A recomendation on a biology text?

Boyish-Tigerlilly · Post by **Boyish-Tigerlilly** » 2006-05-13 05:43am

Well, I am going to head off to the bookstore tomorrow, and I wanted to get your opinion on some science texts. Do you think that a purchase of Richard Dawkin's book "The Selfish Gene" is informative? I know he's held as a wonderful specimine for the discipline, but I do not know if his book is currently accurate.

If not, are there any better buys about evolution? I would normally go by what the book reviews say, but this is a science forum, so what better than that.

Vendetta · Post by **Vendetta** » 2006-05-13 09:39am

Not everyone accepts selfish gene theory over selfish organism theory, but the actual biological and genetic information in the book is totally sound.

It's well worth buying, even if you don't fall into it's intended audience of evolutionary biologists, geneticists, and ethologists, because Dawkins is a great communicator of knowledge and ideas. You should also look for it's companion piece, The Extended Phenotype, which elaborates on and reinforces Selfish Gene theory, and also includes the concept of the Extended Phenotype itself, which can be a powerful and useful viewpoint for understanding genetically determined behaviours.

Shortie · Post by **Shortie** » 2006-05-13 02:27pm

Yeah, I liked Dawkins. Gould does interesting stuff too, but he seemed to be more about how neat it all was rather than specifics.

Of course you could go old-school and just get Origin of the Species.

Boyish-Tigerlilly · Post by **Boyish-Tigerlilly** » 2006-05-13 03:35pm

Not everyone accepts selfish gene theory over selfish organism theory, but the actual biological and genetic information in the book is totally sound.

It's well worth buying, even if you don't fall into it's intended audience of evolutionary biologists, geneticists, and ethologists, because Dawkins is a great communicator of knowledge and ideas. You should also look for it's companion piece, The Extended Phenotype, which elaborates on and reinforces Selfish Gene theory, and also includes the concept of the Extended Phenotype itself, which can be a powerful and useful viewpoint for understanding genetically determined behaviours.

Thanks. That really clinches it for me. I wasn't sure whether to buy it or not because it is the 30th anniversary edition. I didn't know if the book was current still. But cool. I'll get it to go along with the companion. I am trying to juxtapose how he and Gould and colleagues do their biology. Apparently, the former is a "reductionist" and the latter are "complexity scientists."

Edit: I seem to get the impression that Dawkins has the biggest attitude when it comes to Gould.

Vendetta · Post by **Vendetta** » 2006-05-13 06:51pm

Boyish-Tigerlilly wrote:Edit: I seem to get the impression that Dawkins has the biggest attitude when it comes to Gould.

They are pretty much the strongest proponents of Selfish Gene and Selfish Organism theories respectively. One section of Dawkins' "A Devil's Chaplain" is dedicated to his reviews of Gould's publications.

There was never any personal emnity or "attitude", just a professional disagreement about a fundamental approach to studying genetics.

dworkin · Post by **dworkin** » 2006-05-14 05:30am

'The Selfish Gene' is still good. It's a bit dated but hey, that's what further reading is for.

Of course a serious biologist will still go back to 'Origin of the Species' from time to time.

Post by **K. A. Pital** » 2006-05-14 03:44pm

Dawkins rules. His books are always a good read. He's like a beacon in the darkness of ingnorance of biology that exists right now in the US.