I have read and listened to many books through the years exploring the topic of evolution, and this is certainly one of the most accessible. One of my favorite scientists who excelled at it was Carl Sagan, so it was no surprise to learn that Bill Nye was a student of Sagan. It takes a special talent to translate complicated scientific principles to lay readers like me. Undeniable: Evolution and the Science of Creation by Bill Nye (audio version) I decided to share some of my favorites here. Mostly, these books have been enlightening, informative, and even entertaining at times. These studies have explored topics such as evolutionary biology, immunology, sociology, psychology, futurology, and perhaps a few other ologies I can’t identify. (With charts and line drawings throughout.).Over the last few years, I have been on a binge reading books about the human species - everything from how we got here to where we might be going.
And finally-provocatively-he advocates the use of evolutionary information to help nudge, push, and sometimes even compel us to create a more salubrious environment. Lieberman proposes that many of these chronic illnesses persist and in some cases are intensifying because of "dysevolution, "a pernicious dynamic whereby only the symptoms rather than the causes of these maladies are treated. The Story of the Human Body While these ongoing changes have brought about many benefits, they have also created conditions to which our bodies are not entirely adapted, Lieberman argues, resulting in the growing incidence of obesity and new but avoidable diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. Lieberman-chair of the department of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University and a leader in the field-gives us a lucid and engaging account of how the human body evolved over millions of years, even as it shows how the increasing disparity between the jumble of adaptations in our Stone Age bodies and advancements in the modern world is occasioning this paradox: greater longevity but increased chronic disease. In this landmark book of popular science, Daniel E. Survival of the fitter: Can evolutionary logic help cultivate a better future for the human body? The hidden dangers of novelty and comfort: Why everyday innovations can damage us.
The vicious circle of too much: Why too much energy can make us sick -ĭisuse: Why we are losing it by not using it. Modern times, modern bodies: The paradox of human health in the industrial era. Paradise lost? The fruits and follies of becoming farmers. Of having paleolithic bodies in a post-paleolithic world. Progress, mismatch, and dysevolution: The consequences.
The first hunter-gatherers: How nearly modern bodies evolved in the human genus -Įnergy in the ice age: How we evolved big brains along with large, fat, gradually growing bodies -Ī very cultured species: How modern humans colonized the world with a combination of brains plus brawn. Much depends on dinner: How australopiths partly weaned us off fruit. (With charts and line drawings throughout.).