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Nature's Oracle: The Life and Work of W.D. Hamilton
W.D.Hamilton (1936-2000) was responsible for a revolution in thinking about evolutionary biology - a revolution that changed our understanding of life itself.
He played a central role in the realization that what matters in evolution is not the survival of the individual but of the survival of its genes. This provided the solution to the long standing problem of animal altruism that vexed even Darwin himself, and in due course resulted in terms like selfish genes, kin selection, and sociobiology becoming familiar to a wider public. Hamilton went on to solve many more major problems, and open up ever new fields - he shaped much of our current understanding of central problems including the evolution of sexual reproduction and ageing. He became world famous and garnered international prizes.
But this is all in hindsight. In fact, Hamilton's recognition came late - his career is a classic case of misunderstood genius. In this illuminating and moving biography Ullica Segerstrale documents Hamilton's extraordinary life and work, revealing a man of immense intellectual curiosity, an uncompromising truth-seeker, a naturalist and jungle explorer, a risk-taker, an unconventional scientist with a poet's soul and a deep concern for life on earth and mankind's future.
He played a central role in the realization that what matters in evolution is not the survival of the individual but of the survival of its genes. This provided the solution to the long standing problem of animal altruism that vexed even Darwin himself, and in due course resulted in terms like selfish genes, kin selection, and sociobiology becoming familiar to a wider public. Hamilton went on to solve many more major problems, and open up ever new fields - he shaped much of our current understanding of central problems including the evolution of sexual reproduction and ageing. He became world famous and garnered international prizes.
But this is all in hindsight. In fact, Hamilton's recognition came late - his career is a classic case of misunderstood genius. In this illuminating and moving biography Ullica Segerstrale documents Hamilton's extraordinary life and work, revealing a man of immense intellectual curiosity, an uncompromising truth-seeker, a naturalist and jungle explorer, a risk-taker, an unconventional scientist with a poet's soul and a deep concern for life on earth and mankind's future.
454 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 10, 2020
When I was at University studying for my bachelors degree in Ecology, I studied the principles of natural selection and evolution that were developed and discovered by W.D.Hamilton. This included The Red Queen Hypothesis (an explanation for coevolution i.e. A Zebra has to evolve to outrun the Lion and in turn the Lion has to evolve to catch the Zebra), and The Theory of Inclusive Fitness which measures an individuals ability to pass their genes on to the next generation, also taking into account close relatives ability to pass on a percentage of idential copies of their relatives genes. When studying these theories, I at the time thought nothing of the man behind them.
This biography enlightened me to the kind of person that Bill Hamilton was and the struggles he overcame in his personal and professional life. One of the things I have learned was how strongly Hamilton valued truth in all things, it is thus a credit to the author how unbiased this biography feels.
I enjoyed how the book presented Hamilton in both negative and positive lights showing off the many facets of his nature. For instance, using John Maynard Smith as a recurring example of his ability to hold a grudge. On the other hand, it was inspiring to read how he, despite many pushbacks from the academics of the day, was able to change the way we view socio and evolutionary biology. Put simply Bill has been the underdog and the victor, and you simply cannot help but root for him.
My only complaint is that the book was a little longer than it needed to be with some areas slightly drawn out. Additionally, because it covers such a specialised topic, readers with minimal prior knowledge of evolutionary biology theories that have been developed within the last century may struggle with the scientific terminology.
This biography enlightened me to the kind of person that Bill Hamilton was and the struggles he overcame in his personal and professional life. One of the things I have learned was how strongly Hamilton valued truth in all things, it is thus a credit to the author how unbiased this biography feels.
I enjoyed how the book presented Hamilton in both negative and positive lights showing off the many facets of his nature. For instance, using John Maynard Smith as a recurring example of his ability to hold a grudge. On the other hand, it was inspiring to read how he, despite many pushbacks from the academics of the day, was able to change the way we view socio and evolutionary biology. Put simply Bill has been the underdog and the victor, and you simply cannot help but root for him.
My only complaint is that the book was a little longer than it needed to be with some areas slightly drawn out. Additionally, because it covers such a specialised topic, readers with minimal prior knowledge of evolutionary biology theories that have been developed within the last century may struggle with the scientific terminology.
February 17, 2022
Although I'd read Hamilton's name in books by Dawkins and Trivers (amongst others), I hadn't really picked up on his importance. This fascinating and thorough biography situates Hamilton's achievements within a full and candid account of his life.
What's particularly intriguing for an interested layman reader like myself is not just what Hamilton discovers/theorises/proposes - addressing certain gaps or problems in Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, some of which even the 'modern synthesis' still left unplugged (his most widely known, 'inclusive fitness' and the 'parasite paradigm', address a genetic basis for the evolution of altruism and the 'two-fold cost' of sex respectively) - but also Hamilton's individual story, and how personal qualities and institutional politics do indeed enter into the supposedly neutral evolution of science itself.
At times ignored or misunderstood (he has been accused, at various points, of everything from using his science to cloak his political views, to being racist or sexist) Hamilton occasionally struggled to get his work recognised, in both the academic and the wider professional research spheres of science. It would appear that his key ideas are currently faring very well, in certain quarters at any rate, with Dawkins as a prime example of someone championing aspects of his work, whilst some of his detractors, Lewontin and Gould for example, now face similar charges to those they once levelled at him (namely, distorting their science for political reasons).
Segerstrale says that some of the reasons for Hamilton's 'under the radar' status may include his rather ornery character and, more to the point perhaps, the fact that he wrote purely for his professional peers. Almost all the big names, everybody from Darwin himself to Dawkins, very deliberately write for a much wider audience. Not only did Hamilton prefer to address his scientific peers, but also his articles were often buried in obscure specialist publications that even other interested fellow scientists might miss. Then there's the fact that some key aspects of his work are heavily reliant on mathematical modelling, which, according to Segerstrale, has meant that even Hamilton's scientific peers sometimes found understanding his work difficult.
In addition to all of this, and as already alluded to, there were also issues of politics: both personal, in the form of self-image and professional jealousies, leading to problems between Hamilton and other specialists in related fields (his troubled relations with John Maynard Smith being perhaps the most striking example), and in terms of the more general politics of the day. In regard to the latter, the very suggestion of a connection between genetics and altruism was out of favour in the post WWII climate, which happened to be when Hamilton began his work. At that time anything that might suggest a connection between genetics and aspects of behaviour (in humans in particular, where many preferred to attribute qualities like altruism to culture) brought up the spectral taboos of eugenics and other assorted bogeys.
There is a glossary, which was very useful. But I wish the glossary had also included a few more pithy definitions of core concepts: for example, there is a glossary entry for 'Hamilton's rule', but not for the 'Price equation'. Likewise 'inclusive fitness' is defined, but the 'parasite paradigm' isn't. Mostly this book is easy to follow, much of it simply being the story of Hamilton's life, but where Segerstrale deals with his work - the science - it may be a little tricky for the general reader (I found it tough here and there). All in all this is a very well written book about a fascinating man and his work. I only limit it to four stars because I have to admit that this is the kind of deeper delving into the literature on evolution where I start to feel it's getting slightly over-specialist for me.
What's particularly intriguing for an interested layman reader like myself is not just what Hamilton discovers/theorises/proposes - addressing certain gaps or problems in Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, some of which even the 'modern synthesis' still left unplugged (his most widely known, 'inclusive fitness' and the 'parasite paradigm', address a genetic basis for the evolution of altruism and the 'two-fold cost' of sex respectively) - but also Hamilton's individual story, and how personal qualities and institutional politics do indeed enter into the supposedly neutral evolution of science itself.
At times ignored or misunderstood (he has been accused, at various points, of everything from using his science to cloak his political views, to being racist or sexist) Hamilton occasionally struggled to get his work recognised, in both the academic and the wider professional research spheres of science. It would appear that his key ideas are currently faring very well, in certain quarters at any rate, with Dawkins as a prime example of someone championing aspects of his work, whilst some of his detractors, Lewontin and Gould for example, now face similar charges to those they once levelled at him (namely, distorting their science for political reasons).
Segerstrale says that some of the reasons for Hamilton's 'under the radar' status may include his rather ornery character and, more to the point perhaps, the fact that he wrote purely for his professional peers. Almost all the big names, everybody from Darwin himself to Dawkins, very deliberately write for a much wider audience. Not only did Hamilton prefer to address his scientific peers, but also his articles were often buried in obscure specialist publications that even other interested fellow scientists might miss. Then there's the fact that some key aspects of his work are heavily reliant on mathematical modelling, which, according to Segerstrale, has meant that even Hamilton's scientific peers sometimes found understanding his work difficult.
In addition to all of this, and as already alluded to, there were also issues of politics: both personal, in the form of self-image and professional jealousies, leading to problems between Hamilton and other specialists in related fields (his troubled relations with John Maynard Smith being perhaps the most striking example), and in terms of the more general politics of the day. In regard to the latter, the very suggestion of a connection between genetics and altruism was out of favour in the post WWII climate, which happened to be when Hamilton began his work. At that time anything that might suggest a connection between genetics and aspects of behaviour (in humans in particular, where many preferred to attribute qualities like altruism to culture) brought up the spectral taboos of eugenics and other assorted bogeys.
There is a glossary, which was very useful. But I wish the glossary had also included a few more pithy definitions of core concepts: for example, there is a glossary entry for 'Hamilton's rule', but not for the 'Price equation'. Likewise 'inclusive fitness' is defined, but the 'parasite paradigm' isn't. Mostly this book is easy to follow, much of it simply being the story of Hamilton's life, but where Segerstrale deals with his work - the science - it may be a little tricky for the general reader (I found it tough here and there). All in all this is a very well written book about a fascinating man and his work. I only limit it to four stars because I have to admit that this is the kind of deeper delving into the literature on evolution where I start to feel it's getting slightly over-specialist for me.
December 20, 2019
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August 24, 2018
WD (Bill) Hamilton was evolutionary biologist and naturalist, who pioneered work on altruism, kin selection, inclusive fitness, cooperation (tit-for-tat) and parasites & sexual selection.
Later books such as The Selfish Gene and The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature are heavily influenced by Hamilton's work.
This book gives a nice overview of his life and work. On his field work; Hamilton was stung by over 1000 wasps during his career.
In a BBC4 radio episode (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00q...), Dawkins Richard praises Hamilton's modesty. In the book however, there is a lengthy (>10 pages) account of Hamilton's correspondence with John Maynard Smith about the pub-quip by Haldane (I would give my life for two brothers or eight cousins). Hamilton wanted more recognition for this (but backtracked when witnesses confirmed the episode + Maynard Smith did credit Hamilton with bringing it further). Interesting, but a bit too lengthy.
Later books such as The Selfish Gene and The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature are heavily influenced by Hamilton's work.
This book gives a nice overview of his life and work. On his field work; Hamilton was stung by over 1000 wasps during his career.
In a BBC4 radio episode (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00q...), Dawkins Richard praises Hamilton's modesty. In the book however, there is a lengthy (>10 pages) account of Hamilton's correspondence with John Maynard Smith about the pub-quip by Haldane (I would give my life for two brothers or eight cousins). Hamilton wanted more recognition for this (but backtracked when witnesses confirmed the episode + Maynard Smith did credit Hamilton with bringing it further). Interesting, but a bit too lengthy.
September 29, 2016
Note that the ★★★★★ rating is a personal rating, by which I mean it reflects not only my personal interests and ability to relate the text to my background knowledge but also my ability to understand the subject being presented. This book is not a starting point. This is an "academic biography" not only in the sense that it's a biography of an academic, but also in the sense that the biography itself is rather academically minded and probably pitched at about 3rd year undergraduate level though there were reviews in the educated press;
Economist
,
Guardian
,
Telegraph
.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews