Humans possess an extraordinary capacity for culture, from the arts and language to science and technology. But how did the human mind—and the uniquely human ability to devise and transmit culture—evolve from its roots in animal behavior? Darwin’s Unfinished Symphony presents a captivating new theory of human cognitive evolution. This compelling and accessible book reveals how culture is not just the magnificent end product of an evolutionary process that produced a species unlike all others—it is also the key driving force behind that process. Kevin N. Lala tells the story of the painstaking fieldwork, the key experiments, the false leads, and the stunning scientific breakthroughs that led to this new understanding of how culture transformed human evolution. It is the story of how Darwin’s intellectual descendants picked up where he left off and took up the challenge of providing a scientific account of the evolution of the human mind.

Humans possess an extraordinary capacity for culture, from the arts and language to science and technology. But how did the human mind—and the uniquely human ability to devise and transmit culture—evolve from its roots in animal behavior? Darwin’s Unfinished Symphony presents a captivating new theory of human cognitive evolution. This compelling and accessible book reveals how culture is not just the magnificent end product of an evolutionary process that produced a species unlike all others—it is also the key driving force behind that process. Kevin N. Lala tells the story of the painstaking fieldwork, the key experiments, the false leads, and the stunning scientific breakthroughs that led to this new understanding of how culture transformed human evolution. It is the story of how Darwin’s intellectual descendants picked up where he left off and took up the challenge of providing a scientific account of the evolution of the human mind.

This book aims to encourage the reading of "On the Origin of Species" and to include it in the teaching of evolution. With a comprehensive overview of the development of Darwin's theory, the volume provides relevant aspects of Darwin's life and work in connection with the broader context of his time. The historical and philosophical analysis, mirrored in the socio-cultural scope, enables the diachronic reading of the text. It is built on various sources of historians and philosophers of science and sheds fresh light on them. Its uniqueness is the broad structure that covers four parts: the pre-Darwinian concepts of species changes; some key elements of Darwin's pursuit of the causes of evolution, from his voyage on Beagle to the publication of his groundbreaking work; chapter-by-chapter analysis of the "Origin"; and subsequent developments in evolutionary thought. This book is of interest to undergraduate and graduate students, scholars in history, philosophy, and sociology of science and science education, as well as the general public.

Lorsque nous essayons de nous comprendre et de comprendre le monde dans lequel nous vivons, nous nous tournons souvent d'abord vers la science - et ensuite, s'il reste des lacunes dans notre comprehension, nous essayons de les combler en nous referant a Dieu et a notre foi. Cette approche, que nous appelons "le dieu des lacunes", a une longue histoire et, malheureusement, elle est encore bien vivante aujourd'hui. Ce livre a ete ecrit pour offrir une approche alternative en posant cette question fondamentale : comment les chretiens ayant recu une education formelle peuvent-ils maintenir leur honnetete intellectuelle et en meme temps etre fideles a la fois a l'Ecriture et a la science ? Ce livre donne des exemples de quelques-uns des problemes les plus epineux qui se posent aujourd'hui dans le domaine de la science et de la foi, et propose des moyens de reflechir de maniere constructive a chacun d'entre eux. Malcolm A. Jeeves est professeur emerite de psychologie a l'universite de St Andrews, en Ecosse, ancien president de la Societe royale d'Edimbourg et de l'Academie nationale d'Ecosse, et membre de l'Academie des sciences medicales et de la Societe britannique de psychologie. Pionnier de la psychologie cognitive, de la neuropsychologie et de la psychologie evolutionniste, il est l'auteur de nombreux ouvrages sur la science et la foi.

This book presents an evolutionary theory of the origin and step-by-step development of linguistic structures and cognitive abilities from the early stages of anthropogenesis to the Upper Paleolithic. Emphasizing the social nature of the human mind and using an extended version of C.Hempel's explanatory logic, the author proves that language and consciousness emerged and evolved through the daily efforts of our ancestors to overcome mutual misunderstandings in increasingly complex social orders with increasing tasks on memory, thinking, and normative regulation of behavior, with the addition of new and new communicative concerns. The book addresses questions such as the following: What unique social conditions led to the emergence of the first protosyllables and protowords? What steps enabled the crossing of the "linguistic Rubicon" (between animal communication and human speech)? Why were syllables and phonemes needed? How did our ancestors overcome the difficulties of misunderstanding? How, when, and why did ancient people learn to speak in turns? Why did they begin to talk about past and distant events? What is consciousness and how did it evolve along with language? How many original languages were there and why are there roughly 200 philas (language macrofamilies)? How and why did the number of languages and the degree of their complexity change in pre-written history? Did the Romance languages really evolve from Latin? Accordingly, the book will appeal to scholars in various disciplines who are interested in a better understanding of the cognitive aspects of anthropogenesis and the ancient origins of language and consciousness.

This book presents a concise yet comprehensive survey of methods used in the expanding studies of human evolution, paying particular attention to new work on social evolution. The first part of the book presents principal methods for the study of biological, cultural, and social evolution, plus migration, group behavior, institutions, politics, and environment. The second part provides a chronological and analytical account of the development of these methods from 1850 to the present, showing how multidisciplinary rose to link physical, biological, ecological, and social sciences. The work is especially relevant for readers in history and social sciences but will be of interest to readers in biological and ecological fields who are interested in exploring a wide range of evolutionary studies.

The book illuminates the complex problems in genetic studies of substance use and addiction. It provides a comprehensive overview that fills the gap in the literature and points out future directions. The book includes three sections that apply to any complex traits and disorders, particularly psychological and psychiatric. The first section covers the traits and phenotypes that are the target of genetic research in substance use and addiction. Following this, the second section analyzes the methods and results of biometric genetic studies in this area. The third section reviews research in gene mapping and epigenetics. Genetics of Substance Use is a first-of-its-kind monograph that presents contemporary solutions and methods for a wide range of researchers and practitioners across disciplines.

The question of innateness, or nativism, is one of the most heated problems in philosophy, reaching as far back as Plato but generating fierce debates in contemporary philosophy and cognitive science. Which aspects of the human mind are innate and which are the products of experience? Do we have any innate concepts or knowledge or are all the contents of the mind acquired by means of learning? Innateness and Cognition is a much-needed overview of this important problem. Through addressing the following topics M.J. Cain argues for a nativist perspective which, nevertheless, finds an important role for culture and social learning in cognitive development: the nature of innateness the coherence and explanatory value of the concept of innateness the acquisition of concepts and the role of learning in conceptual development domain specific knowledge, including the 'massive modularity' thesis and the theory of core knowledge domains cognitive development relating the theory of mind and mathematics the relationship between biological and cultural evolution and their respective roles in cognitive development language and innateness, particularly Chomsky's linguistic nativism and challenges to this morality, moral judgment, and innateness. Innateness and Cognition is an excellent resource for those researching and studying philosophy of psychology and philosophy of mind, as well as those interested in foundational issues in cognitive science, psychology, linguistics, and anthropology.

This book showcases the theories, methods, and accomplishments of archaeologists who investigate the human mind through material forms. It encompasses the wide spectrum of cognitive archeology, showcasing contributions from scholars globally. It delivers analysis of material culture, from stone tools to ceramic and rock art of the past millennium.

Does evolution make faith superfluous? Part One of this book looks across the whole spectrum of biology—from molecules to ecosystems to human societies—and at the fossil history of life on earth, concluding that evolution is the only explanatory concept that makes sense of it all. Doesn’t this demolish the core Christian claim that God created the entire universe? Part Two explores whether God might instead embrace that universe with love and compassion, without micromanaging or interfering. Jesus bears witness to such a God in his kingdom teaching, calling Christians to follow his example of humility, serving others, and valuing what the world considers unimportant. This suggests paths of repentance and restraint that are urgently needed in a world facing rapid climate change and likely mass extinction.