Mark Pagel

An interesting subject, and although I agree that our species is wired for culture, as the title says, I had issues with some of the particulars in this book and how they were stated. The thing that tended to bug me the most was the way some explanations were phrased. Now I'm sure the author doesn't believe this, but often his choice of words imply that genes act out of conscious intent, or that behaviors that are instinctive are instead volitional. A peahen, for example, doesn't 'know' in any cognitive sense that a peacock with impressive plumage must be healthier than one without, which is what he says. Naked mole rats did not loose their fur in order to avoid parasites. In each case, a mutated gene conferred a physiological or behavioral change which provided some reproductive advantage. When a person jumps into a river to save someone, he isn't first doing some kind of mental calculation to decide how many genes he and the person drowning share. Gene reproduction may benefit from his act of bravery, but it's not why he does it. Chances are, it's motivated mainly by instinct, but the genes that prompt that instinct aren't thinking about it any more than the guy jumping in the river. They don't 'know' anything. They survive or they don't. Those that do, reproduce, and because the behavior has survival benefits, the instinct to save others spreads.
I can't say I gained any great insights from reading this, but it offers some interesting potential explanations for human behavior.… (mer)

I really struggled with this book. It deals with the evolutionary aspects of cooperation and language and related issues; the author is an expert in the field, and it is a subject in which I have a strong interest.
But the problem was in the writing. The author just fails to present his topic in a way that engages the mind of the reader. The logic fails to flow. There are no felicitous anecdotal examples that paint the picture.
I found myself checking how many pages to the end of the chapter from about chapter 2. By the end I was skippy reading.
It is sad. I'm sure the author is capable of a better book. But it wasn't this one.
Read (mostly) Feb 2015.… (mer)