Natural Selections: Selfish Altruists, Honest Liars, and Other Realities of Evolution

published	October 1st 2007 by Bellevue Literary Press
binding	Hardcover
isbn	1934137057 (isbn13: 9781934137055)
ebook
pages	192
description	"Barash . . . brilliantly integrat[es] science, literature, and pop culture into elegant and insightful commentaries on the most interesting a...more [close] "Barash . . . brilliantly integrat[es] science, literature, and pop culture into elegant and insightful commentaries on the most interesting and important questions of our time. A delightful read."-Michael Shermer, author of <em>The Science of Good and Evil</em> "Entertaining and thought-provoking."-Steven Pinker, author of <em>The Blank Slate</em> If we are, in part, a product of our genes, can free will exist? Incisive and engaging, this indispensable tour of evolutionary biology runs the gamut of contemporary debates, from science and religion to our place in the universe. David Barash is the author of <em>The Myth of Monogamy</em> and <em>Madame Bovary's Ovaries</em>. He lives in Redmond, Washington. [close]
date added	10-22-07 edit book

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L.A.Weekly rated it:

02/07/08

Read in February, 2008

"Dangerous David" on the wonderful complexities and conundrums of our evolutionary selves
By NATHAN IHARA

Barash's line of inquiry, like Richard Dawkins' or Steven Pinker's, does result in bracing and unsettling ideas. Through the lens of evolutionary psychology, we are forced to face our ancient self, that bestial creature that knows nothing of atomic bombs or jihad, marriage or MySpace, but still haunts our body, fuels our emotions and rules our lives — our genetic identity. For t...more "Dangerous David" on the wonderful complexities and conundrums of our evolutionary selves
By NATHAN IHARA

Barash's line of inquiry, like Richard Dawkins' or Steven Pinker's, does result in bracing and unsettling ideas. Through the lens of evolutionary psychology, we are forced to face our ancient self, that bestial creature that knows nothing of atomic bombs or jihad, marriage or MySpace, but still haunts our body, fuels our emotions and rules our lives — our genetic identity. For this single-minded creature, monogamy is a myth, free will is doubtful, and so-called altruism is merely a misguided attempt to protect people who might be carrying our genes. (Since humans once lived in small, closely related packs, protecting others made genetic sense.) In a recent article for The Chronicle of Higher Education, Barash wrote about how electrocuted rats develop ulcers and swollen adrenal glands unless they are allowed to fight other "innocent" rats. In short: Random acts of violence are never actually random; we are merely obeying a million-year-old code of behavior, a code of displaced aggression that Barash finds in The Iliad, in Sweeney Todd and in our current war in Iraq. Barash's latest book, Natural Selections, published by Bellevue Literary Press (a small press run out of the oldest public hospital in the United States, Bellevue in Manhattan), seeks to follow the concepts of evolutionary psychology and sociobiology to their logical conclusions. "Many people claim to accept the tenets of evolution," he says, "but few actually look at where these premises lead."

I talked with Barash by phone about his book, his science and his philosophy:

L.A. WEEKLY: In Natural Selections, you suggest that our genes are almost like host-manipulating parasites (such as the lancet liver fluke that induces infected ants to cling to blades of grass until they are eaten by sheep — the fluke's preferred host).
DAVID P. BARASH: It's a challenge to our self-esteem to consider that we are porous to the outside, not to mention invaded on the inside by pathogens and parasites, and even by our "own" genes, which get us to behave in ways that serve their interests rather than our own — whatever "us" and "we" and "our" might be.

To what ends do you think culture should be willing to go to battle the more disturbing aspects of our genetic makeup? If we could genetically isolate the gene for violence, would you be in favor of altering it? Likewise, do you see the burgeoning market for neuro-pharmaceuticals as a way in which science might be addressing the regressive behaviors of our animal selves?
I'm skeptical about genetically modifying our seemingly "normal" behavior. It's part of what makes human beings human. But I'd be not only willing, but downright eager, to impose upon any particularly dangerous inclinations of world leaders with their fingers on "the button." If I could modify George W. Bush to make him smarter, wiser, more curious, less doctrinaire, more open to alternative views, and generally less thoughtless, selfish and destructive, I'd do it in a heartbeat!

Read the rest of Ihara's interview with Barash on LA Weekly's website: www.laweekly.com/art+books/...less

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Tyler rated it:

01/31/08

"It is not necessary for the whole of nature to take up arms to crush him: a puff of smoke, a drop of water, is enough to kill him. But even if the universe should crush him, man would still be more noble than that which destroys him, because he knows that he dies and he realizes the advantage which the universe possesses over him. The universe knows nothing of this."

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