Children of Prometheus
the accelerating pace of human evolution
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Author
Publication
1998 - Perseus Books, Reading, Mass, Massachusetts
Language
English
Word Count
77,500 words, Guess
Page Count
310 pages
Identifiers
- Open LibraryOL397781M
- ISBN-100738200034
- OCLC Control Number40215184
- OCLC Control Number90024523
- OCLC Control Numberchildrenofpromet0000will_n1m6
and 3 more
- Library of Congress Control Number98086420
- LibraryThing60819
- Goodreads4736699
Classifications
- DDC599.93/8
- LCCGN289 .W55 1998
Description
Are we still evolving? Or has our mastery of the environment stopped natural selection in its tracks? In Children of Prometheus, biologist Christopher Wills gives a surprising answer: that the evolution of Homo sapiens is actually accelerating. To make this controversial case, Wills takes us to the far reaches of the planet. To the Tibetan plateau, where the severe climate has prompted rapid, short-term evolutionary change. To Africa, where human-caused ecological upheaval continues to spawn ever more virulent strains of infectious diseases - diseases which in turn affect the evolutionary course of their hosts. To the hushed corridors of Whitehall, where job stress is taking some British civil servants to an early death. In each of these cases - and in the many others that Wills examines - our power over nature has done nothing to halt evolution's unrelenting march. Spurred by a rapidly changing environment, and acting on our ever-expanding gene pool, natural selection will likely take us even deeper into uncharted territory. And Wills offers an exciting glimpse into this fascinating and frenetic future. What will become of our species as more and more of us wire our brains into vast electronic webs? Or pop "smart drugs" that alter the brain's very biochemical structure? Or adapt to bizarre conditions on extrasolar planets?
First Sentence
Ever since Darwin, pundits-expert and otherwise-have made pronouncements on whether human beings are still evolving and what might become of us in the future.
Excerpt
Ever since Darwin, pundits-expert and otherwise-have made pronouncements on whether human beings are still evolving and what might become of us in the future.
Series Statement
- Helix book
Other Editions
- Children of Prometheus: the accelerating pace of human evolution
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