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Wide-ranging and inclusive, this text provides an invaluable review of an expansive selection of topics in human evolution, variation and adaptability for professionals and students in biological anthropology, evolutionary biology, medical sciences and psychology. The chapters are organized around four broad themes, with sections devoted to phenotypic and genetic variation within and between human populations, reproductive physiology and behavior, growth and development, and human health from evolutionary and ecological perspectives. An introductory section provides readers with the historical, theoretical and methodological foundations needed to understand the more complex ideas presented later. Two hundred discussion questions provide starting points for class debate and assignments to test student understanding.
Preface; Part I. Theory and Methods: 1. Evolutionary theory Douglas J. Futuyma; 2. The study of human adaptation A. Roberto Frisancho; 3. History of the study of human biology Michael A. Little; 4. Genetics in human biology Robert J. Meier and Jennifer A. Raff; 5. Demography James Holland Jones; 6. History, methods, and general applications of anthropometry in human biology Noel Cameron and Laura L. Jones; 7. Energy expenditure and body composition: history, methods and inter-relationships Peter S. W. Davies and Alexia J. Murphy; 8. Evolutionary endocrinology Richard G. Bribiescas and Michael P. Muehlenbein; 9. Ethical considerations for human biology research Trudy R. Turner; Commentary: a primer on human subjects applications and informed consents Michael P. Muehlenbein; Part II. Phenotypic and Genotypic Variation: 10. Body size and shape: climatic and nutritional influences on human body morphology William Leonard and Peter T. Katzmarzyk; 11. Human adaptation to high altitude Tom D. Brutsaert; 12. Skin coloration Nina G. Jablonski; 13. Classic markers of human variation Robert J. Meier; 14. DNA markers of human variation Michael E. Steiper; 15. Ten facts about human variation Jonathan Marks; 16. The evolution and endocrinology of human behavior: a focus on sex differences and reproduction Peter B. Gray; Part III. Reproduction: 17. Human mate choice David P. Schmitt; 18. Mate choice, the major histocompatibility complex, and offspring viability Claus Wedekind and Guillaume Evanno; 19. Why women differ in ovarian function: genetic polymorphism, developmental conditions and adult lifestyle Grazyna Jasienska; 20. Pregnancy and lactation Ivy L. Pike and Lauren A. Milligan; 21. Male reproduction: physiology, behavior and ecology Michael P. Muehlenbein and Richard G. Bribiescas; Part IV. Growth and Development: 22. Evolution of human growth Barry Bogin; 23. Variation in human growth patterns due to environmental factors Stanley J. Ulijaszek; 24. Evolutionary biology of hormonal responses to social challenges in the human child Mark V. Flinn; 25. Human biology, energetics and the human brain Benjamin C. Campbell; 26. Embodied capital and extra-somatic wealth in human evolution and human history Jane B. Lancaster and Hillard S. Kaplan; Part V. Health and Disease: 27. Evolutionary medicine, immunity and infectious disease Michael P. Muehlenbein; 28. Complex chronic diseases in evolutionary perspective S. Boyd Eaton; 29. Evolutionary medicine and the causes of chronic disease Paul W. Ewald; 30. Beyond feast-famine: brain evolution, human life history and the metabolic syndrome Christopher W. Kuzawa; 31. Human longevity and senescence Douglas E. Crews and James A. Stewart; 32. Evolutionary psychiatry: mental disorders and behavioral evolution Brant Wenegrat; 33. Industrial pollutants and human evolution Lawrence M. Schell; 34. Acculturation and health Thomas W. McDade and Colleen H. Nyberg; Index.
Michael P. Muehlenbein is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Indiana University, Bloomington.
'More than simply a textbook or compilation, this volume is nothing short of a handbook for a young and vigorous branch of biology. Authoritative, comprehensive, and up to date, it will be an essential book for student and expert alike. Muehlenbein and his contributors have defined human evolutionary biology for the next decade.' Peter T. Ellison, Harvard University 'The chapters in this volume provide up-to-date coverage of topics important for evolutionary medicine, and not available elsewhere. Beginners will value their clarity, advanced readers will appreciate the differing perspectives and opinions of individual scientists that reflect the complexity and diversity of the field.' Randolph M. Nesse, University of Michigan 'The journey toward our understanding of human evolutionary biology stands at an exciting juncture: far enough along that a richly detailed, dramatic landscape now surrounds us, and yet not so far that we can envision precisely where paths will take us further. In this extraordinary volume, a line-up of many of the very best experts the field has to offer guides us through the journey taken thus far and characterizes, in both broad strokes and intricate details within their specialties, where we stand. As heartily, our guides offer principled visions of what lies ahead, as well as how our travels might proceed to get there. The result is a timely collection that inspires as much as it impresses - and it impresses mightily. I recommend the volume to students of human evolutionary biology at all levels.' Steven W. Gangestad, University of New Mexico
