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Human Evolution and the Environment
Island Books
July 2008
On Sale: June 30, 2008
440 pages
ISBN: 1597260967
EAN: 9781597260961
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
In humanity’s more than 100,000 year history, we have
evolved from vulnerable creatures clawing sustenance from
Earth to a sophisticated global society manipulating every
inch of it. In short, we have become the dominant animal.
Why, then, are we creating a world that threatens our own
species? What can we do to change the current trajectory
toward more climate change, increased famine, and epidemic
disease? Renowned Stanford scientists Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H.
Ehrlich believe that intelligently addressing those
questions depends on a clear understanding of how we evolved
and how and why we’re changing the planet in ways that
darken our descendants’ future. The Dominant Animal arms
readers with that knowledge, tracing the interplay between
environmental change and genetic and cultural evolution
since the dawn of humanity. In lucid and engaging prose,
they describe how Homo sapiens adapted to their
surroundings, eventually developing the vibrant cultures,
vast scientific knowledge, and technological wizardry we
know today. But the Ehrlichs also explore the flip side of this
triumphant story of innovation and conquest. As we clear
forests to raise crops and build cities, lace the continents
with highways, and create chemicals never before seen in
nature, we may be undermining our own supremacy. The threats
of environmental damage are clear from the daily headlines,
but the outcome is far from destined. Humanity can again
adapt—if we learn from our evolutionary past.
Those lessons are crystallized in The Dominant Animal.
Tackling the fundamental challenge of the human predicament,
Paul and Anne Ehrlich offer a vivid and unique exploration
of our origins, our evolution, and our future.
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