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16 internautes sur 17 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
The Classic Book on Evolution
Richard Dawkins is an evolutionary theorist and holds the Charles Simonyi Chair in the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. He is also a best seller author of science books, and quite easy to read. His most recent book is The God Delusion, but previously he wrote mainly about evolution. For example, his prior book is The Ancestors' Tale, a brief history...
Publié le Déc 16 2006 par Steve S.
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7 internautes sur 8 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
Sneaky genes caught in the act
Personification, or (more awkwardly) anthropomorphization, is a slightly silly convention practiced daily by all of us. It consists of attributing sentient human characteristics to non-human entities, as in "the computer thinks you want to shut it down," or "my car is out to get me." Such expressions are usually harmless because everyone knows the...
Publié le Sep 5 2002 par Jeremy M. Harris
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16 internautes sur 17 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
The Classic Book on Evolution, Déc 16 2006
Richard Dawkins is an evolutionary theorist and holds the Charles Simonyi Chair in the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University. He is also a best seller author of science books, and quite easy to read. His most recent book is The God Delusion, but previously he wrote mainly about evolution. For example, his prior book is The Ancestors' Tale, a brief history of life on earth.
The Selfish Gene is explains the basics of evolution in simple and readable language. There is a good reason why this book has a 30th Anniversary edition: it is truly a classic, and will be read for many, many years to come.
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7 internautes sur 8 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
Sneaky genes caught in the act, Sep 5 2002
Personification, or (more awkwardly) anthropomorphization, is a slightly silly convention practiced daily by all of us. It consists of attributing sentient human characteristics to non-human entities, as in "the computer thinks you want to shut it down," or "my car is out to get me." Such expressions are usually harmless because everyone knows the metaphors aren't meant literally. There are certain contexts, though, where personification becomes troublesome. Two of them are biology and evolution. I once criticized Michael Behe for writing that viruses mutate "in order to evade the immune system." Viruses cannot strategize or harbor motives, and to imply that they do carelessly misstates the fundamentals of evolution, a theory Behe was attempting to refute! Tacky.The title itself should put any "Selfish Gene" reader on notice that a megadose of personification is coming, but even thus forewarned I was taken aback by the extent of it. The author seems to be in the peculiar position of understanding perfectly well the drawbacks of anthropomorphization, but pressing on with it anyway. An unfortunate result is that Dawkins incessantly uses the language of conscious motives while issuing caveats about it. In both main text and chapter notes (1989 edition), he alternates between backpedaling from personification (e.g. top, page 89) and irritably dismissing any reader or critic obtuse enough to suppose he means what he says (e.g. page 278). Perhaps I am unreasonably sensitive, but personification issues in "Selfish Gene" significantly reduced my ability to enjoy it. So if that's how I felt about the book, why did I finish it? Because it was more than worthwhile to do so. Like Dawkins' other works, this one is a cornucopia of useful information, novel interpretations and clever insights. It introduces such diverse topics as the ironic and unwisely-ignored concept of speciesism, the meme as a reproducing unit of imitative behavior, the significance of evolutionarily stable strategies (ESSs), and the game-theoretical aspects of ad hoc live-and-let-live behavior among WW1 combatants. One would have to be anesthetized not to learn and profit from reading "Selfish Gene."
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5 internautes sur 6 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
i still think about this book, Mai 19 2004
this book has stayed with me for about ten years since i first read it. i recommend it to anyone who want to think about the mechanism of evolution and the basis of all life. this book will teach you that genetics is really very simple. it's all just the action of selection on organisms capable of passing on genetic material in an environment of limited resources.
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2 internautes sur 2 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
THE BEST POPULAR SCIENCE BOOK I HAVE EVER READ, Mai 10 2004
The Selfish Gene is the best popular science book I have ever read, PERIOD. In it, Dawkins provides clear explanations of the mechanism of evolution, to the point that the reader can teach someone about evolution right after reading. It does not in any way patronize the reader, but instead delves deep into complex subjects, ranging from game theory to psychology, to explain evolution. The main idea in the book is to change the perspective of evolution: it is genes that use bodies and organisms to reach their goals of reproduction. In my opinion, however, the most brilliant part of the book is the very beginning, in which Dawkins explains how it could come about that some chemicals (genes) actually would grow a "wish" to reproduce. The answer makes the reader feel really smart, and that is what pop science is all about. Much of the book is devoted to showing how evolution can in fact explain altruism, agression, aging, cooperation, sexual relations, etc. He spends a lot of time debunking the theory that animals act a certain way "for the good of the species". His argument is that animals have no want, it is the genes that want more of themselves available. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a wide open mind, a logical train of thought, and deep curiosity about life. Dawkins will change the way you see life, and he will hold your hand through the entire process, quenching your thrist for knowledge. It is written in such a simple way that it is hard to understand why this book is not recommended at high schools. Anyways, I hope you choose this book, it is one of those that make you sad to have finished.
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1 internautes sur 1 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
THE meaning of life, Fév 12 2009
It's literally true- Dawkins spells out the meaning of life in this book. At least, the biological meaning of life. It's hard to say enough good things about this book. It is the best modern book on evolution, by far. It is required reading for anyone interested in biology or evolution. It should be required reading for anyone. What makes the book so great? It explains all of the major concepts in evolution, provides easy-to-understand examples, and makes very powerful conclusions. The message of rebelling against our genes and the biological meaning of life dispels any notion that this book is deterministic. Dawkins understands and argues that if we want to be ourselves, we should at least know ourselves.
My only minor complaint, and one that's impossible to avoid really, is that some great information gets tucked into the footnotes at the end of this book. Which is awkward, but there's really no other way around it. Still rates 5 stars though. This is one of the few rare books that I wish there was a 6th star!
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3 internautes sur 4 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
Evolution Paradigm shift? hmmm..., Jui 21 2004
Richard Dawkins is one of the best natural science writers of our time. This is a must read for anyone trying to familiarize with Dawkin's ideas; a really great representative book of his thought. Dawkins is no traditional evolution thinker, he is continually trying to visualize nature as a hole, trying not to loose perspective and seeing the big picture. He surely is an excellent system observer and analyzer. Is he right? Honestly, I don't know. What I know is that his view of nature is clarifying and aids you to understand things otherwise would be kind of intricated in essence.
I really recommend this book to anyone interested in evolution, specially in an unorthodox view of evolution.
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Evolution's Revolutionary Revelations Now (semi-)Common Knowledge, Oct. 13 2009
An incredibly well written book, filled with interesting asides and kept firmly in the realm of 'non-expert' language. Perhaps the greatest downfall of the book is how perfectly its ideas have been accepted in the thirty years since the first edition was originally published. That is, what seemed revolutionary to some at the time of its original publication don't seem revolutionary, they seem self-evident to anyone with a strong interest in evolutionary biology. As someone born after the original publication, who became interested in the field more than a decade after it created controversy, reading the thirtieth anniversary edition seemed like a rehashing of what I already knew. It went into greater depths than my broad-but-shallow knowledge, but there wasn't anything in here that seemed revolutionary to me. Which just goes to prove how widely accepted Dawkins' once-controversial ideas are now.
For people who, like myself, have a greater than average understanding of the field, it's worth reading, if only as a look back at a point in time when these ideas weren't seen as "common" knowledge.
For someone first dipping their toes into the fascinating field of evolutionary biology, Dawkins' more recent book "The Greatest Show On Earth" will probably be a much better place to start, with this being a book to come back to.
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Wonderful!, Mai 10 2008
Prior to reading Dawkins, I had no real experience with evolutionary theories aside from the little bits I'd been exposed to in various psychology courses. Not only have I learned an immense amount from this book, but the author has successfully sparked an interest in further speculations of this nature. Dawkins writes in a thorough and expressive manner, confident in his theories and unafraid to put less sensible (but all too popular) theories in their places. He introduces "memes" as replicating ideas on the same level of biological genes, a notion that fascinated me deeply. This author is a true scientific mind, and a must for anyone interested in evolutionary theory.
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Essential, Juil 2 2004
Reading this book today, one can easily forget how revolutionary it was. Many of the new, controversial ideas inside are now accepted scientific dogma; memes now have their own entire field of study. Enlightening and exciting for both the layperson and expert, if you haven't read it yet, you're missing out!
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Chicken or the egg ? It's the egg !, Mars 22 2004
Amazing book. It just about answers questions about the meaning of life and what came first, the chicken or the egg...Quite simply, this book is a must for any thinking person. Will stir up religious emotions and in fact, for me, makes religion altogether superfluous. It provides a totally credible explanation for our existence, our behaviour and reason for being. Dawkins is the Carl Sagan of biology !
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