Resistance to malaria. Blue eyes. Lactose tolerance. What do all of these traits have in common? Every one of them has emerged in the last 10,000 ...
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Nov 15, 2009
Erik
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Cochran and Harpending dispel the long-held scientific notion that human evolution reached a plateau tens of thousands of years ago, as well as all change has been cultural. Instead, they argue that cultural change has effected genetic change, and vice versa. Not only did agriculture select for certain characteristics – like lactose tolerance as a result of animal husbandry, for one – but so introgression with Neanderthals, which has been historically frowned upon in the scientific community due
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Nov 06, 2009
David
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I was seriously underwhelmed by this work. At a high level, I think it's great that there's a new publication that presents a case for the biological and genetic drivers of human evolution even during the recent historic period. I certainly agree with this perspective, and it adds a nice layer of evidence to other recent popular works dealing with human history in the Holocene. The devil is in the details, however, and this is where the book comes up short.
I was very frustrated by More...
I was very frustrated by More...
Jul 28, 2011
This book is filled with some interesting facts and scenarios in which evolution was affected by civilization. However, I struggled with this book (it took me 6 months to finish, and here's why: the title of the book is misleading. The authors do not make a convincing case that what they are talking about ACCELERATED evolution. They are just specific examples of biological concepts: bottleneck effect, founders, mutations, etc. From this standpoint, the book was interesting.
Also, the book w More...
Also, the book w More...
Jul 19, 2010
Khalid
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Scientists have long believed that the “great leap forward” that occurred some 40,000 to 50,000 years ago in Europe marked end of significant biological evolution in humans. Gregory Cochran and Henry Harpending rejected this conventional wisdom and revealed that the human species has undergone a storm of genetic change much more recently. Human evolution in fact accelerated after civilization arose, they contended, and these ongoing changes have played a pivotal role in human history. They argue
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Oct 29, 2010
Tracy
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I made it a little over the half-way mark before setting this one down. The writing style is easy to read and there are a few good ideas in there. Here are the problems though.
1. It's dumbed down and watered down. The authors assume the read is an idiot and doesn't know any history at all, and so give broad, watered-down histories. Like the history of agriculture in two pages. It's absolutely no help to someone unfamiliar with it, and frustratingly oversimplified to someone who is.
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1. It's dumbed down and watered down. The authors assume the read is an idiot and doesn't know any history at all, and so give broad, watered-down histories. Like the history of agriculture in two pages. It's absolutely no help to someone unfamiliar with it, and frustratingly oversimplified to someone who is.
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Jul 08, 2011
Calen
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As someone who has read little on the topic I found this an intriguing overview of recent evolutionary views of how we wandered into the present. Sadly the entire volume is extremely light on detailed data and heavy on leaped to conclusions, though they freely admit having but sniffed the mountain of data so it's fair that the particulars are rough. I was also hoping for a contradiction to current evolutionary stasis, but the info presented just seems to solidify the notion that, due to ever
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Aug 08, 2009
Chris
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Cochran and and coauthor Henry Harpending make a compelling case for the idea that human evolution not only did not stop with the development of civilization, but is accelerating with increasing population and selection pressures.
What's even more interesting is the idea that evolutionary selection may be a driver of human history. They have a host of examples, from the obvious (the destruction of American Indian populations whose immune systems were incapable of handling European di More...
What's even more interesting is the idea that evolutionary selection may be a driver of human history. They have a host of examples, from the obvious (the destruction of American Indian populations whose immune systems were incapable of handling European di More...
Jun 18, 2009
Allisonperkel
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This book was highly schizophrenic - at times too simplistic at times too detail oriented. Sadly, in most cases the logic was simply flawed.
There is one thing I can't stomach in a science book and that's arguments along the lines of "because if moderns and Neanderthals lived near each other, its obvious that they cross bred and all the amazing advances that might date from around that time stem from that. That's all the proof I need - and even though you can't see the genetic e More...
There is one thing I can't stomach in a science book and that's arguments along the lines of "because if moderns and Neanderthals lived near each other, its obvious that they cross bred and all the amazing advances that might date from around that time stem from that. That's all the proof I need - and even though you can't see the genetic e More...
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Jun 01, 2010
Robin
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The authors' premise is that genetic evolution has accelerated in the last 10 millenia due to the selection effects of new environments, i.e. of agriculture and subsequent civilization. Starting with the evidence for limited but impactful breeding with Neantherthals much earlier, they describe the way in which small genetic differences between various modern human populations not only concentrate but can have major effects. Examples include the lactose-tolerance allele contributed by the h
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Aug 03, 2009
Lisa
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As a book written for the layman about new ideas in genetic research, _The 10,000 Year Explosion_ is an important book. Gregory Cochran and Henry Harpending, two professors at the University of Utah (physics and genetics, respectively), are basically saying in their theories that it is our genetic make up that determined our ancestors' fate, and it will determine ours too.
While I accept that different races are composed differently of genetic codes, resulting in different eye and sk More...
While I accept that different races are composed differently of genetic codes, resulting in different eye and sk More...
Mar 28, 2010
Terence
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The basic argument of The 10,000 Year Explosion (10KYE) is two-fold. The first assertion is that biological evolution still affects the human species, which is evident within historic memory. The second half of the argument is that evolution has accelerated since the Agricultural Revolution c. 12,000 years ago. The authors look at four turning points in human development: (1) the displacement of the Neanderthal c. 40,000 years ago by modern humans, (2) the Agricultural Revolutions (more properly
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Dec 25, 2011
Bill
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While I read the complete book, I was a bit disappointed by it. Even though I'm not a scientist (last science course taken was Earth Sciences in freshman year of college), the book seemed to lack a certain kind of scientific rigor to me. It offered lots of interesting theories and insights (the main one being that evolution has not stopped, but is going on right now - with beneficial features being selected). It's a very interesting topic. I just wish there had been more to grab on to here.
Jul 25, 2011
Popular recap by an anthropologist of speculations about how the agricultural revolution may have created environmental and societal changes that selected for recent evolutionary changes like lactose tolerance and resistance to diseases that need a large population base to flourish (and perhaps selected against traits great for hunter-gatherers, like aggression, but intolerable in an elite controlled walled city) . As a non-lactose-tolerator, I say Damn You Indo-Europeans and Your Imperialist D
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Apr 01, 2010
Karen
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This was a really fascinating book, and one that I expect would provoke a lot of argument and discussion. Their position is that because of the dramatic changes in our environment and lifestyle since the start of civilization, humans have begun evolving very quickly, and that modern people are not the same as people a few thousand years ago or in some cases even a few hundred years ago. The arguments sound very reasonable, and they don't have any axe to grind for or against any particular people
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Jul 24, 2011
Sam
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Apparently, genetic analysis indicates that human evolution sped up starting at the dawn of agriculture, about 10,000 years ago. (This shouldn't be surprising: diets changed, as did social organization, etc., and natural selection intensifies with environmental change.) This fact suggests that history and civilization can usefully be viewed as aspects of a biological experiment.
Mar 23, 2009
Donna Jo
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Cochran and Harpending are putting forward the theory that human evolution is still happening and it's all because of the Neanderthals and the lactose tolerant gene, and you can tell because the Ashkenazi Jews are smarter than any other group. Well, I may be slightly over-simplifying, but this is a crazy-making book.
First you have to accept some premises that other scientists have debunked and then you have to skip along with some conclusions that have some "if--then" holes in t More...
First you have to accept some premises that other scientists have debunked and then you have to skip along with some conclusions that have some "if--then" holes in t More...
May 04, 2011
Adrian
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Some interesting ideas - mainly the fact that human evolution is a continuous process, and attempts to provide some evidence of that. Some shoddy logic, sparse citations and tenuously supported ideas (mainly the idea of 'intelligence' in connection to the Ashkenazi Jews - vague definitions all around), but the book has some worth.
Aug 01, 2009
Squishyent
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I really liked this book. I haven't taken a biology class since high school, but I'm very interested in the subject. I found the level of technical detail to be perfect for that: there was enough meat to provide some insight into how researchers do their jobs and what they're finding, but not so much that I got lost. The premise is very interesting: that humanity has evolved in many observable ways in recorded history, and that this has played a role in our history. Most interesting, perhaps
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Nov 17, 2009
Mentioned in the excellent article The Science of Success, by David Dobbs, in the December 2009 The Atlantic.
Oct 14, 2009
Marckissel
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the research described in this book is top-notch, but sometimes they seem to be a little too simplistic in their writing style. I think some of their more controversial claims could have been backed up a bit more, but still it is a good and quick read
Oct 16, 2010
Molly
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This book is fascinating! An overview of a new theory (I thought it was a little surprising that it was a new theory) that people have continued to evolve after the dawn of civilization. I was sorry it ended.
Sep 16, 2009
Jef
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Hypothesis: Neanderthals and Stone Age Human's cross bred and resulted in a new species, homo Sapiens. Also investigates the mutation rate after the rise of agriculture and the population explosion.
Feb 23, 2010
John
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How did humans become so varied? Why are the Ashkenazy so brilliant? This book provides a compelling theory for the rapid and self-directed evolution of man over very small spans of years.
Mar 09, 2009
Brian R.
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Very easy to read book about an alternative theory on genetic evolution in modern man that explores briefly some of the more controversial ideas being supported by recent research around the mapping of the human genome. Well worth reading if you have a broader interest in history and want a scientific supplement to a cultural historical view.
Nov 01, 2009
Vicky
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Here is a book about human evolution, based on the latest researches in molecular biology. The authors strongly believe that natural selection did not stop around 40.000 to 50.000 years ago, but in fact is going on today. They discuss the recent genetic changes such as adult milk tolerance or IQ scores of Ashkenazi Jews as a result of change in their biology with the change of socio-economic factors.
Jan 10, 2010
Nancy
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Accelerating biological human evolution explains much of recorded history. Are we adapting to our culture? Poorly written. I was not swayed and could not sustain enough interest to finish.
Feb 25, 2009
Xenophon
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If you are interested in history, anthropology, or human biodiversity, this is an excellent book.
Oct 21, 2009
Tim
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I agree with other reviewers that the authors at times gloss over details and at other times dive too deeply. Overall, their theory is thought provoking even if over simplified.
Sep 08, 2010
Mollie
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Very interesting if you are interested in genetics. A bit on the controversial side.
Jun 18, 2009
Daniel
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Fast trip on how evolution has been accelerated by Human civilization. Know your basic before you enter.
