Front cover image for The dominant animal : human evolution and the environment

The dominant animal : human evolution and the environment

"Over millions of years and through countless genetic twists and turns, humanity has evolved into the dominant animal. We have populated the globe, reshaped most landscapes, eradicated myriad populations and species of other organisms, and even transformed the oceans and climate." "The vast environmental changes we have produced and the intricate cultures we have created are now shaping evolution. From the complex workings of our genes to what we eat and how we govern ourselves, we are changing our world and our world is changing us. We are creating our future. But what kind of future will it be?" "Renowned scientists and thinkers Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H. Ehrlich tackle that fundamental question in this exploration of evolution, environment, and culture. The Dominant Animal is a scientific field trip across time and space, from the microscopic to the global. The Ehrlichs weave together the theories of Darwin, empirical studies of fruit flies, lizards, and disease, the fossil record, the psychology of perception and belief systems, the nature of the human genome, and the power of culture and environment into a single illuminating thread."--Jacket
Print Book, English, ©2008
Island Press, Washington, DC, ©2008
Nonfiction
428 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
9781597260961, 9781597260978, 1597260967, 1597260975
185021493
1. Darwin's legacy and Mendel's mechanism
2. The entangled bank
3. Our distant past
4. Of genes and culture
5. Cultural evolution : how we relate to one another
6. Perception, evolution, and beliefs
7. The ups and downs of populations
8. History as cultural evolution
9. Cycles of life (and death)
10. Ecosystems and human domination of Earth
11. Consumption and its costs
12. A new imperative
13. Altering the global atmosphere
14. Energy : are we running out of it?
15. Saving our natural capital
16. Governance : tackling unanticipated consequences
"A Shearwater book."