Natural History Of Ourselves (2000) - Plot & Excerpts
notes to self on a few fav pointspg 35much of it- lucy had brains about the size of a chimp, 3-6 millions years ago- homo erectus had a brain nearly as large as mine, produced a tool kit of surprising sophistication- scientists who recreated the island hopping lifestyle of h erectus in indonesia had to invent stone age tupperware and a sailing raft worthy of rough seas- probably h erectus that begat homo neanderthalensis- who roamed europe to western asia until 35,000 years ago- they still hold the record for hominid brain sizepage 79COMT gene that can be a good painkiller or a not so good painkiller. val-vals- 1/4 of pop= good painkillerval-met- 1/2- moderate pain controlmet-met- 1/4 of pop= two lousy versions of the gene- generally women vs men feel pain quicker and can tolerate less pain- holds true w/ female animals too. possibbly a protective measure, to make sure she avoids harm because of reproductive role. avoid harm 'for two'. for a female the sum of 3 pinches hurts more then the individual parts, not so for men- in them the brain regulates pain with cortisol & endorphins.more faves I don't have time to write right nowpg90209213215252278284285294299304306314 There is a lot of information packed into this book. Holmes treats herself (and humans as a species) as a biological study. She starts each chapter with a textbook description of humans and spends the chapter discussing each topic in more detail, including how we compare to other animals.The topics covered here are: physical description, the brain, perception, range, territoriality, diet, reproduction, behavior, communication, predators, and ecosystem impacts.She uses humour throughout to keep the information from getting too heavy, but she doesn't skimp on the details. Citing scientific studies and personal observations, she takes a good hard look at humans and how we relate to the rest of the world.I found it both immensely entertaining and educational.
What do You think about Natural History Of Ourselves (2000)?
I really struggled to read the last two chapters, but overall really enjoyed the book.
—Madzy
I finally have some closure on why I have the nose I do!
—k3936
I'm really enjoying this book, funny and informative.
—16azhang
