The Mating Mind: How Sexual Choice Shaped the Evolution of Human Nature

At once a pioneering study of evolution and an accessible and\nlively reading experience, The Mating Mind marks the arrival\nof a prescient and provocative new science writer. Psychologist\nGeoffrey Miller offers the most convincing–and radical–explanation\nfor how and why the human mind evolved.

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Consciousness, morality, creativity, language, and art: these\nare the traits that make us human. Scientists have traditionally\nexplained these qualities as merely a side effect of surplus brain\nsize, but Miller argues that they were sexual attractors, not side\neffects. He bases his argument on Darwin’s theory\nof_sexual_selection, which until now has played second fiddle\nto Darwin’s theory of_natural_selection, and draws on ideas\nand research from a wide range of fields, including psychology,\neconomics, history, and pop culture. Witty, powerfully argued, and\ncontinually thought-provoking, The Mating Mind is a\nlandmark in our understanding of our own species.

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