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The Selfish Gene: 30th Anniversary Edition--with a new Introduction by the Author |  | Author: Richard Dawkins
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
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Rating:  328 reviews
Sales Rank: 1310
Media: Paperback
Edition: 3
Pages: 384
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5 x 0.8
ISBN: 0199291152
Dewey Decimal Number: 576.5
EAN: 9780199291151
ASIN: 0199291152
Publication Date: May 25, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| • | ISBN13: 9780199291151 | | • | Condition: NEW | | • | Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark. |
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Amazon.com Review
Inheriting the mantle of revolutionary biologist from Darwin, Watson, and Crick, Richard Dawkins forced an enormous change in the way we see ourselves and the world with the publication of The Selfish Gene. Suppose, instead of thinking about organisms using genes to reproduce themselves, as we had since Mendel's work was rediscovered, we turn it around and imagine that "our" genes build and maintain us in order to make more genes. That simple reversal seems to answer many puzzlers which had stumped scientists for years, and we haven't thought of evolution in the same way since. Why are there miles and miles of "unused" DNA within each of our bodies? Why should a bee give up its own chance to reproduce to help raise her sisters and brothers? With a prophet's clarity, Dawkins told us the answers from the perspective of molecules competing for limited space and resources to produce more of their own kind. Drawing fascinating examples from every field of biology, he paved the way for a serious re-evaluation of evolution. He also introduced the concept of self-reproducing ideas, or memes, which (seemingly) use humans exclusively for their propagation. If we are puppets, he says, at least we can try to understand our strings. --Rob Lightner
Product Description
Richard Dawkins' brilliant reformulation of the theory of natural selection has the rare distinction of having provoked as much excitement and interest outside the scientific community as within it. His theories have helped change the whole nature of the study of social biology, and have forced thousands of readers to rethink their beliefs about life.
In his internationally bestselling, now classic volume, The Selfish Gene, Dawkins explains how the selfish gene can also be a subtle gene. The world of the selfish gene revolves around savage competition, ruthless exploitation, and deceit, and yet, Dawkins argues, acts of apparent altruism do exist in nature. Bees, for example, will commit suicide when they sting to protect the hive, and birds will risk their lives to warn the flock of an approaching hawk.
This 30th anniversary edition of Dawkins' fascinating book retains all original material, including the two enlightening chapters added in the second edition. In a new Introduction the author presents his thoughts thirty years after the publication of his first and most famous book, while the inclusion of the two-page original Foreword by brilliant American scientist Robert Trivers shows the enthusiastic reaction of the scientific community at that time. This edition is a celebration of a remarkable exposition of evolutionary thought, a work that has been widely hailed for its stylistic brilliance and deep scientific insights, and that continues to stimulate whole new areas of research today.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 328
 Changed how I view the world March 21, 2010
E. Riese
Simply the best single book to explain the functioning of evolution. It's no longer the most accurate theory, but it is certainly the most attractive: simple and consistent from the ground up. It's a solid, practical introduction to metaphysical naturalism.
Great for economically-minded individuals, whether you know you are one or not. It gives you tools of critical thinking that can be applied to a myriad situations.
A must read for anyone going into a field of biology or economics.
amazing book, must read March 5, 2010
Tiberiu Tesileanu (Princeton, NJ USA)
The book is amazing. Dawkins does a great job of explaining the theory of evolution, and goes on to explain how it (or generalizations thereof) can be applied in completely different contexts, like that of memes. I think everyone should read the book to understand some very important aspects of how our world works, and avoid common misconceptions related to natural selection.
Don't judge a book by its title March 1, 2010
R. Mackenzie
This edition contains an excerpt from a 1982 review by John Maynard Smith that sums things up nicely. Smith first observes that " The Selfish Gene reports no new facts. Nor does it contain any new mathematical models - indeed it contains no mathematics at all. What it does contain is a new world view." Indeed it does. Most of the material I had already encountered elsewhere, but Dawkins has a tremendous gift for allowing the reader to see the whole of life from a new perspective (in this case, the perspective of the replicators that fashion us).
In commenting on the hostility aroused by the book, Smith further notes that "[this] is a book about the evolutionary process - it is not about morals, or about politics, or about the human sciences". Too many people (myself included at one time) look at the title and see in it a promotion of the naturalistic fallacy ('what is ought to be'), which in turn elicits a defensive reaction from our own moralistic fallacies ('what ought to be is'). The book is not about a gene (or genes) that make us selfish, nor does it excuse selfish behaviours on evolutionary grounds. It is merely a statement of what is. If we deny what is because we don't like it, our ability to effectively remedy what we don't like is curtailed. Besides, things aren't as bad as all that anyway. I like how Dawkins added the chapter "Nice Guys Finish First" in this edition, where he nicely summarizes social game theory as it relates to evolutionary stable strategies of altruism. It really does make for a more optimistic and upbeat ending.
Good Book for the Biologically Inclined January 20, 2010
Deaf Zed
I'm an avid math/science pleasure reader, so I picked this book up one day when I was at my local bookstore. I'm glad I did.
Dawkins' main thesis here is that the gene is the fundamental unit of biological reproduction and that all biological phenomenon can be better understood if we look at what benefits genes as opposed to individuals. While arguing his thesis, Dawkins discusses biological relatedness and how it ultimately guides the behavior of individuals; why 'kin altruism' is so prevalent, for example. He also discusses the conflict of interest between certain genes and how that dynamic ultimately plays out from an evolutionary standpoint. He also introduces the concept of 'memes', which is interesting, if largely speculative.
The writing style is also pretty good and usually interesting, though it lags occasionally.
This is a good Dawkins book and certainly recommended to anyone who has an interest in biology/evolution. While I won't say this is the absolute best book I've ever read, it's probably one that I'll end up re-reading at some point.
4.5/5
 Why Do I Keep Reading Dawkins? January 8, 2010
R. Golen (Fairborn, Ohio USA)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Here I go again. Reading Richard Dawkins and gritting my teeth. Dawkins is one of the most pretentious authors I read. Dawkins is a Dawinian fundamentalist who figures somehow, someway he has been blessed with THE EXPLANATION of life. Like all fundamentalists, he ignores history, which shows, overtime, all know-it-alls are eventually proven fallible. He would be well advised to consider that maybe he isn't the great prophet he thinks he is. Look, I take the easy way out myself and figure I don't know much of anything. But I do know that history shows that people who figure they have THE answer are eventually proved wrong almost all the time. Dawkins would be more readable if he started from the premise that the cosmos is a very complex place and odds are he hasn't figured it all out himself. I just don't like to read fundamentalists at all. If you don't like reading pretentious authors, you might want to skip Dawkins. It's not what he says, it's how sure he is that he is right and any other idea is wrong. Grow up Richard! OK, my rant is over.
I have a confession to make. I wrote the above while in the middle of reading The Selfish Gene. Now that I've finished, I must amend my critique. The final third of the book was much less strident and much more interesting, in some instances profound. The last part of the book spent more time on new ideas and less time defending Dawinian fundamentalism. I just wish Dawkins would have employed a more civil tone from the start.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 328
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