermore we have fat directly under our skin to help keep us warm just as aquatic mammals do. Also, Moalem notes, "the ability to survive on land and sea" gives us adaptive flexibility. If "chased by a leopard, the semiaquatic ape could dive into the water; chased by a crocodile, it could run into the forest." (p. 199)

These ideas are familiar but what I didn't know was that an aquatic past could have figured in our evolution toward bipedalism. "[S]tanding upright in water allowed...[aquatic apes] to venture into deeper water and still breathe, and the water helped to support their upper bodies, making it easier to support them on two feet." (p. 199)

This is an easy to read book, aimed at a general readership. An earlier, slightly more technical book that covers some of the same territory is Why We Get Sick: The New Science of Darwinian Medicine (1994) by Randolph M. Nesse and George C. Williams, which I also recommend.

Razzle dazzle them.......2007-08-27

This book embodies much of what I dislike in popular cience books, while having few of the qualities I admire in such books. It relies more on sleigh of the hand and razzle dazzle, you-wouldn't-have-thought-of-it than on throughly thought out, well substantiated lines of thought.

Let's start with the subtitle: "A medical maverick discovers why we need disease". That is a clear case of fiction: nowhere in the book does the author "discover" anything; he merely retells the study of others. This, of course, is not a demerit, as many interesting scientists have difficulties in explaining their work in clear terms, acessible to the layman. However, the author must be hyped as the "discoverer", as the center figure in the tale.

Since James Burke's "Connections", it seems that popular science must explore all the crossroads, no matter how irrelevant. So Moalem goes on long tangents that have little to do with the theory he is trying to substantiate. In order to show how diabetes works to protect the body against cold, the reader is taken through the mechanism of an ice age, how ice core samples are removed and so on. If one were to remove all this "extra" material, this book would be thin indeed.

The book seems to revolve around this material and the author's use of jokes. Unfortunately, his sense of humour tends more towards ha-ha than funny, which helped to further fray my patience towards this book.

All of this is indeed a pity, as the subject is very interesting. If more pages had been dedicated to developing a central line of thought and substantiation and to showing the debate behind all these ideas (in a real light, instead of "the thickheaded traditionalists who won't accept new ideas"), it would be well worth the read.

Somewhat difficult subject matter for those lacking a background in science or medicine.........2007-07-08

From time to time I pick up a book on a subject I know virtually nothing about. Ordinarily I devour books about history or politics or current events. These are topics I am well versed in and comfortable with.
Dr. Sharon Moalem's "The Survival of the Sickest: sounded like a fascinating departure from my ordinary fare. So I thought I would give it a whirl. Unfortunately for me the results were somewhat mixed. Although Dr. Moalem and her co-author have written this book in fairly simple language that most should be able to follow pretty easily I found myself overwhelmed at times by the number of terms I was simply not familiar with at all. I'm afraid my lack of education in the sciences was showing. Blame me not the good doctor. Yet in spite of these difficulties I was still able to glean some important information from this book. I now have a somewhat better understanding of the whole business of why disease exists in the first place. I also discovered the important role viruses play in our ability to survive and reproduce. I also found out that the development of diabetes in human beings probably emerged as natures response to people having to cope with conditions in regions with extremely cold temperatures. This makes perfect sense and was interesting to me because a number of people in my family have battled this disease. Perhaps the most fascinating thing I learned in "Survival of the Sickest" is that exposure to the sunshine actually helps to convert the cholestorol in our bodies into the vitamin D we all need to ensure strong bones and help avoid osteoperosis. I had never heard this before and found this revelation to be quite interesting indeed!
For me, attempting to read "Survival of the Sickest" was a little like visiting a foreign country and not knowing the language. I was simply unprepared to get the most out of this book. As you can see, other reviewers continue to heap praise on Dr. Sharon Moalem for her book. I suspect their evaluation of this book is right on the money. In the end I found that reading "Survival of the Sickest" was time well spent anyway. After all, it is impossible to expand your horizons if you never make the attempt.

Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives

Average customer rating:

wow
Gee Whiz Science
Incredibly stimulating
Evolution as religion
gnaw this juicy bone!

Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives
David Sloan Wilson
Manufacturer: Delacorte Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

Organic | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science
Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved (The University Center for Human Values Series)
The Accidental Mind: How Brain Evolution Has Given Us Love, Memory, Dreams, and God
Darwin's Cathedral: Evolution, Religion, and the Nature of Society

ASIN: 0385340214
Release Date: 2007-03-27

Book Description

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

Customer Reviews:

wow.......2007-10-02

David Sloan Wilson is riiight. It's so simple! Oh thank you, jeez! My eyes are opened! Hey everyone, I'm an atheist! No, I totally get it now! Evolution explains everything! There is no great mystery to life, just evolution and God's a spaghetti monster! Thank you, David!

/sarcasm

Gee Whiz Science.......2007-09-06

I've never met David Sloan Wilson, but he strikes me as one of those professors we've all had at least once. You can imagine him clasping his hands together, looking straight through those large glasses and shouting with joy, "gee isn't that great!" "Evolution explains everything." Okay, maybe he didn't exactly say that, but the take home message is implied. A more accurate statement might be that most everything has been shaped by the forces of selection.

In his book, he sets out to show us that not only is biology best explained by natural selection but so is art, medicine, politics, war, economics, infanticide and religion. That's quite a tall order for one book, but in places he does uncover some nuggets, especially in group selection theory. Some of this ground has been covered before and if you can get past his gee whiz enthusiasm coupled with his goofy braggadocio, he is at times an engaging and entertaining writer.

Unfortunately, his anecdotes and case histories of art, dance and music rest on pretty shaky scientific grounds. And it is precisely this weakness that makes it hard to know who would benefit from this book. The evolutionists already know this is probably right, but the antievolutionists will be inclined to select his weakest arguments to bolster their case.

Nevertheless, I must admit that his intellectual journey provided a stimulating ride. Surely, he's no Dr. Feynman, but you come to realize that Wilson himself is the culmination of some rather curious selection forces.

Incredibly stimulating.......2007-09-03

I really appreciate this book. Well written, funny, precise, documentated and full of anecdotes. Undoubtedly a must read. I recommended it to all my friends and collegues.

Evolution as religion.......2007-08-14

I'm a broad reader and an evolutionist. I'd read a review, bought the book, read it and am truly disappointed. Wilson brags constantly about a previous book he wrote, saying he described religion in evolutionary terms. Sadly, he's doing the reverse in this book: Describing evolution as an acolyte rather than a scientist.

He spends too much time making a claim, waving a wand, and claiming he's proven something. His chapter on laughter is a good example: Lots of muttering, no scientific linkage and then a claim it must be evolutionary. He writes well so even that might have been passable and he does have occasional real examples that are worth reading (keeping this review from being a 1).

What's bad are the sections that completely lack logic, such as on page 184, where he's claiming the importance of dance in evolution. Not only does he show no evidence, he makes a false logical claim while talking about the military. As he writes: "The visceral power of dance made it possible for armies to be formed out ot people who had no objective reason for fighting. Merely by marching in time and other intense communal activities, they become emotionally bonded to each other. ... J. Glenn Gray puts it this way in 'The Warriors: Reflections on Men in Battle': 'Many veterans who are honest with themselves will admit, I believe, that the experience of communal effort in battle ... has been the high point of their lives...."

Notice, first, that he's quoting one man's opinion ("I believe") as factual support. More importantly, notice how Gray is specifically describing the effects of shared combat. Not dancing. Not marching. Not "other intense communal activities." Combat.

I hate it when people on my side are just as ignorant and pompous as the people I oppose. I'm afraid that people will not learn about evolution from this book, only that some evolutionists believe in it as strongly as others believe in the false science of ID. This book damages our cause, and I suggest people avoid it.

gnaw this juicy bone!.......2007-07-27

Some books you don't so much read as gnaw on like a hound with a particularly juicy bone. This is such a book. Some authors, far from remote figures lurking behind their texts, become much-valued friends. David Sloan Wilson is such an author. The title, Evolution for Everyone, is deceptive. While in fact very apposite, it suggests at first sight an over-simplifying textbook, an `Idiots Guide to Darwin'. No such thing. Wilson gives us a passionate and yet affably urbane argument for evolution as a kind of general theory of everything. He sees evolution as relevant to most aspects of human existence. For example, why do humans enjoy music? Why do they enjoy dancing? Wilson suggests that making rhythmic sounds and dancing may well have preceded speech among our remote simian ancestors. Peoples who communally dance unite in co-operation rather than exterminate themselves in fratricidal fighting. A rabble of a hundred individuals can be transformed into an effective regiment of soldiers working as one by drilling together (never more so than when accompanied by martial music). So also literature: it plays an essential role in cultural evolution. Wilson observes: "the primary human adaptation is for our behaviour to be acquired less and less directly from our genes and more and more from other people". Narratives, whether literary or historical, play a part in this process. These are only a few of scores of hares Wilson's engagingly fertile mind puts up for us to pursue. Good hunting!

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Average customer rating:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers
Pants on fire?
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Chinese | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Irish | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Japanese | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Doctors & Medicine | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Lawyers & Criminals | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Love, Sex & Marriage | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Assyria, Babylonia & Sumer | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

Early Civilization | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

General | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

Historiography | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

French | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Victorian | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Epic | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

German | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Russian | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Chinese | Classics | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Conspiracy Theories | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

War on Drugs | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

English (All) | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Science | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Online Research | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Magic & Wizards | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Sailor Moon | Popular Characters | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Pilates | Exercise & Fitness | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

History | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Art Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Biographies | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Children's Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Entertainment Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Health Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Romance Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Fiction & Fantasy Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
History: Fiction or Science? Astronomical methods as applied to chronology. Ptolemy's Almagest. Chronology III
Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
Before the Pharaohs: Egypt's Mysterious Prehistory
They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies

ASIN: 2913621058

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution (Great Discoveries)

Average customer rating:

Beware the audio book verson
Short, Fast, and Informative
On the Evolution of Darwin
The Reluctant Mr. Darwin by David Quammen
Quammen on Darwin

The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution (Great Discoveries)
David Quammen
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Scientists | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Why Darwin Matters: The Case Against Intelligent Design
Intelligent Thought: Science versus the Intelligent Design Movement
The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth
The God Delusion
The Making of the Fittest: DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution

ASIN: 0393059812

Book Description

A fresh look at Darwin's most radical idea, and the mysteriously slow process by which he revealed it.

Evolution, during the early nineteenth century, was an idea in the air. Other thinkers had suggested it, but no one had proposed a cogent explanation for how evolution occurs. Then, in September 1838, a young Englishman named Charles Darwin hit upon the idea that "natural selection" among competing individuals would lead to wondrous adaptations and species diversity. Twenty-one years passed between that epiphany and publication of On the Origin of Species. The human drama and scientific basis of Darwin's twenty-one-year delay constitute a fascinating, tangled tale that elucidates the character of a cautious naturalist who initiated an intellectual revolution.

The Reluctant Mr. Darwin is a book for everyone who has ever wondered about who this man was and what he said. Drawing from Darwin's secret "transmutation" notebooks and his personal letters, David Quammen has sketched a vivid life portrait of the man whose work never ceases to be controversial.

Customer Reviews:

Beware the audio book verson.......2007-09-13

Be forewarned: the narrator of the audio book version is an unfortunate cross between J. Peterman from Seinfeld, Mike Wallace from 60 Minutes, and the narrator of old elementary school film strips. The content is very good (as described in other reviews posted here) but you should have a friendly warning about the audio version. The narrator will put you to sleep.

Short, Fast, and Informative.......2007-04-25

"The Reluctant Mr. Darwin" by David Quammen is a concise, fun, and fast read. If you want to learn the bullet points about Charles Darwin's life and the formative people, events, and intellectual and social climate that surrounded Darwin's publication of the On the Origin of Species, then this book is for you. Quammen does not spend too much time on any one point, but maintains a theme that Darwin was not lazy in publishing his famous book many years after his voyage but reluctant, wanting to make sure his ideas were sound and well evidenced.

An outline of Darwin's life can be found in many places, even Wikipedia, but what makes Quammen's book particularly helpful is the sections he devotes to writing about Darwin's contemporaries and their contributions to natural history and Darwin's work. Quammen writes about Charles Lyell and his advocacy of the idea of uniformitarianism, the idea that was formed by slow-moving processes, which opposed the idea of catastrophism, the idea that was consistent with Christian theology of the times and based on the belief that certain catastrophes shaped the geologic features of the earth as it is today. Quammen also writes about John-Baptiste Lamarck and his idea of the inheritance of acquired traits, an idea that has been found to be incorrect, but one that Darwin uses in his famous book. These sections in "The Reluctant Mr. Darwin" give historical and scientific context to Darwin's work and allow the reader to more completely appreciate the specific and significant contribution that Darwin made in advocating the idea of evolution by natural selection.

Another important aspect of Quammen's book was how Quammen made it a point to show the evolution of Darwin's famous publication from its infancy, where he first wrote his ideas in journals titled Journal A, Journal B, Journal C, and so on to his obsession with writing a tome that covered every possible argument and objection to his idea with as much evidence as possible to his final rushed publishing of On the Origin of Species due to the threat of Alfred Russel Wallace nearly publishing the same theory before Darwin himself.

This book definitely gives the reader a good picture of Darwin and the social and scientific climate in which he lived. I came away from the book having what I felt was a basic yet complete understanding of Darwin's life.

On the Evolution of Darwin.......2007-04-25

I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a quick read on the life and works of Charles Darwin. David Quammen beautifully integrates excerpts from primary sources into this biography, really making the work a book, and not just a really long research paper. The sections are smartly headed and the writing style is engaging and makes the biography an easy and interesting read.

The biography itself provides an intimate portrait of Charles Darwin the son, husband, father, friend, etc., which also reveals much about his tendencies as a scientist. The author gives a good overview of all the theories regarding speciation that had already been discussed throughout the intellectual community before Darwin came up with his idea on the "transmutation" of species. It was particularly interesting when trying to imagine a society before the theory of evolution. My struggles to do so only further demonstrate how much Darwin has impacted our modern thinking. Quammen's summary on the ideas and examples provided in "The Origin of Species" may be interesting to many who do not wish to read the 500 pages or so of the actual book, but in my opinion, it was unnecessarily dry and seemed out of place in an otherwise interesting and engaging work.

However, one point that I particularly enjoyed was the fact that Quammen explored the evolution of Darwin's theory of evolution: from the beginnings of its fabrication in "notebook B" to its revealing to the public in the first edition of "Origins" to subsequent subtle changes in order to rectify problems brought up by opponents and finally to its modern applications in the field of molecular biology. The author definitely provided a persuading argument on the "fitness" of Darwin's great idea.

The Reluctant Mr. Darwin by David Quammen.......2007-03-31

This book is by far one of the best I have read on Darwin. David Quammen puts you inside the period in Enland as well as providing a great understanding of Darwins personal thinking and self doubt as he formulated his theories on evolution. This is an excellent book for anyone but especially a non-scientist such as myself.

Larry Wilkinson
Howell, Michigan

Quammen on Darwin.......2007-03-12

This work focuses on the post Beagle period of Darwins life, and although I would have liked more included on Wallace, Lyell,and Huxley, Darwin was the deserving subject.
David Quammen is an excellent writer on science and scientists, and if you are starting with this work, you should check out his other works.

The Nature of Consciousness : The Structure of Reality: Theory of Everything Equation Revealed : Scientific Verification and Proof of Logic God Is

Average customer rating:

The Real Deal
A life changing experience??
Should be Required Reading for everyone
A Very Important Book
Illuminating!!!

The Nature of Consciousness : The Structure of Reality: Theory of Everything Equation Revealed : Scientific Verification and Proof of Logic God Is
Jerry Davidson Wheatley
Manufacturer: Research Scientific Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Logic & Language | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Science & Religion | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

Cosmology | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

Chaos & Systems | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

Cosmology | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

System Theory | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Unified Reality Theory: The Evolution of Existence into Experience
The Dimensional Structure of Consciousness: A Physical Basis for Immaterialism
Transcendence of the Western Mind: Physics, Metaphysics, and Life on Earth
Quantum Enigma: Physics Encounters Consciousness
The God Effect: Quantum Entanglement, Science's Strangest Phenomenon

ASIN: 0970316100

Book Description

This book describes how understanding the structure of reality leads to the Theory of Everything Equation. The equation unifies the forces of nature and enables the merging of relativity with quantum theory. The book explains the big bang theory and everything else.

Customer Reviews:

The Real Deal.......2006-09-25

Although Mr. Wheatley is a little verbose in sections, his documentation of Zen Buddhistic Principles found throughout the disciplines of Mathematics, Physics, Theology, etc. forms a nice reference guide for anyone tuned into that wavelength. In particular, his explanation of how Godel's Theorem and Cantor's "Confusion" shed great light on the difference between GOD's Logic and Man's Logic should be a revelation to any undergraduate level math students who encounter these ideas for the first time. Curiously, Mr. Wheatley makes many misstatements about both Zen Buddhism Principles and the Bible, however. For example, by accepting the false biblical teaching of Original Sin, he misses the point that eating the proverbial apple gave Adam and Eve the ability to make Moral Discernments in fulfillment of GOD'S PERFECT PLAN. As proof, read Genesis 1 which states that Man and Woman were made in GOD's Image. Genesis 4 shows that Adam and Eve weren't the first humans on Earth at all, there were plenty of others by then. The allegorical meaning of the story of Eden, then, isn't that Adam and Eve were the first humans on Earth, but they were the first humans with the ability to make Moral Discernments (in GOD's Image). In fact, Moral Discernment is God's Unique Gift to Man, which is the basis of consciousness, not some Math Formula. But because the wages of the resulting, unavoidable sin are Death, many people foolishly try to return to Eden by: (1) living a sinless Life (2) by removing choice altogether by passing and enforcing strict Laws (3) by attempting to do away with Moral Discernment and the resulting consequences for our actions altogether by trying to remove Shame from Shameful actions. GOD is not some ethereal Man-In-Space, but is simply the Totality of all Real Things, The Set of All Real Sets. GOD's Love manifests itself from the amazing sub-atomic relationships that underly this magic Life all the way to the grandest of Macroscopic Scales, the Interconnected Totality itself. The Zen Buddhism connection can be found by simply superimposing the 0 symbol and the symbol for infinity (8 on its side) in Mr. Wheatley's supposedly "new" formulation that 1 = 0 x infinity. Superimposing them gives you the yin-yang symbol. A potential disadvantage of artificially separating the infinity from the zero, however, is that Mr. Wheatley is able to equate the entire expression to be equal to 1. This potentially might obscure the fact that the deepest meaning of the yin-yang symbol is that it is both 2 and 1 AT THE SAME TIME. His overall equation does preserve that important meaning by utilizing a single element on one side of the equation and two elements on the other side of his final TOE equation. This may be hard to see for some at first, however, which could potentially obscure the richest meaning of this beautiful symbol/equation. A much more GODLY TOE, in my opinion, comes from Euler, who discovered that e ^ (i * pi) - 1 = 0. When someone can explain that relationship, then they can say they know GOD.

A life changing experience??.......2005-06-13

This book is an easy read and does succeed in being somewhat thought-provoking. However, I am a little surprised at the awesome, "life changing" experience it apparently was for many of the readers. Wheatley's conclusions were interesting but nothing really new. All of his material should have passed through the mind of any thinking person without the aid of this book.
The reason I gave this book three stars is because he uses unneccessarily wordy ways of describing simple things. Also, the author and many other reviewers insist that Wheatley makes only one assumption. Wrong-his whole theory is one big assumption.
Overall though it was a very interesting and worthy book.

Should be Required Reading for everyone.......2004-06-26

This book will change your life. You will never think the same way you did before reading it.
I have a degree in chemistry and I think this book should be read by everyone in the sciences. Without a doubt, the best book I've ever read. Why and what are two of our best friends

A Very Important Book.......2004-01-26

I must preface my review by stating that I have never been so excited and moved by a book that I have wanted to contact the author. That is what I found myself doing upon reading this book. This book is just what its title says. The author does not "miss a beat" describing in great detail using practically every aspect of scientific knowledge from atomic structure through logic to quantum theory---we are even given a valuable explanation of Love. This text may be challenging to read for those unfamiliar with scientific terminology. And it can also be difficult for those with a science background, such as myself. However, for me it is well worth the work necessary to strive to understand the unfamiliar terminology. (I am continually learning from this book. I am presently on my third reread).

One of the author's main messages is "not" to believe anything without first verifying it with reality, as we know it. He calls it the "Personal Explanation Principle". He indicates that religions are just such belief systems that we as people "fall" victims of; because we do not verify the beliefs with the facts, as we know them, of reality. He gives a very detailed explanation of how the New Testament can be explored using his methodology.

The author methodically and meticulously walks us through his thought processes, which took 30 years to assimilate, of delineating the structure of reality and the nature of consciousness. Included in the "walk" are many of reality's phenomena made revelatory. An example of that, for me, would be the dual nature of light. It's particle/wave duality, which is explained as "functions". Also, when the author took me on the mental journey of "Setness" an exhilaration of the magnificence of life swelled up in me.

To me this is a very important book that should be read by all that are seekers of truth. It is for all those wanting to gain an understanding of the purpose for their existence, wanting to know where life is headed towards, and wanting to know who God is.

This book will enlighten and develop one's mind substantially. You will discover that this is our objective.

And yes, I contacted the author and he responded openly.

Illuminating!!!.......2002-12-30

This is a really great book. It combines philosophy and science in order to tackle a multitude of existential problems. The author's style of writing is fresh and alive, I recommend ths book to anyone interested in expanding the fronteirs of their understanding. Books I also liked are a Universe in an Nutshell by Steven Hawkings and Descent into Illusions by Paul Omeziri.

Multi-Objective Optimization Using Evolutionary Algorithms

Average customer rating:

Great Book
Great book; a must for engineers and scientists alike
The Reference in Evolutionary Multiobjective Optimization

Multi-Objective Optimization Using Evolutionary Algorithms
Kalyanmoy Deb , and Deb Kalyanmoy
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Programming | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Mathematics | Science | Subjects | Books

Algorithms | Computer Science & Information Systems | New & Used Textbooks | Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Computers & Internet | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Evolutionary Algorithms for Solving Multi-Objective Problems (Genetic and Evolutionary Computation)
Ant Colony Optimization (Bradford Books)
Differential Evolution: A Practical Approach to Global Optimization (Natural Computing Series)
Swarm Intelligence (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Artificial Intelligence)
Introduction to Evolutionary Computing (Natural Computing Series)

ASIN: 047187339X

Book Description

Evolutionary algorithms are relatively new, but very powerful techniques used to find solutions to many real-world search and optimization problems. Many of these problems have multiple objectives, which leads to the need to obtain a set of optimal solutions, known as effective solutions. It has been found that using evolutionary algorithms is a highly effective way of finding multiple effective solutions in a single simulation run.
· Comprehensive coverage of this growing area of research
· Carefully introduces each algorithm with examples and in-depth discussion
· Includes many applications to real-world problems, including engineering design and scheduling
· Includes discussion of advanced topics and future research
· Can be used as a course text or for self-study
· Accessible to those with limited knowledge of classical multi-objective optimization and evolutionary algorithms
The integrated presentation of theory, algorithms and examples will benefit those working and researching in the areas of optimization, optimal design and evolutionary computing. This text provides an excellent introduction to the use of evolutionary algorithms in multi-objective optimization, allowing use as a graduate course text or for self-study.

Customer Reviews:

Great Book.......2007-02-26

I highly recommend this book, it covers all the important subjects. A great acquisition!

Great book; a must for engineers and scientists alike.......2001-09-28

Kalyanmoy Deb has put together a great summary of the state of affairs in multiobjective genetic algorithms. Should you be an engineer or a scientist involved in the optimization of any design of sizeable complexity, you should read this book and become familiar with the techniques that have evolved over the last decade into powerful methods of optimization. This book is in many many ways bridging the gap from Michalewicz's and Fogel's book ("How to solve it") to the more modern era of this field (eg late nineties up to now...). So whereas those two authors never really considered multiobjective genetic algorithms, Deb plows through with the great expertize of a (perhaps even "the") leading researcher in that domain. This is a great book of _receipes_ with the level of details necessary to make use of them. It's a "how to" book; this is the one you have cracked open on your desk while you're hard coding it all up. However, it's not very well written with the prose being very terse and basically quite unengaging. But so what! In some sense yes perhaps, but Michalewicz and Fogel made a point that one can write technical litterature that one can also read. Perhaps they went overboard... in any case, Deb's book is about algorithms so who cares about whether the book puts you to sleep and it can do that, unfortunately. Apart from the unengaging style and the paucity of depth in the examples scope, the real problem with the book is not with the book itself, it's with the field of multiobjective optimization based on evolutionary methods. It's fairly evident that there is not much of any sort of fundamental understanding available at this time in support of why evolutionary techniques do work well, and they do, sometimes... If this understanding is available, you won't find it in Deb's book. If you are like me though, you won't care all that much really so long as the techniques are efficient and presented in a way that make them useable, and that's done right... But on the whole, it's a little unsatisfying because one's left with a panoply of various techniques and ways to define operators and representations but there is no insight given on which one might be best or how to craft them to particular situations. There is a lot of so-'n-so in reference this and that did it like this and it seems to work well there, however... The reason for this state of affairs is, of course, that nobody has a real clue, yet... But that is _not_ Deb's fault and this is not why, as a user, I'm not rating his book a full 5 stars. In some sense it could be rated as high as that but I thought the presentation was rather unengaging and not with all the breath and depth it could have had. So it's a 4.5 stars perhaps... let's say... but Amazon does not let me select 4.5 stars so it's 4, this edition at least...

The Reference in Evolutionary Multiobjective Optimization.......2001-07-23

This is the first complete and updated text on Multi-objective Evolutionary Algorithms (MOEAs), covering all major areas clearly, thoughtfully and thoroughly. Thanks to the development of evolutionary computation MOEAs are now a well established technique for multi-objective optimization that finds multiple effective solutions in a single run. The widely interdisciplinary interest of engineers, scientists and mathematicians towards MOEAs has been evident during the first international conference on this topic (EMO2001,Zurich). The book is extremely useful for researchers working on multi-objective optimization in all branches of engineering and sciences, that will find a complete description of all available methodologies, starting from a detailed description and criticism of classical methods, towards a deep treating of the most advanced evolutionary techniques. Moreover several analytical test cases are given, covering all difficulties a MOEA encounters when converging towards the Pareto Optimal front. This set of test problems, together with several performance measurement parameters are essential when testing a new strategy before its application to a real-world problem. Despite the detail in advanced topics, Deb's book may be also used as a reference-book for a post-graduate course thanks to the scholarly coverage of basic arguments. As a final remark I strongly suggest everyone working on evolutionary computation and optimization to keep this book on the desk.

Catching Up with Jesus: A Gospel Story for Our Time

Average customer rating:

The real message
Catching Up with Jesus: A Gospel Story for Our Time
O'Murchu Continues His Vision
Catching Up with O'Murchu

Catching Up with Jesus: A Gospel Story for Our Time
Diarmuid O'Murch
Manufacturer: Crossroad
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Quantum Theology, Revised Edition: Spiritual Implications of the New Physics
Consecrated Religious Life: The Changing Paradigms
Evolutionary Faith: Rediscovering God in Our Great Story
Jesus Today: A Spirituality of Radical Freedom
Prayers to an Evolutionary God

ASIN: 0824522982

Book Description

O'Murchu shows us Jesus in a Wholly new and creative way.

Customer Reviews:

The real message.......2007-01-09

This book lays the challenge at your feet - the real message of Jesus is how to live fully a human life while focusing on the divine within you and every human being. Father O'Murchu's point is looking at God's incarnation from the beginning of man's existance and seeing Jesus' role as the fulfillment of this. I found that the challenge is the same reiterated by G.K. Chesterton - Christianity should not be condemned, it's never been tried. And the book's central theme - Jesus came to show us a radically new way of living our human life in the Spirit of God.

Catching Up with Jesus: A Gospel Story for Our Time.......2006-03-25

An eyeopener as to how we need to have Loving Kindness fill our lives.

O'Murchu Continues His Vision.......2005-09-27

Billed as a sequel to "Quantum Theology," this book is as refreshing as O'Murchu's other work. His argument for updating our understanding of the message of Jesus - catching up with Jesus - is necessary in our 21st century world. The message O'Murchu conveys is one which is in tune with other contemporary thought - living on a shrinking planet with diminishing resources.
The second half of the book, written as monologue/dialogue is a little tedious and sanctimonious but can be forgiven knowing what O'Murchu is trying to convey.

Catching Up with O'Murchu.......2005-06-13

In liberating the Jesus story for our times, O'Murchu follows a model used by the feminist theologian, Anne Clifford -namely
intelligently critique the conventional story, try to recover the elements of the original story and reconstruct as best as possible a timeless story. O'Murchu does a fairly good job at the critiquing; the recovery section of the book focuses on important, if selected and a somewhat limited view of Jesus' identities. The reconstruction represents an exhausting attempt to practically rewrite the gospels. Because of the size of the task, O'Murchu jumps to some conclusions that seem more fictional with little scholarship to back them up. O'Murchu also tends to repeat some good insights/themes over and over again. At the same time,in love with evolution, he practically skips over trying to explain suffering, the imperfections of this cosmos and other deep mysteries. Many of his challenging insights were left a bit open-ended for me to the point that I wished I lived around the corner from him to be able to ask things like what kind of afterlife does he believe in? He also seems to vacillate as to whether we should move beyond the institutional churches or whether we should re-work them into being prime movers of the Kingom and centers for ritual/liturgies that help stir us in that direction. All in all there's a lot of mind-stretching new ideas about Jesus that do resonate in a new world order that understands how quantum science frees us from a mechanistic world
and leads us to a world of unlimited possibilites as could really pursuing the Kingdom

The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History

Average customer rating:

I can't help but be a fan
Eye opener....Don't let the name fool you!!
The Lucifer Principle is eye opening 5 stars plus
OK for thinking but not believing
Changed the way I deal with people

The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History
Howard Bloom
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Consciousness & Thought | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Behavioral Psychology | Behavioral Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century
Virus of the Mind:: The New Science of the Meme
The Meme Machine
The Electric Meme: A New Theory of How We Think
50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know

ASIN: 0871136643

Book Description

The Lucifer Principle is a revolutionary work that explores the intricate relationships among genetics, human behavior, and culture to put forth the thesis that "evil" is a by-product of nature's strategies for creation and that it is woven into our most basic biological fabric. "An act of astonishing intellectual courage." -- Leon Uris; "Destined to be the Future Shock of our time." -- Spin; "A revolutionary vision of the relationship between psychology and history, The Lucifer Principle will have a profound impact on our concepts of human nature. It is astonishing that a book of such importance could be such a pleasure to read." -- Elizabeth F. Loftus, Professor of Psychology, University of Washington, and author of Memory and Eyewitness Testimony.

Customer Reviews:

I can't help but be a fan.......2007-06-10

This book will always have a spot next to my heart since it was the book that got me interested in things like evolutionary biology, sociology and ethology. Even if some of his theories are hackneyed the book still achieved the goal of changing the way I think about the world around me and opened up new areas of study that have truly enriched my life. It's hard for me not to be generous with this book.

Also the book is a great reference for finding other books on many topics that should be read which has been a great help for me. Mr. Bloom's book is probably not for the professional sector or the semi-pros, but for amateurs like me the book can be an eye opener. Plus the book is so well written that it is a very good read in its own right. I found myself engrossed throughout and unable to put the book down in some places.

Don't come to this book looking for the definitive work to define your philosophy about the subjects of this book, but more to get a taste of the ideas that are out there and I think you won't be disappointed.

I think in my case the book was a huge success and if you're an amateur like me I think the book can really be a paradigm shift in your life.

Eye opener....Don't let the name fool you!!.......2007-05-20

I have to say, as a person who has always had a hard time understanding man's "methods of maddness", this book shed a interesting light on human behavior. I've read this book about 5 times (just to keep the concepts fresh in my mind) and have recomended this book to anyone looking for a little more information on the nature of man. To any scared of the title: Lucifer's name is simply used as a way to describe the kind of behavior examined in this book. Bloom confronts more of man's darker traits in this book and what better a name (or diety's name) to affix to these tendencies. I call this a must read for anyone looking for another angle from which to examine life.

The Lucifer Principle is eye opening 5 stars plus.......2007-04-05

This book is one of the most revealing in how the masses get suckered into believing lies, much like the stupidity of mormonism.

Howard Bloom is a genius in making the principals of thinking for yourself a revelation in simple terms.

Get it and never be suckered into BS lies again, unless your a mormon and your all ready screwed up bad.

OK for thinking but not believing.......2007-03-01

It is important when reading this book to keep in mind the book's foreword by David Sloan Wilson - he gives sound advice to 'not read it and believe but read it and think'. Sloan Wilson also rightly describes Bloom as having the 'brashness of a mass media denizen'. Sloan Wilson's support is essentially for the group selection argument which Bloom presents in his personal, passionate and largely flawed way.

Bloom takes the reader through a galloping overview of human group violence. His descriptions of group identification, group pecking-orders, group loyalty, imperialism etc are pretty much obvious and undeniable. Also the fact that nature is profligate and that much of what nature produces is expendable is largely true but Bloom's argument that this proves that the social unit comes first is flawed.

Bloom compares the social unit to the body - just as body cells die in order for the body itself to live, so individuals are sacrificed for the life of the group. This, of course, is a false analogy because body cells share identical DNA and the reproduction of the body's DNA is left to the germ cells. No other body cells could ever reproduce (naturally) into the next generation and therefore are sacrificing absolutely nothing.

Bloom confuses an apparent greater importance of the group with what is in reality the dependence of individuals on other group members for individual reproductive success/fitness. He also confuses individual survival with the survival of genes through time and seems not to understand inclusive fitness. His idea that people who commit suicide are altruistically ridding their group of a burden should mean that the sick, elderly, homeless, unemployed etc should be killing themselves by the thousand. It is far more likely that it is more to do, ultimately, with reproductive defeat where they are no longer able to compete or compare well with peers and are no longer attractive to the opposite sex and/or are a failure as a parent. If the group is being relieved of a burden it is incidental. They would, after all, not be a burden to the group if they took on some undesirable though necessary low status work rather than kill themselves.

If the social unit comes first there should be no dissent, no anti-social behavior, no interest groups etc. The fact that these exist in all societies shows that individuals whose self-interest is not being satisfied by the group will attempt to cause trouble for the group. Bloom is only right in pointing out the obvious fact that members of a group, like members of a family, will tend to pull together if attacked from outside but this is also mutual self-interest.

Another aspect of Bloom's book that is flawed is his weak treatment of the differences between the sexes. He uses a few bits of evidence to supposedly prove the violence of females and then resumes the main theme of the book - ie male violence - as if the matter has been properly dealt with. Bloom uses the usual argument about females having selected male traits through mate choice yet he also writes of how women have been kidnapped and raped throughout history by the violent men he depicts. There is an unresolved contradiction here between the idea that females choose their mates and the fact that most girls throughout history and in much of the world today are simply resigned to the fact that they will have the father of their children chosen for them by their own father or brothers. Female sexuality has clearly been under the control of men for a very long time and it should at least be given some consideration that male traits have been selected for by males themselves which could have created a feedback loop of male violence etc.

'The Lucifer Principle' is an entertaining read in its description of male-male competitive behavior. Violence between groups of humans is as grotesque as Bloom describes but it is a mistake to believe that this proves group selection and to lose sight of the individual's self-interest - and especially the gene's self-interest - in what shapes human behavior. This book is worth reading only as an aid to thinking - not to any great understanding or belief.

Changed the way I deal with people.......2007-01-09

This book is so startling in the way that Bloom looks at people it is almost a new paradigm for sociology. After reading the book it changed the way that I looked at every aspect of my personal and business relationships with friends, colleagues, everybody.
Well researched and argued.
A must for anybody who deals with other people, which means everybody.

Gene Genealogies, Variation and Evolution: A Primer in Coalescent Theory

Average customer rating:

Gene Genealogies, Variation and Evolution: A Primer in Coalescent Theory
Jotun Hein , Mikkel H. Schierup , and Carsten Wiuf
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Genetics | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Statistical Methods in Molecular Evolution (Statistics for Biology and Health)
Computational Molecular Evolution (Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution)
Coalescent Theory: An Introduction
Population Genetics and Microevolutionary Theory
Principles of Population Genetics, Fourth Edition

ASIN: 0198529961

Book Description

Coalescent theory tells us what gene genealogies are expected to look like if populations have different demographic histories - i.e, population size, structure, etc. The aim of this book is provide an accessible introduction to Coalescent Theory with a view towards data analysis. Coalescent
Theory has in the last two decades moved from being an obscure technique that appealed to mathematical population geneticists to a central tool in data analysis of DNA sequences. The completion of the sequencing of the human genome and accompanying determination of SNPs and haplotypes will increase
its importance even further. This textbook, rich in examples and illustrations, is suitable for a graduate course in statistics, population-, molecular-, and medical genetics.

Average customer rating:

A stimulating insight in animal (and human) behaviour

An Introduction to Behavioural Ecology
J. R. Krebs , and N. B. Davies
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Mental Health | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Environmental Science | Earth Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Behavioral Psychology | Behavioral Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

Ecology | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Health Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Outdoors & Nature Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Outdoors & Nature | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Measuring Behaviour
Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach
Behavioural Ecology: An Evolutionary Approach
Practical Statistics for Field Biology
Evolution

ASIN: 0632035463

Book Description

The third edition of this successful textbook looks again at the influence of natural selection on behavior - an animal's struggle to survive by exploiting resources, avoiding predators, and maximizing reproductive success. However, in this edition, new examples are introduced throughout, many illustrated with full colour photographs. In addition, important new topics are added including the latest techniques of comparative analysis; the theory and application of DNA fingerprinting techniques; extensive new discussion on brood parasite / host coevolution; the latest ideas on sexual selection in relation to disease resistance; and a new section on the intentionality of communication. Written in the lucid style for which these two authors are renowned, the text is aided by boxed sections illustrating important concepts and new marginal notes which guide the reader through the text. This book will be essential reading for students taking courses in behavioural ecology.

Customer Reviews:

A stimulating insight in animal (and human) behaviour.......2000-08-18

A well balanced, unique mix of ethology and sociobiology, with strong emphasis on the biologic and evolutionary sides of behaviour. It is concise but is easy reading. A must have, for those seriously interested in the field.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books