Download or read book Quicklet on Richard Dawkins The Selfish Gene CliffNotes like Book Summary Analysis written by Elspeth Michaels and published by Hyperink Inc. This book was released on 2012-07-30 with total page 51 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ABOUT THE BOOK In a 2006 interview with Meet the Author, the year when The Selfish Gene celebrated its 30th anniversary, Richard Dawkins had this to say: “...If I had to write it again, I wouldn’t write it very differently. It has been described as a revolutionary book, in one respect it is. But it’s only a revolutionary way in looking at orthodox Darwinian natural selection. It helps to look at it in this revolutionary way. It could equally well have been called “the Altruistic Animal,” because if you have selfish genes, which only means that natural selection works at the level of the gene; if you have selfish genes, then you may have altruistic individuals. And that’s what the book is about.” What Dawkins describes as “revolutionary,” others have construed as controversial. When The Selfish Gene was first published in 1976, it created a number of waves within the study evolutionary biology, largely dominated by Darwinian doctrine. (One could say it made a splash in the gene pool.) If Darwin’s idea of natural selection was based on the concept of “survival of the fittest,” then why does altruism exist between individuals? Why aren’t all living things selfish in a cut-throat battle for survival? Dawkins strove to explain altruism in The Selfish Gene, with the argument that altruistic behavior can be explained through the selfishness of our genes. EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK If it runs away, chase it! If it comes at you, fight back.) In a relationship such as prey versus predator, Dawkins explains possible strategies. A retaliator doesn’t attack aggressively, but will act in a threatening manner. If the opponent attacks first, the retaliator will, as you guessed, retaliate. Retaliators behave based upon their opponent’s behavior, making them conditional strategists. In addition to retaliators, there are two other kinds of conditional strategies: bullies and prober-retaliators. A bully attacks until an opponent strikes back, in which case, the bully immediately retreats. Prober-retaliators are essentially retaliators, but can initiate an attack like a bully, and if the opponent fights back, will defend itself. In these strategies, the retaliator is an ESS, the prober-retaliator is nearly stable, and the bully is not stable. Chapter 6: Genemanship The key point of this chapter is that genes might be able to assist replicas of itself that are sitting in other bodies. If so, this would appear as individual altruism but it would be brought about by gene selfishness. (88) In the previous chapter, Dawkins explained aggression through individual, independent selfish machines. However, individuals have relatives, in the form of siblings, cousins, parents, etc., all of whom share many of the same genes. Each selfish gene then, has its loyalties divided among different individuals; the selfish gene is every replica of itself. Dawkins explains how a gene selected for kin-altruism, could survive in the gene pool. A gene that suicidally saves five cousins would not be numerous in a population of individuals, however, if it saved five brothers or ten first cousins would. The minimum requirement for a suicidal altruistic gene to be a successful one in the gene pool would have to “save more than two siblings/children/parents, more than four half-siblings/uncles/aunts/nephews/nieces/grandparents/grandchildren, or more than eight first cousins, etc.”

Download or read book Become a Better You written by Joel Osteen and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2009-08-04 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explains how to apply seven action steps to discover individual purpose and destiny, in a guide complemented by biblical principles, devotions, and personal testimonies.

Download or read book The Selfish Gene summary written by Richard Dawkins and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Quicklet on John Knowles A Separate Peace CliffNotes like Book Summary and Analysis written by Anna Wood and published by Hyperink Inc. This book was released on 2012-07-30 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ABOUT THE BOOK Is it possible to be at peace while your country is at war? Today, the answer to that question often seems to be a decisive yes; while the United States is entangled in military conflicts in numerous far-away countries, the average American citizen is able to lead a largely untouched life. Except perhaps for the price of gas at the pump, itself more an economic than political ramification, we face few harsh reminders about the wars that are being fought in our name. This was not always the case. When John Knowles, author of A Separate Peace, sat down to write a novel inspired by his experiences as a high school student during World War II, he was reflecting on an era that demanded far more sacrifices from the average U.S. citizen. In addition to the food and fuel shortages that affected even the upper-class rungs of society that Knowles was part of, people were also forced to live with the war as an enormous psychological specter that was nearly impossible to ignore. Because of the novel’s frank and emotional portrayal of the way in which youths experienced World War II, A Separate Peace is considered a classic of modern American literature and is a staple of high school curriculums, still appearing regularly on bestseller lists, such as the January 23-29 2012 list in the Boston Globe. According to the Los Angeles Times, Knowles felt incredibly validated by the book’s popularity, explaining, “What touches me most, what pleases me most, is that people who are far removed from the world of prep schools love it.” The world depicted in the pages of this novel is based largely on the one Knowles himself knew as a teenager in the early 1940s. Devon, the fictional school attended by the books’ characters, is modeled closely after Phillips Exeter Academy, an elite college preparatory school in New Hampshire, where Knowles himself studied. Many of the historical details of the book—such as the apple harvesting, the shoveling work at the railroad, the absence of senior faculty, and the disappearance of maids from the campus—are ones Knowles experienced directly as a student. Howard T. Easton, a former instructor at Exeter, published a reflection about the school’s culture during the war in The Exonian, in which he recalls, “We all had to adapt to unusual circumstances, some of them quite trying.” In addition to being a faithful rendition of a particular historical time and place, A Separate Peace also offers readers a timeless depiction of friendship, the struggles of adolescence and the loss of innocence. Just as the main characters are unable to hide from the war, they are also unable to forestall the onset of adulthood, a transition that marks the end of the carefree, naïve happiness they knew as boys during the summer session. Each character grapples with these changes in his own way, but in the end, none of them is left unchanged.k EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK Fifteen years after graduating from the Devon School, a college preparatory school for wealthy young boys, Gene Forrester returns to campus for the first time. There are two places in particular he aims to visit: a marble staircase in one of the school’s halls and a certain tree on the edge of the Devon River. Upon reaching the staircase in question, he notes with some foreboding that they appear to be particularly hard stairs, as generations of boys’ boots have barely made any indentation on the steps. Trudging through the rain across the muddy campus, Gene struggles to pick out the tree he’s in search of. When he does identify the tree, he notes with some relief that it seems smaller and less intimidating than he remembered. ...buy the book to continue reading!

Download or read book Quicklet on Lois Lowry s The Giver CliffNotes like Summary Analysis written by Natacha Pavlov and published by Hyperink Inc. This book was released on 2012-07-30 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ABOUT THE BOOK What comes to mind when you envision a perfect society? Does it consist solely of happiness and peace? Are there equal rights for everyone regardless of gender, age and/or ethnic background? What about the weather, wildlife and natural landscapes? Is there a limit to the number of children families can have, or even to how they go about producing them? Is there a fair judicial system in place? Lois Lowry’s The Giver tells the story of such a utopian society in which twelve-year old Jonas is the main character. Although his society might at first seem perfect and balanced—there are, after all, no feelings, hunger, inequalities or pain—Jonas eventually realizes that his community has been missing out on all that life has to offer, calling into question the very concept of “ideal.” The Giver, Lois Lowry’s 21st novel, was published in 1993 and earned a Newbery Medal in 1994, “[becoming] an almost instant classic.” As a novel of the utopian genre written in 23 chapters and from a third-person perspective, the story follows Jonas’ life in his perfect society as he progresses from an innocent eleven-year old to a wise twelve-year-old Receiver of Memories. It is easy to wonder exactly how Lois Lowry came up with such a concept, and the truth is that “inspirations for The Giver are so varied” that it can be challenging to give a short answer. As she states in detail in her 1994 Newbery Acceptance speech, her childhood in Japan, her college years, her father’s aging and reaction to losing one of his daughters, and her parents’ attempts to adjust to constant moves all played a part in creating the storyline. In reference to her writing of The Giver, Lowry recalled, “In the beginning to write The Giver I created – as I always do, in every book – a world that existed only in my imagination – the world of ‘only us, only now.’ I tried to make Jonas’s world seem familiar, comfortable, and safe, and I tried to seduce the reader. I seduced myself along the way. It did feel good, that world. I got rid of all the things I fear and dislike; all the violence, prejudice, poverty, and injustice, and I even threw in good manners as a way of life because I liked the idea of it.” Although Jonas’ society is clearly different from our own, Lowry was also able to leave quite a few things up to interpretation without confusing her readers. For example, it is ambiguous whether animals actually exist in Jonas’ society, while the lack of feelings and sexual attraction within his community seem to hint at the possibility of artificial insemination. Many have also been puzzled by the novel’s ambiguous conclusion, but Lowry has remained adamant about not shedding light upon the story’s ending. She states: “I really believe that every reader creates his/her own book, bringing to the written words their own experiences, dreams, wishes, passions. For me to explain everything from my own viewpoint limits that experience for the reader.” Regardless of the interpretations, Lowry seems to have fashioned many of her novels with certain concepts in mind. As she says: “My books have varied in content and style. Yet it seems that all of them deal, essentially, with the same general theme: the importance of human connections.” She has stated that The Giver “speak[s] to the same concern: the vital need of people to be aware of their interdependence, not only with each other, but with the world and its environment.” ...buy the book to read more!

Download or read book Quicklet on Ann Rule s The Stranger Beside Me CliffNotes like Book Summary Analysis written by Paul Kraly and published by Hyperink Inc. This book was released on 2012-07-30 with total page 73 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ABOUT THE BOOK I should be grateful that I had a ringside seat to the monstrous scenario Ted Bundy acted out as...the “glamour boy of homicide”... I am not grateful. I would rather I’d never had a book of my own, much less twenty-nine and that Ted’s victims had lived...If only I had the power to make none of it real.” (The Stranger Beside Me xii-xiii) The Stranger Beside Me is at once an autobiographical book and a true crime expose. Published originally in 1980, nine years before Ted Bundy’s execution, it has been revised and updated in 1986, 1989, 2000 and in 2008-9 to coincide with the twentieth anniversary of Bundy’s execution. The Stranger Beside Me was the book that began Ann Rule’s successful career as a true crime writer. What makes the 20th anniversary reissue of the book so intriguing is that Ann Rule has returned to this seminal book, adding chapters and insight into her odd relationship with one of the United States’ worst serial killers, Theodore Robert Bundy or “Ted” as she calls him. While sitting next to Ted as they worked the phones on the night shift of a crisis center, Ann never had a clue about his disturbing double-life. What also makes The Stranger Beside Me so intriguing is that while Ted is rampaging through his murders, Ann’s career is growing as well. EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK Meanwhile Bundy was getting references for law school from his Republican buddies and was about to leave Washington for Utah. Commentary These chapters are pivotal to the Bundy saga. Rule explains in exhausting detail, with names and dates, what was occurring in Washington at this time. From the task force to the witness statements, a clear picture of the killer and his victimology was beginning to emerge. In 1974, computers were not as accessible as they are now, so much of the comparison was done on hard copy and through manual labor. This delayed results and enabled Bundy to act with impunity throughout the state, despite his name being sent to the authorities by Rule and even his girlfriend. By all appearances, Bundy was a smart law student with a bright future ahead of him. Even after he was apprehended, there was a kind of cult of Bundy that claimed his innocence. Even People Magazine raised doubts about his culpability and bought into the feeding frenzy that his trials became. These chapters begin to consolidate the evidence and reveal Rule’s interactions with police, and yet continue her willful blindness to the problem that was Bundy. Chapter-by-Chapter Summary and Commentary Summary Chapter 12 begins with a recap of the four “Teds” considered suspects worthy of investigation. Since there were artist renderings of the suspect from Lake Sammamish, several respected persons seemed to recognize Bundy as matching the drawing. This included his girlfriend “Meg Anders” (real name: Elizabeth Koepfler) who not only recognized the drawing, but knew of plaster of paris in her medicine cabinet and that her VW was used by her fiance Ted Bundy. She confided her fears to a friend and was encouraged to report Ted to the authorities. She was wracked with guilt over doing this and not letting Ted know. While Meg was anguished over reporting her boyfriend (now a Utah law student) to the police, bodies were being found in the mountains throughout the late summer and early fall of 1974. Ted was settled in Utah, but traveled back to Seattle to finish some business and try to assure Meg of his affection, although not marriage. As he once told Ann Rule (much later after he was arrested): “Why should I want to attack women? I had all the female companionship I wanted. I must have slept with half a dozen women that first year in Utah and all of them went to bed with me willingly... ...buy the book to continue reading!