Natural history of the present
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I couldn’t help but be captivated by Prime Minister Gillard’s speech against the motion to remove Peter Slipper as Speaker of the Federal Parliament yesterday. Like the majority of people I tend to follow…
Public health advocates, when asked what single intervention would most dramatically prolong human life, tend to be unanimous: “Stop Smoking” While some anti-smoking campaigs suggest a 30 year old could…
So many of the products we see around us defy common sense. I’m not talking about the “What do vegans eat at Christmas?” craziness of the Tofurky. Or even the unrealistic-fear-of-germs obsessiveness of…
Humans are pretty odd animals. Any list of our odd features would be a long one, but menopause would have to come in right near the top. Where men’s capacity to reproduce diminishes steadily at about the…
Like almost everybody else I spoke to today, I was staggered, this morning, to hear Todd Akin’s comments about “legitimate rape” and pregnancy. The Missouri Republican, who is running for Senate, was justifying…
Want to live a long time? Who doesn’t? Quite a number of smart people have staked their hopes for long life on restricting their calorie intake. It’s an idea that rests on a not inconsiderable body of…
A criticism often flung at evolutionary studies of human behaviour is that, in revealing the origins of the human psyche’s darkest aspects, they might substantiate our worst traits. The hysteria over sociobiology…
Evolution has plenty to say about the evolution of music and other art forms. For one thing, music may draw much of its sublime power from its ability to push our evolved sensory buttons. But music itself…
Few topics animate the regular readers of this column as much as male uncertainty over paternity. Except, maybe, religion. Which is why I think I’ve found the perfect topic to post on before heading overseas…
One of the most dramatic differences between modern humans and our closest living relatives is our family structure. Silver-back gorilla males defend a harem of several females, with whom they have exclusive…