| View Larger Image | Evolution in Four Dimensions: Genetic, Epigenetic, Behavioral, and Symbolic Variation in the History of Life (Life and Mind: Philosophical Issues in Biology and Psychology) | Paperbackby Eva Jablonka (Author), Marion J. Lamb (Author)
| List Price: | $19.95 | | Price: | $13.57 | | You Save: | $6.38 (32%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | Paperback | | Publisher: | The MIT Press | | Page Count: | 474 Pages | | Publication Date: | October 01, 2006 | | Sales Rank: | 104,133th |
|
FEATURES | - ISBN13: 9780262600699
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
- Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
|
EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
Ideas about heredity and evolution are undergoing a revolutionary change. New findings in molecular biology challenge the gene-centered version of Darwinian theory according to which adaptation occurs only through natural selection of chance DNA variations. In Evolution in Four Dimensions, Eva Jablonka and Marion Lamb argue that there is more to heredity than genes. They trace four "dimensions" in evolution—four inheritance systems that play a role in evolution: genetic, epigenetic (or non-DNA cellular transmission of traits), behavioral, and symbolic (transmission through language and other forms of symbolic communication). These systems, they argue, can all provide variations on which natural selection can act. Evolution in Four Dimensions offers a richer, more complex view of evolution than the gene-based, one-dimensional view held by many today. The new synthesis advanced by Jablonka and Lamb makes clear that induced and acquired changes also play a role in evolution. After discussing each of the four inheritance systems in detail, Jablonka and Lamb "put Humpty Dumpty together again" by showing how all of these systems interact. They consider how each may have originated and guided evolutionary history and they discuss the social and philosophical implications of the four-dimensional view of evolution. Each chapter ends with a dialogue in which the authors engage the contrarieties of the fictional (and skeptical) "I.M.," or Ifcha Mistabra—Aramaic for "the opposite conjecture"—refining their arguments against I.M.'s vigorous counterarguments. The lucid and accessible text is accompanied by artist-physician Anna Zeligowski's lively drawings, which humorously and effectively illustrate the authors' points. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 12 reviews)
|
One of the most important recent books in biology by Klaus Stiefel (Okinawa, Japan)  4 Stars
February 27, 2009
... in my opinion.
This book is quite a treat. Jablonka and Lamb significantly advance evolutionary biology by assembling a wealth of biological knowledge.
Their basic thesis is that evolution in some way acts on all forms of hereditary information carried by organisms. This is, of course, true for the information encoded on an organism's DNA, but also for information encoded in epigenetic systems, in animal behavior and in symbolic systems. The later is unique to our species.
Jablonka and Lamb argue that a type of behavior which is learned by an offspring from a parent will propagate itself from generation trough generation. Successful types of behavior will over time be enriched in the population. This type of evolution will of course be ruled by different laws than genetic evolution - changes in behaviors will not be random and un-directed as DNA mutations (and even that is not certain). Thus, the "evolution of educated guesses" is taking place.
Similar principles hold for epigenetic and symbolic evolution. Information is passed on, and will be enriched in the population if it increases the bearer's fitness. In addition, these levels of evolution interact. The Baldwin effect, genetic evolution directed by behavior, is one example of such an interaction.
These points are made with a wealth of well-researched examples, some of them based on solidly established science, some of it on new strands of research. None of Jablonka and Lamb's ideas need you to believe anything outrageous to be true. At times they speculate about the role the mechanisms they propose could have, but the speculation seems completely reasonable to me and in many cases could serve as the starting point for interesting research projects - a real strong point of this book.
What is thus presented in this book is a modernized version of evolutionary theory, taking a number of complexities into account which have previously not been assigned the importance they propably should be given. From the connection between processes at the genetic, epigenetic, behavioral and systemic levels emerges a biology where evolution is not confined to selecting for benefitial variations in DNA sequences. Rather, such genetic evolution is only at the base of a more complex evolutionary process. Dobzhansky' famous quote that "Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution" morphs into "All (hereditary information) in biology makes sense for evolution".
While I am excited about Jablonka and Lamb's ideas, I found their presentation at times a bit tedious. The book could be 100 pages thinner. Especially the earlier chapters have a lot of introductory material which anyone who is picking up such a book will be familiar with. A number of times they start describing an intellectual debate about a certain topic, only to abort the description at a point when it would have been interesting, since "that would lead us too far astray". The chapters are followed by a dialog between two people defending and questioning, respectively, their ideas, which is often a bit redundant.
Then, Jablonka and Lamb admittedly cover a very wide range of topics and can't be expected to be experts on all topics. But there were still some cases where they could have payed more attention. As the example for a mutagen they list LSD, which it is not, in doses consumed by humans. To confuse a piece of drug war propaganda with a scientific fact made me cringe a bit. I enjoyed the creative naivist illustrations by Anna Zeligowski which often illustrate the concepts very well.
In summary: if you are a biologist who cares about a global perspective of his field, read this book. If you are one of these wonderful "educated laymen" scientists hope are abound in the public, read it as well.
| |
The opposite of the opposite conjecture by J. N. Bowling (Arizona, USA)  5 Stars
February 05, 2008
I loved the book's treatment of genetic and epigenetic inheritance systems (dimensions 1 and 2). I appreciated the discussion of behavioral inheritance systems (dimension 3). I wasn't sold on the fourth dimension (symbolic inheritance systems) being fundamentally different than the third.
All that aside as an undergraduate psych student, without a ton of genetics under my belt, this was an enlightening read.
| |
A wonderful eye-opener regarding epigentic inheritance by Michael K. Diamond 5 Stars
December 26, 2007
I was floored by this book. I've had to abandon (or rather enlarge) the gene-centered view of inheritance and evolution that I'd become comfortable with and embrace this new perspective. Nature is far more complex and subtle than the textbooks would indicate.
| |
A hic-up revision by Cynic (Hiding)  3 Stars
May 13, 2007
The refreshing part of the book is that Darwin is postulated to trump the Modern Synthesis by offering a broader and vaguer model. Mostly however, allusions and overinterpretations of re-hashed phenomena and a few recent twists like siRNA, are offered as still-unconvincing examples in a systematic attempt to argue epigenetics as having important biological and evolutionary roles. Yes, some aspects of biology and evolution are somewhat complex, but vague hand waving about epigenetics does not clarify them.
| |
Well written, but unnecessarily long by algo41 (cinnaminson, nj United States) 4 Stars
March 26, 2007
This book provides a comprehensive but not overly technical survey of our state of knowledge as to how evolution proceeds and, in particular, why change is not totally random. They point out that there is an evolutionary bias to select organisms whose DNA is conducive to evolution, because they are more likely to have "random" mutations which are favorable; that mutation rates increase under stress such as a change in the environment; that the folding properties of DNA insure that it is the more active sections of DNA that are likely to have mutations.
The thrust of this book, however, and the material most likely to be unfamiliar to lay students of the subject, is in support of a neo-Lamarckian viewpoint, in which environment can more directly impact inheritable change. There is one beautiful experiment which illustrates the neo-Larmarckian view, with flies: stress causes genetic mutation resulting, in some flies, in a particular deformity; if these flies are selected for further breeding (as if that mutation were a successful adaptation), and this is done for 16 generations, you finally get flies which have this deformity in the absence of the stressor. The theory is that organisms accumulate genetic differences which do not impact phenotype, in fact phenotypes tend to be insensitive to many mutations, but once there is sufficient environmental stress these genetic differences manifest themselves.
While epigenetics is a hot topic in the study of development, this book makes a case for epigenetic mutation as a basis for evolution. It also talks about what I would term a generalization of cultural inheritance wherein the inherited behavior does not depend on teaching or watching: for example, a young rabbit learns what is good to eat through the effects in the womb of what his mother eats, and what is in the mother's feces while the youngster is in the burrow.
The authors write very well, and are clearly mindful of the reader's comprehension. The discussion of the material at the end of each chapter is a wonderful idea. Still, I would have preferred a shorter work, without so much emphasis on philosophical subtleties: an idea like the "selfish gene" is not a scientific theory to be debated, but a way of looking at things which can be suggestive and lead to new findings, but of course has its limitations. A picture, or an experiment, is worth a thousand words. Currently, unfortunately, the evidence to support the book's ideas is often thin, in fact one objective of the authors is certainly to encourage more research. In one very interesting case they seem to make too little of the evidence: the author's accept that a young bonobo, watching experimenters teaching language to his mother, developed the understanding of a 2.5 year old human, including word order and other grammatical structures, but did not mention this in their initial discussions of language or really come to terms with it.
| |
SIMILAR PRODUCTS |
| Not by Genes Alone: How Culture Transformed Human Evolution
by Peter J. Richerson (Author), Robert Boyd (Author)
Humans are a striking anomaly in the natural world. While we are similar to other mammals in many ways, our behavior sets us apart. Our unparalleled ability to adapt has allowed us to occupy virtually every habitat on earth using an incredible variety of tools and subsistence techniques. Our societies are larger, more complex, and more cooperative than any other mammal's. In this stunning exploration of human adaptation, Peter J. Richerson and Robert Boyd argue that only a Darwinian theory of...
| 
| The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma
by Dr. Marc W. Kirschner (Author), John C. Gerhart (Author), John Norton (Illustrator)
Offering daring new ideas about evolution, two highly respected biologists here tackle the central, unresolved question in the field—how have living organisms on Earth developed with such astounding variety and complexity? Marc Kirschner and John Gerhart draw on cutting-edge biological and medical research to provide an original solution to this longstanding puzzle.
"In this terrific new book, molecular systems meet evolution. The result is a wealth of stimulating ideas set among clear...
| 
| The Origin and Evolution of Cultures (Evolution and Cognition)
by Robert Boyd (Author), Peter J. Richerson (Author)
Oxford presents, in one convenient and coherently organized volume, 20 influential but until now relatively inaccessible articles that form the backbone of Boyd and Richerson's path-breaking work on evolution and culture. Their interdisciplinary research is based on two notions. First, that culture is crucial for understanding human behavior; unlike other organisms, socially transmitted beliefs, attitudes, and values heavily influence our behavior. Secondly, culture is part of biology: the...
| 
| Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo
by Sean B. Carroll (Author)
“A beautiful and very important book.”—Lewis Wolpert, American Scientist For over a century, opening the black box of embryonic development was the holy grail of biology. Evo Devo—Evolutionary Developmental Biology—is the new science that has finally cracked open the box. Within the pages of his rich and riveting book, Sean B. Carroll explains how we are discovering that complex life is ironically much simpler than anyone ever expected. .
| 
| Adapting Minds: Evolutionary Psychology and the Persistent Quest for Human Nature (Bradford Books)
by David J. Buller (Author)
Was human nature designed by natural selection in the Pleistocene epoch? The dominant view in evolutionary psychology holds that it was—that our psychological adaptations were designed tens of thousands of years ago to solve problems faced by our hunter-gatherer ancestors. In this provocative and lively book, David Buller examines in detail the major claims of evolutionary psychology—the paradigm popularized by Steven Pinker in The Blank Slate and by David Buss in The Evolution of...
|
|
|
