Evolution for everyone : how Darwin's theory can change the way we think about our lives / David Sloan Wilson

Includes bibliographical references (p. [351]-376) and index.

The future can differ from the past -- Clearing the deck -- A third way of thinking -- Prove it! -- Be careful what you wish for -- Monkey madness -- How the dog got its curly tail -- Dancing with ghosts -- What is the function of a can opener? how do you know? -- Your apprentice license -- Welcome home, prodigal son -- Teaching the experts -- Murder city -- How i learned to stop worrying and love genetic determinism -- They've got personality! -- The beauty of Abraham Lincoln -- Love thy neighbor microbe -- Groups all the way down -- Divided we fall -- Winged minds -- The egalitarian ape -- Across the cooperation divide -- The first laugh -- The vital arts -- Dr. Doolittle was right -- How many inventors does it take to make a light bulb? -- I don't know how it works! -- Darwin's cathedral -- Is there anyone out there? is there anyone up there? -- Ayn Rand : religious zealot -- The social intelligence of nations, or, evil aliens need not apply -- Mr. Beeper -- The ecology of good and evil -- Mosquitoes under the bed -- The return of the amateur scientist -- Bon voyage.

Wilson outlines the basic principles of evolution with stories that entertain as much as they inform, and shows how, properly understood, these principles can illuminate the length and breadth of creation, from the origin of life to the nature of religion. Now everyone can move beyond the sterile debates about creationism and intelligent design to share Darwin's panoramic view of animal and human life, seamlessly connected to each other. Evolution, as Wilson explains, is not just about dinosaurs and human origins, but about why all species behave as they do--from beetles that devour their own young, to bees that function as a collective brain, to dogs that are smarter in some respects than our closest ape relatives. And basic evolutionary principles are also the foundation for humanity's capacity for symbolic thought, culture, and morality.--From publisher description.