Synopses & Reviews
Human evolution explains how we have found ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Issues of modern living; depression, obesity, and environmental destruction, can be understood in relation to our evolutionary past. This book shows how an awareness of this past and its relation to the present can help limit their impact on the future.
Review
"This is an interesting book from several perspectives, not the least of which is Clack's ability to tell a lively, interesting story. What could be more entertaining than a well-written account of human evolution and the myriad complexities of modern life that owe their existence, at least in part, to our hominid ancestry? Clack (Oxford) asks a basic question: how did humans get into the mess they are in with respect to such things as health, homicide, racism, ageism, and environmental destruction? Clack answers these questions authoritatively and assertively, drawing on evolutionary biology and psychology, ethnology, and archaeology. His knowledge is prodigious, as is his ability to pull seemingly disparate pieces of information together." --CHOICE
About the Author
Timothy Clack is Lecturer in Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Oxford, UK and Director of Studies in the subject at Christ Church and St. Peters Colleges. He moved to Oxford after holding several teaching positions and completing a Ph.D. in Archaeology at the University of Manchester. Amidst his various teaching commitments, he has conducted archaeological, anthropological and primatological research throughout Africa, Europe, and South East Asia. He has authored numerous books, scientific papers, and magazine articles covering a wide range of subjects from human evolution and human-animal relations to religious experience and the popular media. Outside of academia he is also a director of Redemics a corporate responsibility consultancy. In his spare time he enjoys being immersed in the British countryside pursuing his interests of hiking and photography.
Table of Contents
PART 1 * Environmental destruction * PART II * Aggression * PART III * Depression * PART IV * Obesity