Published by Sinauer Associates, an imprint of Oxford University Press. We are a highly visual species. Most of our information about the world comes to us through our eyes and most of our cultural and intellectual heritage is stored and transmitted as words and images to which our vision gives access and meaning. Knowing more about our eyes and vision is, therefore, one path to better understanding ourselves. And, as it happens, the human eye is a fairly representative vertebrate eye; knowing more about it tells us much about the eyes of other animals and about how they view the world and us. In more practical terms, a better understanding of the human eye allows us to intervene more intelligently and purposefully as we attempt to correct, modify, or ameliorate disorders of the eye brought on by trauma, disease, or senescence. Understanding the eye requires an exploration of the relationship between its structure and its function-that is, a consideration not only of how the eye and its parts are constructed, but also of what they do and how they work. Thus, this book considers both the structure and the function of the human eye and how they are related, often using functional issues as a guide to the most meaningful and important features of the anatomy. Limited use of technical terms from the various disciplines that relate to the eye, definitions of terms as they are used, a glossary, and suggestions for additional reading are all included to make the text accessible to readers for whom the subject is new. Boxes interspersed throughout the text discuss methods used to study the structure of the eye and surgical procedures used to alter its structure in beneficial ways. In addition to the main theme of structure and function, several subthemes make the general point, in different ways, that the eye and our understanding of it are dynamic and changing. Change on a geological timescale is represented by the evolutionary history of eyes generally and the human eye's place among the diversity of eyes in the animal kingdom; these issues are discussed in the Prologue. Change within a human lifetime begins with a chapter about the early stages of development in utero, continues throughout the book with the developmental histories of different parts of the eye, and concludes, in the Epilogue, with accounts of postnatal growth, maturation, and senescence. Change throughout human history in the way we have understood our eyes is another story, fragments of which are contained in a series of "vignettes" about some of the people and ideas that have influenced human thought about the eye over the past several thousand years. The Human Eye: Structure and Function appeals to a wide audience, including all scientists who are interested in the eye and in vision; optometrists and ophthalmologists; and optometry students and ophthalmology residents.

This volume presents the lithic assemblage from Howburn in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, which at present is the oldest prehistoric settlement in Scotland (12,700-12,000 BC), and the only Hamburgian settlement in Britain. The site also included a scatter from the Late Upper Palaeolithic Federmesser- Gruppen period (12,000-10,800 BC), as well as lithics from the Mesolithic, Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. The book focuses on the Hamburgian finds, which are mainly based on the exploitation of flint from Doggerland, the then dry bed of the North Sea. The Hamburgian tools include tanged arrowheads, scrapers, piercers, burins, and other implement forms which show similarities with tools of the same age on the European continent. The shape of one scatter suggests that the Palaeolithic settlers lived in tent-like structures. The Palaeolithic finds from Howburn shed light on several important general trends, such as the ‘acclimatization’ of pioneer settlers, as well as the development of regional differences following the initial Late Glacial recolonization of Scotland. Palaeo-environmental work focused on whether there was a small lake (‘Loch Howburn’) in front of the terrace on which the camp was situated, and it was concluded that there was indeed a lake there, but it was neither contemporary with the Hamburgian, nor the Federmesser-Gruppen settlement. Most likely, ‘Loch Howburn’ dates to the Loch Lomond stadial.

Details on a Major New Discovery included in a New Afterword
Why do we look the way we do? Neil Shubin, the paleontologist and professor of anatomy who co-discovered "Tiktaalik," the "fish with hands," tells the story of our bodies as you've never heard it before. By examining fossils and DNA, he shows us that our hands actually resemble fish fins, our heads are organized like long-extinct jawless fish, and major parts of our genomes look and function like those of worms and bacteria." "Your Inner Fish makes us look at ourselves and our world in an illuminating new light. This is science writing at its finest--enlightening, accessible and told with irresistible enthusiasm.

Can virtuous behavior be explained by nature, and not by human rational choice? "It's the animal in us," we often hear when we've been bad. But why not when we're good? Primates and Philosophers tackles this question by exploring the biological foundations of one of humanity's most valued traits: morality. In this provocative book, renowned primatologist Frans de Waal argues that modern-day evolutionary biology takes far too dim a view of the natural world, emphasizing our "selfish" genes and reinforcing our habit of labeling ethical behavior as humane and the less civilized as animalistic. Seeking the origin of human morality not in evolution but in human culture, science insists that we are moral by choice, not by nature. Citing remarkable evidence based on his extensive research of primate behavior, de Waal attacks "Veneer Theory," which posits morality as a thin overlay on an otherwise nasty nature. He explains how we evolved from a long line of animals that care for the weak and build cooperation with reciprocal transactions. Drawing on Darwin, recent scientific advances, and his extensive research of primate behavior, de Waal demonstrates a strong continuity between human and animal behavior. He probes issues such as anthropomorphism and human responsibilities toward animals. His compelling account of how human morality evolved out of mammalian society will fascinate anyone who has ever wondered about the origins and reach of human goodness. Based on the Tanner Lectures de Waal delivered at Princeton University's Center for Human Values in 2004, Primates and Philosophers includes responses by the philosophers Peter Singer, Christine M. Korsgaard, and Philip Kitcher and the science writer Robert Wright. They press de Waal to clarify the differences between humans and other animals, yielding a lively debate that will fascinate all those who wonder about the origins and reach of human goodness.

Psychological experiments carried out over a period of nearly forty years led Georg von Bekesy to realize that inhibition interconnects, at least in one respect, the fields of vision, hearing, skin sensations, taste, and smell. This book indeed almost creates the field of sensory inhibition as a significant one for study, bringing understanding to many observations that formerly seemed uncertain or unrelated and raising many problems still to be solved. Originally published in 1975. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

From head to toe to breast to behind, "Carnal Knowledge" is a delightfully intoxicating tour of the words we use to describe our bodies. Did you know:
-eye is one of the oldest written words in the English language?
-callipygian means "having beautiful buttocks"?
-gam, a slang word for "leg," comes from the French word "jambe"?
A treat for anyone who gets a kick out of words, "Carnal Knowledge" is also the perfect gift for anyone interested in the human body and the many (many, many) ways it's been described.
"Delight your friends (or lose them rapidly) with this fabulous new knowledge presented with deftness and wit."
---Lynn Truss, author of "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" and "Talk to the Hand"
"Master etymologist Charles Hodgson offers a passionate lesson...illuminates how just about every part of the amazing human chassis got its name."
---Richard Lederer, author of "Word Wizard"
"A near-perfect body of work that will not only entertain your brain but tickle your funny bone, too."
---Erin McKean, editor in chief, "The New Oxford American Dictionary" (2nd ed.)
"More than a list of anatomical words and their meanings, Hodgson's book fleshes out the meaning behind the words. This is a blood-and-guts encyclopedia, not some bone-dry dictionary.... Even misologists (haters of knowledge) will find pleasure in "Carnal Knowledge,""
---Robert Hartwell Fiske, author of "The Dictionary of Disagreeable English, Deluxe Edition"
"And you thought you knew your own body! A captivating trove of facts and history that will amuse and fascinate."
--- Jane Farrow, "Wanted Words," CBC Radio
CHARLES HODGSON is an engineer by training and a logophile (wordlover) by habit. He produces a daily blog and podcast for word lovers at www.podictionary.com.

This is a non-technical introduction to the main issues and findings in current brain research. It gives a sense of how neuroscience addresses questions about the relationship between the brain, and thought, memories, perceptions, and actions.

Thomas H. Huxley was one of the first supporters of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection, and he did more than any other writer to advance its acceptance among scientists and nonscientists alike. His most famous book, Man’s Place in Nature, published only five years after Darwin’s The Origin of Species, offers a compelling review of primate and human paleontology, and is the first attempt to apply Darwin’s theory to human beings. As compelling a piece of analysis now as it was 140 years ago, Man’s Place in Nature is a must for every science lover’s library.

From the moment it first began to contemplate the world, three questions have occupied the human mind: Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? Artists (notably Paul Gauguin), religious thinkers, philosophers, and most recently scientists have all searched for answers. Here, the authors describe how scientists decipher human origin from the record encrypted in the DNA and protein molecules. After explaining the nature of descent and the methods available for studying genealogical relationships, they summarize the information revealed by the molecular archives about the Tree of Life and our location on one of its branches. The knowledge thus gleaned allows them to draw conclusions about our identity, our place in the living world, our future, and the ethical implications of the changed perspective.

So how "did" women get their curves? Why do they have breasts, while other mammals only develop breast tissue while lactating, and why do women menstruate, when virtually no other beings do so? What are the reasons for female orgasm? Why are human females kept in the dark about their own time of ovulation and maximum fertility, and why are they the only animals to experience menopause?

David P. Barash and Judith Eve Lipton, coauthors of acclaimed books on human sexuality and gender, discuss the theories scientists have advanced to explain these evolutionary enigmas (sometimes called "Just-So stories" by their detractors) and present hypotheses of their own. Some scientific theories are based on legitimate empirical data, while others are pure speculation. Barash and Lipton distinguish between what is solid and what remains uncertain, skillfully incorporating their expert knowledge of biology, psychology, animal behavior, anthropology, and human sexuality into their entertaining critiques. Inviting readers to examine the evidence and draw their own conclusions, Barash and Lipton tell an evolutionary suspense story that captures the excitement and thrill of true scientific detection.

"Coyne's knowledge of evolutionary biology is prodigious, his deployment of it as masterful as his touch is light." -Richard Dawkins
In the current debate about creationism and intelligent design, there is an element of the controversy that is rarely mentioned-the evidence. Yet the proof of evolution by natural selection is vast, varied, and magnificent. In this succinct and accessible summary of the facts supporting the theory of natural selection, Jerry A. Coyne dispels common misunderstandings and fears about evolution and clearly confirms the scientific truth that supports this amazing process of change. Weaving together the many threads of modern work in genetics, paleontology, geology, molecular biology, and anatomy that demonstrate the "indelible stamp" of the processes first proposed by Darwin, "Why Evolution Is True" does not aim to prove creationism wrong. Rather, by using irrefutable evidence, it sets out to prove evolution right.

Immunology offers the most contemporary perspective on the science available, providing a clear, easy-to-follow introduction to the discipline suitable for undergraduate students. In a course where students often get lost in vast amounts of detail and the sheer complexity of the immune response, Immunology helps students see "the big picture" with an approachable narrative that presents the exquisite details of immunology while emphasizing the connections between key themes that students so often lose sight of when learning the material. Immunology features an exceptional illustration program and includes simple, clear explanations, abundant examples, and features that unravel the mysteries of immunology through accounts of classical discoveries and recent, cutting-edge research. Since many students in the course are preparing to enter careers in research, medicine, and other health professions, an appropriate amount of applied knowledge and clinical content is included in the narrative, features, and engaging case studies. Students will easily be able to make connections, moving beyond memorizing just what we know to truly understanding how we know what we know-and why.

Knowledge of chimpanzees in the wild has expanded dramatically in recent years. This comprehensive volume, edited by Martin Muller, Richard Wrangham, and David Pilbeam, brings together scientists who are leading a revolution to discover and explain what is unique about humans, by studying their closest living relatives. Their observations and conclusions have the potential to transform our understanding of human evolution. Chimpanzees offer scientists an unmatched view of what distinguishes humanity from its apelike ancestors. Based on evidence from the hominin fossil record and extensive morphological, developmental, and genetic data, Chimpanzees and Human Evolution makes the case that the last common ancestor of chimpanzees and humans was chimpanzee-like. It most likely lived in African rainforests around eight million years ago, eating fruit and walking on its knuckles. Readers will learn why chimpanzees are a better model for the last common ancestor than bonobos, gorillas, or orangutans. A thorough chapter-by-chapter analysis reveals which key traits we share with chimpanzees and which appear to be distinctive to Homo sapiens, and shows how understanding chimpanzees helps us account for the evolution of human uniqueness. Traits surveyed include social behaviors and structures, mating systems, diet, hunting practices, tool use, culture, cognition, and communication. Edited by three of primatology's most renowned experts, with contributions from 32 scholars drawing on decades of field research, Chimpanzees and Human Evolution provides readers with detailed up-to-date information on what we can infer about our chimpanzee-like ancestors and points the way forward for the next generation of discoveries.

In this landmark book of popular science, Daniel E. Lieberman gives us a lucid and engaging account of how the human body evolved over millions of years. He illuminates the major transformations that contributed to key adaptations to the body: the rise of bipedalism; the shift to a non-fruit-based diet; the advent of hunting and gathering; and how cultural changes like the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions have impacted us physically. He shows how the increasing disparity between the jumble of adaptations in our Stone Age bodies and advancements in the modern world is occasioning a paradox: greater longevity but increased chronic disease. 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 and pursue better lifestyles.

With charts and line drawings throughout.]

This volume represents work by five distinguished ecological geneticists, offering an up-to-date source for theoretical concepts and experiments in an exciting field. Combining ecological fieldwork and laboratory genetics, ecological genetics examines the adjustments and adaptations of wild populations to their environments. Articles focus on important interactions between genetics and population ecology, delving into issues like gene flow and migration, population differentiation, the maintenance of genetic variation, and the demographic and spatial structure of populations. The contributors--Janis Antonovics, Michael Lynch, Montgomery Slatkin, Joseph Travis, and Sara Via--emphasize the importance of population size and structure, interaction between local selection and genetic drift, and an expanded phenotype including quantitative as well as qualitative characters. This new form of ecological genetics focuses on large-scale geographic variation in demographic and genetic dynamics among small, partially isolated populations and will prove extremely valuable in natural resource management and in rare or endangered species conservation. Originally published in 1994. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Florence Schechter, creator of the world's first Vagina Museum, is here to take you on a journey towards celebrating, understanding and appreciating your vagina. And once you set off, you'll never look back. By the end of this empowering and inclusive book, you will be ready to talk about the vulva shame-free. You will discover art that admires the vulva. You will learn how our ancestors believed in the power of periods. And you will bust myths, feel confident in your body and find your Big V Energy! Because, if the word is taboo, how can you talk about your vagina's health? If you can't label the vulva, how can you fight for its rights? And if you don't know how extraordinary the vulva and vagina really are, you'll never realise the incredible power between your legs. With fascinating contributions from leading activists and experts. Suitable for ages 14+

Psychological experiments carried out over a period of nearly forty years led Georg von Bekesy to realize that inhibition interconnects, at least in one respect, the fields of vision, hearing, skin sensations, taste, and smell. This book indeed almost creates the field of sensory inhibition as a significant one for study, bringing understanding to many observations that formerly seemed uncertain or unrelated and raising many problems still to be solved. Originally published in 1975. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

'Complete freedom from disease and from struggle is almost incompatible with the process of living, ' Rene Dubos asserted in this classic essay on ecology and health. All the accomplishments of science and technology, he argued, will not bring the utopian dream of universal well-being, because they ignore the dynamic process of adaptation to a constantly changing environment that every living organism must face.

One of our greatest scientists—and the winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for On Human Nature and The Ants—gives us a work of visionary importance that may be the crowning achievement of his career.

In Consilience (a word that originally meant "jumping together"), Edward O. Wilson renews the Enlightenment's search for a unified theory of knowledge in disciplines that range from physics to biology, the social sciences and the humanities.

Using the natural sciences as his model, Wilson forges dramatic links between fields. He explores the chemistry of the mind and the genetic bases of culture. He postulates the biological principles underlying works of art from cave-drawings to Lolita. Presenting the latest findings in prose of wonderful clarity and oratorical eloquence, and synthesizing it into a dazzling whole, Consilience is science in the path-clearing traditions of Newton, Einstein, and Richard Feynman.

Urban Evolutionary Biology fills an important knowledge gap on wild organismal evolution in the urban environment, whilst offering a novel exploration of the fast-growing new field of evolutionary research. The growing rate of urbanization and the maturation of urban study systems worldwide means interest in the urban environment as an agent of evolutionary change is rapidly increasing. We are presently witnessing the emergence of a new field of research in evolutionary biology. Despite its rapid global expansion, the urban environment has until now been a largely neglected study site among evolutionary biologists. With its conspicuously altered ecological dynamics, it stands in stark contrast to the natural environments traditionally used as cornerstones for evolutionary ecology research. Urbanization can offer a great range of new opportunities to test for rapid evolutionary processes as a consequence of human activity, both because of replicate contexts for hypothesis testing, but also because cities are characterized by an array of easily quantifiable environmental axes of variation and thus testable agents of selection. Thanks to a wide possible breadth of inference (in terms of taxa) that may be studied, and a great variety of analytical methods, urban evolution has the potential to stand at a fascinating multi-disciplinary crossroad, enriching the field of evolutionary biology with emergent yet incredibly potent new research themes where the urban habitat is key. Urban Evolutionary Biology is an advanced textbook suitable for graduate level students as well as professional researchers studying the genetics, evolutionary biology, and ecology of urban environments. It is also highly relevant to urban ecologists and urban wildlife practitioners.

What is epidemiology? What are the causes of a new disease? How can pandemics be prevented? Epidemiology is the study of the changing patterns of disease and its main aim is to improve the health of populations. It's a vital field, central to the health of society, to the identification of causes of disease, and to their management and prevention. Epidemiology has had an impact on many areas of medicine; from discovering the relationship between tobacco smoking and lung cancer, to the origin and spread of new epidemics. However, it is often poorly understood, largely due to misrepresentations in the media. In this Very Short Introduction Rodolfo Saracci dispels some of the myths surrounding the study of epidemiology. He provides a general explanation of the principles behind clinical trials, and explains the nature of basic statistics concerning disease. He also looks at the ethical and political issues related to obtaining and using information concerning patients, and trials involving placebos. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Urban Evolutionary Biology fills an important knowledge gap on wild organismal evolution in the urban environment, whilst offering a novel exploration of the fast-growing new field of evolutionary research. The growing rate of urbanization and the maturation of urban study systems worldwide means interest in the urban environment as an agent of evolutionary change is rapidly increasing. We are presently witnessing the emergence of a new field of research in evolutionary biology. Despite its rapid global expansion, the urban environment has until now been a largely neglected study site among evolutionary biologists. With its conspicuously altered ecological dynamics, it stands in stark contrast to the natural environments traditionally used as cornerstones for evolutionary ecology research. Urbanization can offer a great range of new opportunities to test for rapid evolutionary processes as a consequence of human activity, both because of replicate contexts for hypothesis testing, but also because cities are characterized by an array of easily quantifiable environmental axes of variation and thus testable agents of selection. Thanks to a wide possible breadth of inference (in terms of taxa) that may be studied, and a great variety of analytical methods, urban evolution has the potential to stand at a fascinating multi-disciplinary crossroad, enriching the field of evolutionary biology with emergent yet incredibly potent new research themes where the urban habitat is key. Urban Evolutionary Biology is an advanced textbook suitable for graduate level students as well as professional researchers studying the genetics, evolutionary biology, and ecology of urban environments. It is also highly relevant to urban ecologists and urban wildlife practitioners.

This book traces the social and environmental determinants of human infectious diseases from the Neolithic to the present day. Despite recent high profile discoveries of new pathogens, the major determinants of these emerging infections are ancient and recurring. These include changing modes of subsistence, shifting populations, environmental disruptions, and social inequalities. The recent labeling of the term "re-emerging infections" reflects a re-emergence, not so much of the diseases themselves, but rather a re-emerging awareness in affluent societies of long-standing problems that were previously ignored. An Unnatural History of Emerging Infections illustrates these recurring problems and determinants through an examination of three major epidemiological transitions. The First Transition occurred with the Agricultural Revolution beginning 10,000 years ago, bringing a rise in acute infections as the main cause of human mortality. The Second Transition first began with the Industrial Revolution; it saw a decline in infectious disease mortality and an increase in chronic diseases among wealthier nations, but less so in poorer societies. These culminated in today's "worst of both worlds syndrome" in which globalization has combined with the challenges of the First and Second Transitions to produce a Third Transition, characterized by a confluence of acute and chronic disease patterns within a single global disease ecology. This accessible text is suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate level students and researchers in the fields of epidemiology, disease ecology, anthropology, health sciences, and the history of medicine. It will also be of relevance and use to undergraduate students interested in the history and social dynamics of infectious diseases.