Recent Reading on Evolution, Sociobiology

Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors by Nicholas Wade tells us that genetics is providing all sorts of new information about our ancestry, but some of it is debatable.  I have a brief review of this book in the current issue of Bookslut.  For a longer, more interesting article, check out Laura Miller's review in Salon.

Defenders of the Truth: The Sociobiology Debate by Ullica Segerstrale is a comprehensive (exhaustive might be the better word) analysis from a sociologist of the actions and motivations behind the parties in the "Sociobiology Debate," which began with the publications of E.O. Wilson's book, Sociobiology, in the 1970s.  Wilson basically proposed that "the genes hold culture on a leash."  Other parties include Richard Dawkins (also of the genetic determinism bent, though he later denied it), and, in the opposite corner, scientists Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Lewontin.  While Segerstrale presents a fairly objective analysis, and nobody comes out of it looking much better, I think she betrays a small bias towards Wilson.