Download or read book The Role of Behavior in Evolution written by Henry C. Plotkin and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 1988 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These six original essays focus on a potentially important aspect of evolutionary biology, the possible causal role of phenotypic behavior in evolution. Balancing theory with actual or potential empiricism, they provide the first full examination of this topic. Plotkin's opening chapter outlines the "conceptual minefields" that the contributors attempt to negotiate: What is an adequate theory of evolution? What is behavior and is it possible to maintain a distinction between behavior and other attributes of the phenotype? is all, or only a special subset, of behavior both a cause and a consequence of evolution? And what do the theoretical issues mean in empirical terms? He concludes that any attempt to understand the causal role of behavior in evolution requires a more complicated theoretical structure than that of orthodox neoDarwinism, a conceptualization of behavior as a distinctive set of phenotypic attributes, and the accumulation of more data. David L. Hull (Northwestern University) provides an alternative account of the evolutionary process by developing a hierarchy of replicators-interactors-lineages to replace the traditional one of genes-organisms-species. Robert N. Brandon (Duke University) also posits hierarchy as an appropriate architecture for the theoretical complexity needed to support an examination of the role of behavior in evolution. F. J. Odling-Smee (Brunei University) outlines a theoretical structure to encompass the behavior of phenotypes, concentrating on the unrestricted definition of behavior (everything that an animal does). The remaining chapters are as much concerned with evidence as with theory. Plotkin concentrates on a restricted definition of behavior (behavior that is a product of choosing intelligence), reviewing our empirical knowledge of how learning might influence evolution. R.I.M. Dunbar (University College, London) uses empirical studies of vertebrate social behavior to deal with the question of how the social systems, especially of primates, might have a causal role in species evolution. A Bradford Book

Download or read book Behaviour Development and Evolution written by Patrick Bateson and published by Open Book Publishers. This book was released on 2017-02-20 with total page 125 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The role of parents in shaping the characters of their children, the causes of violence and crime, and the roots of personal unhappiness are central to humanity. Like so many fundamental questions about human existence, these issues all relate to behavioural development. In this lucid and accessible book, eminent biologist Professor Sir Patrick Bateson suggests that the nature/nurture dichotomy we often use to think about questions of development in both humans and animals is misleading. Instead, he argues that we should pay attention to whole systems, rather than to simple causes, when trying to understand the complexity of development. In his wide-ranging approach Bateson discusses why so much behaviour appears to be well-designed. He explores issues such as ‘imprinting’ and its importance to the attachment of offspring to their parents; the mutual benefits that characterise communication between parent and offspring; the importance of play in learning how to choose and control the optimal conditions in which to thrive; and the vital function of adaptability in the interplay between development and evolution. Bateson disputes the idea that a simple link can be found between genetics and behaviour. What an individual human or animal does in its life depends on the reciprocal nature of its relationships with the world about it. This knowledge also points to ways in which an animal’s own behaviour can provide the variation that influences the subsequent course of evolution. This has relevance not only for our scientific approaches to the systems of development and evolution, but also on how humans change institutional rules that have become dysfunctional, or design public health measures when mismatches occur between themselves and their environments. It affects how we think about ourselves and our own capacity for change.

Download or read book Behaviour and Evolution written by Jean Piaget and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-04-15 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book was first published in 1979.

Download or read book Evolution and Human Sexual Behavior written by Peter B. Gray and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2013-04-15 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Few things come more naturally to us than sex—or so it would seem. Yet to a chimpanzee, the sexual practices and customs we take for granted would appear odd indeed. He or she might wonder why we bother with inconveniences like clothes, why we prefer to make love on a bed, and why we fuss so needlessly over privacy. Evolution and Human Sexual Behavior invites us into the thought-experiment of imagining human sex from the vantage point of our primate cousins, in order to underscore the role of evolution in shaping all that happens, biologically and behaviorally, when romantic passions are aroused. Peter Gray and Justin Garcia provide an interdisciplinary synthesis that draws on the latest discoveries in evolutionary theory, genetics, neuroscience, comparative primate research, and cross-cultural sexuality studies. They are our guides through an exploration of the patterns and variations that exist in human sexuality, in chapters covering topics ranging from the evolution of sex differences and reproductive physiology to the origins of sexual play, monogamous unions, and the facts and fictions surrounding orgasm. Intended for generally curious readers of all stripes, this up-to-date, one-volume survey of the evolutionary science of human sexual behavior explains why sexuality has remained a core fascination of human beings throughout time and across cultures.

Download or read book Evolution of Human Behavior written by Agustin Fuentes and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2009 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Author Agustin Fuentes incorporates recent innovations in evolutionary theory with emerging perspectives from genomic approaches, the current fossil record, and ethnographic studies. He examines basic assumptions about why humans behave as they do, the facts of human evolution, patterns of evolutionary change in a global environmental-temporal context, and the interconnected roles of cooperation and conflict in human history. The net result is a text that moves toward a more holistic understanding of the patterns of human evolution and a more integrated perspective on the evolution of human behavior."--BOOK JACKET.

Download or read book Dog Behaviour Evolution and Cognition written by Ádám Miklósi and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2009 with total page 828 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first book to summarize the burgeoning research literature on the behavioural ecology of the dog. It presents a new ecological approach to the understanding of dog behaviour and highlights directions for future research. Providing links to human and primate behaviour research, it will appeal to anyone interested in behavioural ecology.

Download or read book Evolution and Contextual Behavioral Science written by David Sloan Wilson and published by New Harbinger Publications. This book was released on 2018-09-01 with total page 577 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What do evolutionary science and contextual behavioral science have in common? Edited by David Sloan Wilson and Steven C. Hayes, this groundbreaking book offers a glimpse into the histories of these two schools of thought, and provides a sound rationale for their reintegration. Evolutionary science (ES) provides a unifying theoretical framework for the biological sciences, and is increasingly being applied to the human-related sciences. Meanwhile, contextual behavioral science (CBS) seeks to understand the history and function of human behavior in the context of everyday life where behaviors occur, and to influence behavior in a practical sense. This volume seeks to integrate these two bodies of knowledge that have developed largely independently. In Evolution and Contextual Behavioral Science, two renowned experts in their fields argue why ES and CBS are intrinsically linked, as well as why their reintegration—or, reunification—is essential. The main purpose of this book is to continue to move CBS under the umbrella of ES, and to help evolutionary scientists understand how working alongside contextual behavioral scientists can foster both the development of ES principles and their application to practical situations. Rather than the sequential relationship that is typically imagined between these two schools of thought, this volume envisions a parallel relationship between ES and CBS, where science can best influence positive change in the real world.

Download or read book Evolution Driven by Organismal Behavior written by Rui Diogo and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-03-08 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book proposes a new way to think about evolution. The author carefully brings together evidence from diverse fields of science. In the process, he bridges the gaps between many different--and usually seen as conflicting--ideas to present one integrative theory named ONCE, which stands for Organic Nonoptimal Constrained Evolution. The author argues that evolution is mainly driven by the behavioral choices and persistence of organisms themselves, in a process in which Darwinian natural selection is mainly a secondary--but still crucial--evolutionary player. Within ONCE, evolution is therefore generally made of mistakes and mismatches and trial-and-error situations, and is not a process where organisms engage in an incessant, suffocating struggle in which they can't thrive if they are not optimally adapted to their habitats and the external environment. Therefore, this unifying view incorporates a more comprehensive view of the diversity and complexity of life by stressing that organisms are not merely passive evolutionary players under the rule of external factors. This insightful and well-reasoned argument is based on numerous fascinating case studies from a wide range of organisms, including bacteria, plants, insects and diverse examples from the evolution of our own species. The book has an appeal to researchers, students, teachers, and those with an interest in the history and philosophy of science, as well as to the broader public, as it brings life back into biology by emphasizing that organisms, including humans, are the key active players in evolution and thus in the future of life on this wonderful planet.

Download or read book The Behavior of Animals written by Johan J. Bolhuis and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-12-29 with total page 532 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Behavior of Animals An updated view of animal behavior studies, featuring global experts The Behavior of Animals, Second Edition provides a broad overview of the current state of animal behavior studies with contributions from international experts. This edition includes new chapters on hormones and behavior, individuality, and human evolution. All chapters have been thoroughly revised and updated, and are supported by color illustrations, informative callouts, and accessible presentation of technical information. Provides an introduction to the study of animal behavior Looks at an extensive scope of topics- from perception, motivation and emotion, biological rhythms, and animal learning to animal cognition, communication, mate choice, and individuality. Explores the evolution of animal behavior including a critical evaluation of the assumption that human beings can be studied as if they were any other animal species. Students will benefit from an updated textbook in which a variety of contributors provide their expertise and global perspective in specialized areas

Download or read book Evolution and Human Behavior written by John Cartwright and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2000 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book covers fundamental issues such as the origins and function of sexual reproduction, mating behavior, human mate choice, patterns of violence in families, altruistic behavior, the evolution of brain size and the origins of language, the modular mind, and the relationship between genes and culture.

Download or read book Quantitative Genetic Studies of Behavioral Evolution written by Christine R. B. Boake and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1994-08-15 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taken together, these studies document both the benefits and pitfalls of quantitative genetics.

Download or read book Carnivore Behavior Ecology and Evolution written by John L. Gittleman and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2019-05-15 with total page 639 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The mammalian order Carnivora is characterized by an incredible range of morphological, ecological, and behavioral variation. Carnivores can be as small as the 100-gram least weasel or as large as the 800-kilogram polar bear. Their reproductive rate can vary from one offspring every five years, as with some black bears, to three litters a year, as with the dwarf mongoose. Group sizes can be traced along a wide continuum, from the solitary ermine to the monogamous golden jackal to the large extended packs of as many as 80 spotted hyenas. Until recently the general habits of most wild carnivore species were inadequately understood. In the last decade, however, improved technologies, including the use of radiotelemetry and night-vision scopes, have led to many important discoveries. This book is at once a critical summary and an evaluation of current research on carnivores. A worthy successor to R.F. Ewer's monumental volume, The Carnivores (Cornell University Press), it is the work of 30 leading carnivore biologists, who here assemble comparative data on the basic anatomical, behavioral, ecological, physiological, reproductive, and evolutionary characteristics of this group. After a general introduction to the Carnivora, the volume is divided in three parts, each of which begins with a brief introduction outlining its main themes. Part I, Behavior, covers acoustic and olfactory communication, behavioral development, behavioral ecology of canids and hyaenids, modes of solitary living, and group living. In Part II, Ecology, topics include feeding ecology of the giant panda and Asiatic black bear, adatpations for aquatic living, ecological constraints on predation in felids, consequences of small size in mustelids, rate of basal metabolism and food habits, and reproductive output. Part III, Evolution, deals with the morphological approaches to phylogeny, and the fossil record. An appendix presents a complete classification of the Carnivora, including topics of continuing controversy. Highlighting recent developments in the study of the Carnivora and areas for further research, this broad synthesis will be of great value of students and researchers in animal behavior, behavioral ecology, wildlife ecology, mammalogy, paleontology, systematics, and evolution theory. It will also encourage realistic conservation programs to manage rapidly diminishing populations and will elucidate particular features of the carnivores for nonspecialist readers.

Download or read book The Evolution of Social Behaviour written by Michael Taborsky and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-08-26 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How can the stunning diversity of social systems and behaviours seen in nature be explained? Drawing on social evolution theory, experimental evidence and studies conducted in the field, this book outlines the fundamental principles of social evolution underlying this phenomenal richness.To succeed in the competition for resources, organisms may either 'race' to be quicker than others, 'fight' for privileged access, or 'share' their efforts and gains. The authors show how the ecology and intrinsic attributes of organisms select for each of these strategies, and how a handful of straightforward concepts explain the evolution of successful decision rules in behavioural interactions, whether among members of the same or different species. With a broad focus ranging from microorganisms to humans, this is the first book to provide students and researchers with a comprehensive account of the evolution of sociality by natural selection.

Download or read book Evolutionary Psychology written by Matthew Rossano and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written in a lively and engaging manner, this new work places evolutionary psychology within the broad sweep of our primate heritage and the full scope of our evolutionary story. Beginning with the basics of evolution, the book first unpacks the far-ranging saga of human evolution, then moves on to examine motor behavior and emotions, sexual behavior and mate selection, and higher cognition.

Download or read book Social Behaviour written by Tamás Székely and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2010-11-18 with total page 575 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A comprehensive analysis of the genetic, ecological and phylogenetic aspects of social behaviour, by experts in the field.

Download or read book Animal Behavior written by Lee C. Drickamer and published by McGraw-Hill Science, Engineering & Mathematics. This book was released on 1996 with total page 472 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Animal Personalities written by Claudio Carere and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2013-03-07 with total page 518 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ask anyone who has owned a pet and they’ll assure you that, yes, animals have personalities. And science is beginning to agree. Researchers have demonstrated that both domesticated and nondomesticated animals—from invertebrates to monkeys and apes—behave in consistently different ways, meeting the criteria for what many define as personality. But why the differences, and how are personalities shaped by genes and environment? How did they evolve? The essays in Animal Personalities reveal that there is much to learn from our furred and feathered friends. The study of animal personality is one of the fastest-growing areas of research in behavioral and evolutionary biology. Here Claudio Carere and Dario Maestripieri, along with a host of scholars from fields as diverse as ecology, genetics, endocrinology, neuroscience, and psychology, provide a comprehensive overview of the current research on animal personality. Grouped into thematic sections, chapters approach the topic with empirical and theoretical material and show that to fully understand why personality exists, we must consider the evolutionary processes that give rise to personality, the ecological correlates of personality differences, and the physiological mechanisms underlying personality variation.