A wildly fun and scientifically sound exploration of what alien life must be like Scientists are confident that life exists elsewhere in the universe. Yet rather than taking a realistic approach to what aliens might be like, we imagine that life on other planets is the stuff of science fiction. The time has come to abandon our fantasies of space invaders and movie monsters and place our expectations on solid scientific footing. Using his own expert understanding of life on Earth and Darwin's theory of evolution--which applies throughout the universe--Cambridge zoologist Dr. Arik Kershenbaum explains what alien life must be like: how these creatures will move, socialize, and communicate. Might there be an alien planet with supersonic animals? A moon where creatures have a language composed of smells? Will aliens scream with fear, act honestly, or have technology? The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy answers these questions using the latest science to tell the story of how life really works, on Earth and in space.

Evolution, Chance, and God looks at the relationship between religion and evolution from a philosophical perspective. This relationship is fascinating, complex and often very controversial, involving myriad issues that are difficult to keep separate from each other. Evolution, Chance, and God introduces the reader to the main themes of this debate and to the theory of evolution, while arguing for a particular viewpoint, namely that evolution and religion are compatible, and that, contrary to the views of some influential thinkers, there is no chance operating in the theory of evolution, a conclusion that has great significance for teleology. One of the main aims of this book is not simply to critique one influential contemporary view that evolution and religion are incompatible, but to explore specific ways of how we might understand their compatibility, as well as the implications of evolution for religious belief. This involves an exploration of how and why God might have created by means of evolution, and what the consequences in particular are for the status of human beings in creation, and for issues such as free will, the objectivity of morality, and the problem of evil. By probing how the theory of evolution and religion could be reconciled, Sweetman says that we can address more deeply key foundational questions concerning chance, design, suffering and morality, and God's way of acting in and through creation.

This highly interdisciplinary book discusses the phenomenon of life, including its origin and evolution, against the background of thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and information theory. Among the central themes is the seeming contradiction between the second law of thermodynamics and the high degree of order and complexity produced by living systems. As the author shows, this paradox has its resolution in the information content of the Gibbs free energy that enters the biosphere from outside sources. Another focus of the book is the role of information in human cultural evolution, which is also discussed with the origin of human linguistic abilities. One of the final chapters addresses the merging of information technology and biotechnology into a new discipline - bioinformation technology.This third edition has been updated to reflect the latest scientific and technological advances. Professor Avery makes use of the perspectives of famous scholars such as Professor Noam Chomsky and Nobel Laureates John O'Keefe, May-Britt Moser and Edward Moser to cast light on the evolution of human languages. The mechanism of cell differentiation, and the rapid acceleration of information technology in the 21st century are also discussed.With various research disciplines becoming increasingly interrelated today, Information Theory and Evolution provides nuance to the conversation between bioinformatics, information technology, and pertinent social-political issues. This book is a welcome voice in working on the future challenges that humanity will face as a result of scientific and technological progress.

This highly interdisciplinary book discusses the phenomenon of life, including its origin and evolution, against the background of thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and information theory. Among the central themes is the seeming contradiction between the second law of thermodynamics and the high degree of order and complexity produced by living systems. As the author shows, this paradox has its resolution in the information content of the Gibbs free energy that enters the biosphere from outside sources. Another focus of the book is the role of information in human cultural evolution, which is also discussed with the origin of human linguistic abilities. One of the final chapters addresses the merging of information technology and biotechnology into a new discipline - bioinformation technology.This third edition has been updated to reflect the latest scientific and technological advances. Professor Avery makes use of the perspectives of famous scholars such as Professor Noam Chomsky and Nobel Laureates John O'Keefe, May-Britt Moser and Edward Moser to cast light on the evolution of human languages. The mechanism of cell differentiation, and the rapid acceleration of information technology in the 21st century are also discussed.With various research disciplines becoming increasingly interrelated today, Information Theory and Evolution provides nuance to the conversation between bioinformatics, information technology, and pertinent social-political issues. This book is a welcome voice in working on the future challenges that humanity will face as a result of scientific and technological progress.

This book considers the complexities of human nature from a biological, psychological, and evolutionary standpoint and demonstrates how common modern behaviors can be traced back to early man. From common phobias to our interactions with the opposite sex, the traits and behaviors that helped us to survive and thrive tens of thousands of years ago continue to have an impact on our thought processes, tendencies, and actions today. This fascinating reference examines the history, major themes and findings, and future direction of evolutionary psychology, a theory defined by a human being's ability to adapt and change in confluence with its environment. The work highlights contemporary debates and enduring questions in the field. Filled with fascinating insights into the mind/body connection, the book addresses the evolutionary traits that can answer questions such as "Why do people crave cheeseburgers, chips, and chocolate?", "How do men and women think about problems differently?", and "Why do people cheat?" Each chapter has thematic headings, and topics include survival, mating, parenting, culture, and religion, among others. A list of references and suggested readings after each chapter points readers toward additional sources of information. Introduces evolutionary psychology through a thematic, chapter-based format Explores one of the fastest-growing subfields in psychology today and presents contemporary debates that foster critical thinking skills Showcases high-interest information through engaging sidebars Defines unfamiliar terms and concepts Includes a comprehensive bibliography for further study

Osteobiographies: The Discovery, Interpretation and Repatriation of Human Remains contextualizes repatriation, or the transfer of authority for human skeletal remains from the perspective of bioarchaelogists and evolutionary biologists. It approaches repatriation from a global perspective, touching upon the most well-known Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) legislation of the United States, while also covering Canada and African countries. The book focuses on the stories behind human skeletons, analyzing their biological factors to determine evolution patterns. Sections present an overview of anatomy, genomics, and stable isotopes from dietary and environmental factors, and how to identify these in skeletal remains. The book then goes on to discuss European-origin, North American, and African paleopathology, ancient DNA links, and cultural issues and implications around repatriation. It concludes with case studies to show how information from archaeologically derived skeletons is vital to understanding human evolution and provide respectful histories behind the remains.

New Horizons in Evolution is a compendium of the latest research, analyses, and theories of evolutionary biology. Chapters are collected from the international symposium held by the Board of Governors of the University of Haifa to honor Dr. Eviatar Nevo, founder and director of the Institute of Evolution. This book includes material written by top global scientists. Such detailed summaries and recent advances include topics like genomics, epigenetics, evolutionary theory, and the evolution of cancer. This book analyzes evolutionary biology of animals, such as lizards and subterranean mammals. It also discusses agricultural evolution, specifically the vital wheat crop in various climates and locations. Each chapter contributes the most up-to-date knowledge of evolution's role in speciation, adaptation, and regulation. New Horizons in Evolution is a valuable resource for researchers involved in evolution, evolutionary biology, and evolutionary theory. Advanced undergraduate and graduate students in evolutionary biology courses will also find this useful due to the high expertise level and latest knowledge available through this resource.

This volume of Progress in Brain Research provides a synthetic source of information about state-of-the-art research that has important implications for the evolution of the brain and cognition in primates, including humans. This topic requires input from a variety of fields that are developing at an unprecedented pace: genetics, developmental neurobiology, comparative and functional neuroanatomy (at gross and microanatomical levels), quantitative neurobiology related to scaling factors that constrain brain organization and evolution, primate palaeontology (including paleoneurology), paleo-anthropology, comparative psychology, and behavioural evolutionary biology.

Written by internationally-renowned scientists, this timely volume will be of wide interest to students, scholars, science journalists, and a variety of experts who are interested in keeping track of the discoveries that are rapidly emerging about the evolution of the brain and cognition.

Written by internationally renowned scientists, this timely volume will be of wide interest to students, scholars, science journalists, and a variety of experts who are interested in keeping track of the discoveries that are rapidly emerging about the evolution of the brain and cognition.

The unique and diverse hair and eye colours often found in northern and eastern Europe are relatively new and have emerged over a short span of evolutionary time-less than ten thousand years. Why? How? This work explores the latest science to answer these puzzling questions.

Brian Skyrms presents eighteen essays which apply adaptive dynamics (of cultural evolution and individual learning) to social theory. Altruism, spite, fairness, trust, division of labor, and signaling are treated from this perspective. Correlation is seen to be of fundamental importance. Interactions with neighbors in space, on static networks, and on co-evolving dynamics networks are investigated. Spontaneous emergence of social structure and of signaling systems are examined in the context of learning dynamics.

The book will benefit a reader with a background in physical sciences and applied mathematics interested in the mathematical models of genetic evolution. In the first chapter, we analyze several thought experiments based on a basic model of stochastic evolution of a single genomic site in the presence of the factors of random mutation, directional natural selection, and random genetic drift. In the second chapter, we present a more advanced theory for a large number of linked loci. In the third chapter, we include the effect of genetic recombination into account and find out the advantage of sexual reproduction for adaptation. These models are useful for the evolution of a broad range of asexual and sexual populations, including virus evolution in a host and a host population.

The book presents new and stimulating approaches to the study of language evolution and considers their implications for future research. Leading scholars from linguistics, primatology, anthroplogy, and cognitive science consider how language evolution can be understood by means of inference from the study of linked or analogous phenomena in language, animal behaviour, genetics, neurology, culture, and biology. In their introduction the editors show how these approaches can be interrelated and deployed together through their use of comparable forms of inference and the similar conditions they place on the use of evidence. The Evolutionary Emergence of Language will interest everyone concerned with this intriguing and important subject, including those in linguistics, biology, anthropology, archaeology, neurology, and cognitive science.