Evolutionary Psychology
Psy. 306, Spring 1998
Click here to see the course syllabus.
Click here to access notes on the classes.
Click here to read an alternative account to the theory of evolution.
Some Relevant Web Sites
Book reviews of HTBW:
http://www.science-books.com/sciencebooks/reviews/howthemindworks.html
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997110613R
On evolutionary psychology:
http://www.evoyage.com/
Stephen Jay Gould on evolutionary psychology:
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997062647F
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997061234F
Dennett's and Pinker's reply to Gould:
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997081459E1
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997100955E1
Steve Jones on genetics, cloning and biotechnology:
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1998042314R
Steve Jones on the evolution of sexual behavior:
http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1997071739R
Martin Gardner reviews "Do Parents Count:?" http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev/WWWarchdisplay.cgi?1998110519R
Why we have big brains:
http://www.massey.ac.nz/~i75202/emural/nrg.htm
"In hunter-gatherer societies, men hunt and women stay at home. This
strong bias persists in most agricultural and industrial societies and,
on that ground alone, appears to have a genetic origin. ... My own guess
is that the genetic bias is intense enough to cause a substantial division
of labor even in the most free and egalitarian of future societies."
(Wilson, New York Times Magazine, October 12, 1975.)
How dogs helped humans proliferate:
http://www.nando.net/healthscience/story/0,1080,9077-15628-94244-0,00.html
Early humans became better hunters after they domesticated wolves about 135,000 years ago, an advantage that possibly helped them outlive Neanderthals and other rivals, according to John Allman, a California Institute of Technology researcher. The wolf's strength, stamina and acute hearing and sense of smell likely helped humans to hunt prey and overcome predators, especially at night, said Allman, who specializes in evolutionary biology. Domesticating wolves "would have been a huge selective advantage for whatever human population did that because it would have allowed modern humans to move into areas that were previously inhospitable," he said.
Week 2: Genes, Natural Selection and Sexual Reproduction
Week 3: Sex and pair bonding