The Dominant Animal: Human Evolution and the Environment | 
 enlarge | Authors: Paul R. Ehrlich, Anne H. Ehrlich
Publisher: Island Press
Category: Book
List Price: $35.00
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Avg. Customer Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 45757
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 440
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.7 x 1.4
ISBN: 1597260967
Dewey Decimal Number: 304.2
EAN: 9781597260961
Publication Date: June 30, 2008
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Product Description
In humanity’s more than 100,000 year history, we have evolved from vulnerable creatures clawing sustenance from Earth to a sophisticated global society manipulating every inch of it. In short, we have become the dominant animal. Why, then, are we creating a world that threatens our own species? What can we do to change the current trajectory toward more climate change, increased famine, and epidemic disease? Renowned Stanford scientists Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H. Ehrlich believe that intelligently addressing those questions depends on a clear understanding of how we evolved and how and why we’re changing the planet in ways that darken our descendants’ future. The Dominant Animal arms readers with that knowledge, tracing the interplay between environmental change and genetic and cultural evolution since the dawn of humanity. In lucid and engaging prose, they describe how Homo sapiens adapted to their surroundings, eventually developing the vibrant cultures, vast scientific knowledge, and technological wizardry we know today. But the Ehrlichs also explore the flip side of this triumphant story of innovation and conquest. As we clear forests to raise crops and build cities, lace the continents with highways, and create chemicals never before seen in nature, we may be undermining our own supremacy. The threats of environmental damage are clear from the daily headlines, but the outcome is far from destined. Humanity can again adapt—if we learn from our evolutionary past. Those lessons are crystallized in The Dominant Animal. Tackling the fundamental challenge of the human predicament, Paul and Anne Ehrlich offer a vivid and unique exploration of our origins, our evolution, and our future.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
 The most important book I've read this year July 6, 2008
18 out of 25 found this review helpful
Paul and Anne Ehrlich's THE DOMINANT ANIMAL is not only the most sensible and up-to-date book I've read about sustainability; it's also well organized and well written, a true delight to read. As the bad news increasingly piles up -- mass extinctions on land and in the oceans, decreased availability of cheap energy, increased unemployment, floods and droughts leading to crop failures, polar ice caps melting, and famines, to mention only a few -- it becomes crucial that we quickly make informed and sensible choices. THE DOMINANT ANIMAL provides well researched and balanced pros and cons about the most important issues facing us today. I can only agree with the solutions the authors favor, from the unbridled consumption issue (my current line of work) to their analysis of nuclear energy, pp. 306-308 (pertinent to my past life as a physicist). Though the news are grim, I have great hope that if books such as this are widely read we'll be able save ourselves and our grandchildren from a very harsh future that is already encroaching on us.
A great introduction to the environmental dilemma September 16, 2008
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
Paul and Anne Ehrlich have done an incredible job assembling a coherent look at one of the world's biggest issues: the relationship between humanity and the natural environment. "The Dominant Animal" puts humanity into frame, connecting our species' immense accomplishments with the history of human cultural evolution, the distribution and use of resources across the globe, and the serious challenges facing our continued existence. By no means are these topics simple or uncontroversial, but the Ehrlichs bring decades of research and detailed support to illustrate their ideas, and the result is a book that is appropriate for newcomers to environmental issues, as well as those who make it their lives' work.
I often hear people seek to discredit the Ehrlichs' writing (including some reviewers at this site) as though their efforts are nothing more than ideology. That attitude is unfortunate. Whether or not one agrees with its conclusions, the most remarkable thing about this book is the transparency of its arguments. The Ehrlichs make clear distinctions between mainstream scientific thought, and where they have an opinion about an unresolved issue, or about ethical matters. I hope that skeptical readers will find a copy at their library and give it a chance; it's the kind of book that wants you reflect, on your own terms.
In the coming years, environmental issues will grow in importance. There's no better place to start a conversation about how to respond than with this book.
Ehrlichs Provide Both 'Big Picture' and Depth June 7, 2008
10 out of 16 found this review helpful
Using the theory of evolution as a framework, 'The Dominant Animal' provides a brilliant biological, cultural, economic, psychological, and political synthesis of the human condition at the dawn of the 21st century. Concepts and facts from an impressively wide variety of fields are skillfully integrated to achieve a coherent picture. The writing style is crystal clear, engaging, and elegant. Very, very few scientists are capable of putting across such complex and important ideas in such an accessible manner. Although 'The Dominant Animal' illuminates the interrelated nature of the enormous environmental and political challenges we face today, the book also points to real solutions. The behavior of humans is not mechanistically determined by genes, but can in key respects be re-directed and re-shaped by cultural forces. We can choose between many different 'human natures'. Thus, this book gives us a scientific basis for hope.
'The Dominant Animal' is a book for everyone!
Fathali M. Moghaddam
Professor, Department of Psychology
Director, Conflict Resolution Program, Department of Government
Georgetown University
Human Evolution & the Environment July 9, 2008
9 out of 15 found this review helpful
I was fortunate to get a copy of the Ehrlich's new book while teaching a summer course on global climate change in the United States. My job would have been much easier if the students had all had an opportunity to read "The Dominant Animal" when they entered college. It is the best summary I have ever seen of how the world works - what every Australian (and citizen of any country) should know about why human beings came to dominate the planet, and the threat that dominance now poses to our environment. The discussions of genetic and cultural evolution, processes basic to how we took over the world, are clear and compelling, and the summary of the environmental predicament completely up to date and the best I have ever seen. It's a fine read, even if it won't leave you cheered up - but at the end the Ehrlichs do show us how we might escape
Must Read: Informing, rewarding, and inspiring October 4, 2008
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
In an easily readable style that resists simplifying the complex relationship between humans and their environment, this book explains why we find ourselves facing the almost overwhelming challenges confronting us and future generations; challenges such as global warming, the threat of nuclear war, resource scarcity and skyrocketing energy prices. Finally, a book that treated me like an adult who wants to be educated without being subjected to fear-mongering, demonizing those who made decisions which resulted in unintended consequences, or making me feel dumb for not having a sophisticated background in science. I loved it! What a great gift for my friends and family who want to make sense of this world but don't want to feel "beat up," manipulated or discouraged when the final page is turned.
The book links genetics-culture-population- perception-energy- consumption- ecosystems and globalization and concludes by describing governance and individual choices that can reverse the current momentum towards an increasingly unstable and inequitable world. It fluctuates between being very discouraging and very energizing, calling for intelligent action.
Forty years after The Population Bomb shaped a generation, The Dominant Animal may help redirect our personal choices in our homes and in the ballot box.
Joan Diamond
MBA
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