Evolution Books

Are there dinosaurs in the Bible? Are dragon legends basedon human encounters with fire-breathing dinosaurs? A vast and ever-growing body of literature proclaims thatthe answer to both these questions is yes. The Real Story of Dinosaurstakes readers on a...

‘Inferior is more than just a book. It’s a battle cry – and right now, it’s having a galvanising effect on its core fanbase’ Observer Are women more nurturing than men? Are men more promiscuous than women? Are males the naturally dominant sex? And can...

The eagerly anticipated conclusion to Peter Godfrey-Smith’s three-part exploration of the origins of intelligence on Earth, which began with the bestselling Other Minds in 2018 and continued with Metazoa in 2020. The eagerly anticipated conclusion to...

In this paradigm-shifting book from acclaimed Harvard Medical School doctor and one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people on earth, Dr. David Sinclair reveals that everything we think we know about ageing is wrong, and shares the surprising,...

The follow-up to the BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week Other MindsA Times and Sunday Times Book of the YearA Waterstones Best Book of 2020The scuba-diving philosopher explores the origins of animal consciousness. Dip below the ocean’s surface and you are...

Our increasing reliance on digital technology has had a profound impact on our own abilities as humans. What can we do about it?In a fascinating journey through history and science, Human Being offers an insightful and provocative survey of twelve vital...

Leading minds discuss psychedelics, shamanism, human evolution, and the ecological crisis• Includes conversations with Duncan Trussell, Graham Hancock, Grant Morrison, Hamilton Morris, Erik Davis, Julia Mossbridge, Rupert Sheldrake, and others• Explores...

A groundbreaking interpretation of evolution as the work of Nature’s intelligence • Refutes the orthodox view of evolution as a mindless process driven by chance • Explains why context is more important than mutation in evolutionary innovation • Shows...

What can snorkelling at Shark Bay teach us about humanity? Will the secrets of our sex lives be uncovered by stick insects? What do whale societies reveal about kindness? And why did we evolve to spend a third of our life asleep?Some questions have...

The story of the unorthodox and inspiring life and career of a pioneering biologist Scientist Rosemary Grant's journey in life has involved detours and sidesteps-not the shortest or the straightest of paths, but one that has led her to the top of...

Why evolution is like a network, not a family tree-and why it matters for understanding the health of all living thingsIn The Network of Life, David Mindell explains why the conventional narrative of evolution needs to evolve. Ever since Darwin,...

A sweeping account of male nurturing, explaining how and why men are biologically transformed when they care for babies.It has long seemed self-evident that women care for babies and men do other things. Hasn't it always been so? When evolutionary...

John Tyler Bonner, one of our most distinguished and creative biologists, here offers a completely new perspective on the role of size in biology. In his hallmark friendly style, he explores the universal impact of being the right size. By examining...

Power has many dimensions, from individual attributes such as strength and speed to the collective advantages of groups. The Evolution of Power takes readers on a breathtaking journey across history and the natural world, revealing how the concept of...

A richly illustrated introduction to the world's living and extinct sea mammals.From the gregarious sea otter and playful dolphins to the sociable narwhal and iconic polar bear, sea mammals are a large, diverse, and increasingly precious group. In this...

It is rare for life to change Earth, yet three organisms have profoundly transformed our planet over the long course of its history. Elemental reveals how microbes, plants, and people used the fundamental building blocks of life to alter the climate, and...

A groundbreaking account of the origin and place of meaning in the earthly biosphereWhat is meaning? How does it arise? Where is it found in the world? In recent years, philosophers and scientists have answered these questions in different ways. Some see...

Part conspiracy theory, part popular science, Genes, Giants, Monsters and Men explores the possibility that the history of the human race is not as simple as has been taught in textbooks. Farrell considers how the religious stories that have often been...

World Literature Today Editor's Pick "Enchanting. . . . The Poetic Species is a wonderful read in its entirety, short yet infinitely simulating." -MARIA POPOVA, Brain Pickings In this shimmering conversation (the outgrowth of an event co-sponsored by the...

There was once a set of ideas called the theory of evolution, conceived by clever people and confirmed by countless scientists. Then people discovered the electron microscope. This made it possible to make the molecules within the cell visible, and...

Religious fundamentalists and biblical literalists present any number of arguments that attempt to disprove evolution. Those with a sympathetic ear often fail to critically examine these creationist claims, leading to an ill-informed public and, perhaps...

A groundbreaking look at Gaia theory's intersections with neocybernetic systems theory Often seen as an outlier in science, Gaia has run a long and varied course since its formulation in the 1970s by atmospheric chemist James Lovelock and microbiologist...

A major new biography of the brilliant naturalist, traveller, humanitarian, and codiscoverer of natural selectionAlfred Russel Wallace (18231913) was perhaps the most famed naturalist of the Victorian age. His expeditions to remote Amazonia and southeast...

A powerful framework for understanding how natural selection shapes adaptation and biological design.Design and diversity are the two great challenges in the study of life. Microbial Life History draws on the latest advances in microbiology to describe...

From famed zoologist Anthony Sinclair, an account of his decades-long quest to understand one of Earth's most spectacular ecosystems.With its rich biodiversity, astounding wildlife, and breathtaking animal migrations, Serengeti is like no other...

The revolution in science that is transforming our understanding of extinct life.We used to think of fossils as being composed of nothing but rock and minerals, all molecular traces of life having vanished long ago. We were wrong. Remnants of Ancient...

An authoritative introduction to the latest comparative methods in evolutionary biologyPhylogenetic comparative methods are a suite of statistical approaches that enable biologists to analyze and better understand the evolutionary tree of life, and shed...

The first modern scholarly synthesis of animal domesticationAcross the globe and at different times in the past millennia, the evolutionary history of domesticated animals has been greatly affected by the myriad, complex, and diverse interactions humans...

Could extinct species, like mammoths and passenger pigeons, be brought back to life?In How to Clone a Mammoth, Beth Shapiro, an evolutionary biologist and pioneer in ancient DNA research, addresses this intriguing question by walking readers through the...

An exciting look at the essential roles that parasites play in Earth's ecosystems.This book looks at the weird and wonderful world of parasites, the most abundant form of life on Earth. Parasites come in all forms and sizes and inhabit every free-living...

An engaging journey into the biological principles underpinning a beloved science-fiction franchiseIn Star Trek, crew members travel to unusual planets, meet diverse beings, and encounter unique civilizations. In these remarkable space adventures, does...

An enticing illustrated look at pollination, one of the most astonishing marvels of the natural worldPollination is essential to the survival of most plants on Earth. Some plants rely on the wind to transport pollen from one flower to another. Others...

Longlisted for thePEN America Literary Awards 2021:PEN/E.O Wilson Literary Science Writing AwardWaterstone's Best Books of 2020: Popular ScienceAmerican Scientist's 2020 Science Book Gift GuideWhy is the world the way it is? How did we...

The form and function of a sprinting cheetah are quite unlike those of a rooted tree. A human being is very different from a bacterium or a zebra. The living world is a realm of dazzling variety, yet a shared set of physical principles shapes the forms...

A savoury account of how the pursuit of delicious foods shaped human evolutionNature, it has been said, invites us to eat by appetite and rewards by flavour. But what exactly are flavours? Why are some so pleasing while others are not? Delicious is a...

A natural history of cheating from selfish genes to lying politiciansNature is rife with cheating. Possums play possum, feigning death to cheat predators. Crows cry wolf to scare off rivals. Amphibians and reptiles are inveterate impostors. Even genes...

The epic story of human evolution, from our primate beginnings more than five million years ago to the agricultural eraOver the course of five million years, our primate ancestors evolved from a modest population of sub-Saharan apes into the globally...

From two of the world's leading authorities on dogs, an imaginative journey into a future of dogs without peopleWhat would happen to dogs if humans simply disappeared? Would dogs be able to survive on their own without us? A Dog's World imagines a...

Menstruation is something half the world does for a week at a time, for months and years on end, yet it remains largely misunderstood. Scientists once thought of an individual's period as useless, and some doctors still believe it's unsafe for a...

Leading scholars take stock of Darwin's ideas about human evolution in the light of modern science In 1871, Charles Darwin published The Descent of Man, a companion to Origin of Species in which he attempted to explain human evolution, a topic...

Biological evolution is a fact-but the many conflicting theories of evolution remain controversial even today. When Adaptation and Natural Selection was first published in 1966, it struck a powerful blow against those who argued for the concept of group...

The astonishing new story of human originsWas Darwin wrong when he traced our origins to Africa? The Real Planet of the Apes makes the explosive claim that it was in Europe, not Africa, where apes evolved the most important hallmarks of our human lineage...

How Birds Evolve explores how evolution has shaped the distinctive characteristics and behaviours we observe in birds today. Douglas Futuyma describes how evolutionary science illuminates the wonders of birds, ranging over topics such as the meaning and...

How our ability to learn from each other has been the essential ingredient to our remarkable success as a species Human beings are a very different kind of animal. We have evolved to become the most dominant species on Earth. We have a larger...

A new framework for the neuroscientific study of emotions in humans and animalsThe Neuroscience of Emotion presents a new framework for the neuroscientific study of emotion across species. Written by Ralph Adolphs and David J. Anderson, two leading...

How does cooperation emerge among selfish individuals? When do people share resources, punish those they consider unfair, and engage in joint enterprises? These questions fascinate philosophers, biologists, and economists alike, for the "invisible hand"...

A treasure trove of illuminating and entertaining quotations from the legendary naturalist Here is Charles Darwin in his own words--the naturalist, traveler, scientific thinker, and controversial author of On the Origin of Species, the book that shook...

The most up-to-date and authoritative resource on the biology and evolution of solitary beesWhile social bees such as honey bees and bumble bees are familiar to most people, they comprise less than 10 percent of all bee species in the world. The vast...