Book recommendations : human evolution

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Book recommendations : human evolution

1Cynfelyn
May 7, 2017, 6:20 pm

Every once in a while I like to catch up with a popular synopsis of current thinking on human evolution, along the lines of:
Jared M. Diamond, The rise and fall of the third chimpanzee (1991)
Douglas Palmer, Seven million years : the story of human evolution (2006)

So much has happened since, it's about time I got a bit more up to date. What would members suggest?

2stellarexplorer
May 7, 2017, 6:39 pm

I can highly recommend Nicholas Wade's Before the Dawn. Describes multiple strands of research, and is a great way to catch up on ideas that have emerged over recent decades.

3hailelib
May 7, 2017, 10:14 pm

I just finished The Creative Spark by Agustin Fuentes which was very good and a 2017 publication.

4MarthaJeanne
May 8, 2017, 2:05 am

I suggest looking at https://www.librarything.com/topic/172189 before reading Before the Dawn. It also has a 2006 publication dateso is not really up to date.

5stellarexplorer
Edited: May 8, 2017, 2:41 am

>4 MarthaJeanne: I just read through that thread, and I see that you weren't a big fan even three years ago, MarthaJeanne. Different strokes, I guess. In its defense, I would just say that things like genetic relations and dates of human migration are subject to change as these fields are undergoing rapid development. For me, value in the book is in introducing a range of developments in the field that may not be known to the average reader. One could pursue these in more detail as one's interest dictates. It does have an excellent rating from other readers on LT. As someone who reads fairly extensively in paleoanthopology, I consider it an excellent appetite-whetting book. Whatever its shortcomings, I think someone wishing to learn about trends in the field over decades will be well served. YMMV, as always.

6MarthaJeanne
Edited: May 8, 2017, 2:48 am

>5 stellarexplorer: The OP specifically asked for things more up to date than 2006. And even three years ago I knew that it was way behind the reports I was reading in the news.

7stellarexplorer
May 8, 2017, 3:07 am

Fair enough chronologically, but the works the OP cites are nothing like this book. Moving on, you will find totally up-to-date, scientifically impeccable information on John Hawks' excellent blog:

http://johnhawks.net/

8Limelite
Jun 30, 2021, 3:33 pm

I like reading almost any type popular science book but mostly new science (ex., chaos theory) cosmology, physics, and paleoanthropology. Right now I'm enjoying a remarkable book, The Fossil Men by Kermit Pattison, about the hunt for hominids and ancestors older than Lucy.

It's a meaty book about the politics of this science, the procedures, the digs, the rivalries, the personalities, and the dangers and tribulations faced and overcome in searching for the fossil record in Ethiopia. Anyone with an interest in discovering human origins and how it's done will find this book easily accessible. It's gen pub friendly! And has pictures. ;^)

9Taphophile13
Jun 30, 2021, 4:05 pm

>8 Limelite: I read that one earlier this year. I had had no idea how dangerous fossil digs could be. Pattison joined some of their digs so he learned a lot of fascinating detail about how much information they can glean even from a few teeth or foot bones. The story about Lubaka the cat was amusing.

10Limelite
Jul 1, 2021, 3:12 pm

>9 Taphophile13: Haven't met Lubaka yet, but am finding the crusty scientists and the warring tribesmen plenty entertaining so far! Ethiopia is an ancient but unhappy place these days. Reading about the flying bullets at the digs, I thought the "prospectors" should be digging foxholes instead of bones!

I peeked at your profile pg, and although there's only 3 books of yours that I should "borrow," there it was -- the Pattison book -- under "shared." I recently acquired Walter Isaacson's The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race but haven't taken it up yet.

11Taphophile13
Jul 1, 2021, 3:21 pm

>10 Limelite: The Code Breaker sounds interesting. I'll have to look for it.

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