The Selfish Gene: 30th Anniversary Edition--with a new Introduction by the Author
by: Richard Dawkins
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Inheriting the mantle of revolutionary biologist from Darwin, Watson, and Crick, Richard Dawkins forced an enormous change in the way we seeourselves and the world with the publication of The SelfishGene. Suppose, instead of thinking about organisms using genes toreproduce themselves, as we had since Mendel's work was rediscovered, weturn it around and imagine that "our" genes build and maintain us inorder to make more genes. That simple reversal seems to answer manypuzzlers which had stumped scientists for years, and we haven't thoughtof evolution in the same way since.
Why are there miles and miles of "unused" DNA within each of ourbodies? Why should a bee give up its own chance to reproduce to helpraise her sisters and brothers? With a prophet's clarity, Dawkins toldus the answers from the perspective of molecules competing for limitedspace and resources to produce more of their own kind. Drawingfascinating examples from every field of biology, he paved the way for aserious re-evaluation of evolution. He also introduced the concept ofself-reproducing ideas, or memes, which (seemingly) use humansexclusively for their propagation. If we are puppets, he says, at leastwe can try to understand our strings. --Rob Lightner
Product Description:
Richard Dawkins' brilliant reformulation of the theory of natural selection has the rare distinction of having provoked as much excitement and interest outside the scientific community as within it.His theories have helped change the whole nature of the study of social biology, and have forced thousands of readers to rethink their beliefs about life.
In his internationally bestselling, now classic volume, The Selfish Gene, Dawkins explains how the selfish gene can also be a subtle gene.The world of the selfish gene revolves around savage competition, ruthless exploitation, and deceit, and yet, Dawkins argues, acts of apparent altruism do exist in nature.Bees, for example, will commit suicide when they sting to protect the hive, and birds will risk their lives to warn the flock of an approaching hawk.
This 30th anniversary edition of Dawkins' fascinating book retains all original material, including the two enlightening chapters added in the second edition. In a new Introduction the author presents his thoughts thirty years after the publication of his first and most famous book, while the inclusion of the two-page original Foreword by brilliant American scientist Robert Trivers shows the enthusiastic reaction of the scientific community at that time. This edition is a celebration of a remarkable exposition of evolutionary thought, a work that has been widely hailed for its stylistic brilliance and deep scientific insights, and that continues to stimulate whole new areas of research today.
Inheriting the mantle of revolutionary biologist from Darwin, Watson, and Crick, Richard Dawkins forced an enormous change in the way we seeourselves and the world with the publication of The SelfishGene. Suppose, instead of thinking about organisms using genes toreproduce themselves, as we had since Mendel's work was rediscovered, weturn it around and imagine that "our" genes build and maintain us inorder to make more genes. That simple reversal seems to answer manypuzzlers which had stumped scientists for years, and we haven't thoughtof evolution in the same way since.
Why are there miles and miles of "unused" DNA within each of ourbodies? Why should a bee give up its own chance to reproduce to helpraise her sisters and brothers? With a prophet's clarity, Dawkins toldus the answers from the perspective of molecules competing for limitedspace and resources to produce more of their own kind. Drawingfascinating examples from every field of biology, he paved the way for aserious re-evaluation of evolution. He also introduced the concept ofself-reproducing ideas, or memes, which (seemingly) use humansexclusively for their propagation. If we are puppets, he says, at leastwe can try to understand our strings. --Rob Lightner
Product Description:
Richard Dawkins' brilliant reformulation of the theory of natural selection has the rare distinction of having provoked as much excitement and interest outside the scientific community as within it.His theories have helped change the whole nature of the study of social biology, and have forced thousands of readers to rethink their beliefs about life.
In his internationally bestselling, now classic volume, The Selfish Gene, Dawkins explains how the selfish gene can also be a subtle gene.The world of the selfish gene revolves around savage competition, ruthless exploitation, and deceit, and yet, Dawkins argues, acts of apparent altruism do exist in nature.Bees, for example, will commit suicide when they sting to protect the hive, and birds will risk their lives to warn the flock of an approaching hawk.
This 30th anniversary edition of Dawkins' fascinating book retains all original material, including the two enlightening chapters added in the second edition. In a new Introduction the author presents his thoughts thirty years after the publication of his first and most famous book, while the inclusion of the two-page original Foreword by brilliant American scientist Robert Trivers shows the enthusiastic reaction of the scientific community at that time. This edition is a celebration of a remarkable exposition of evolutionary thought, a work that has been widely hailed for its stylistic brilliance and deep scientific insights, and that continues to stimulate whole new areas of research today.
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- Neo-Darwinian Genetic Evolution of Altruism and Social Behaviour that shook Group Selectionists
The first thing I will say about The Selfish Gene (TSG) is that it is not the first book on evolution you should read although as a Dawkins book it is not a bad choice but for those unfamiliar with both, then I would suggest Climbing Mount Improbable or The Blind Watchmaker first. Both of those books by Dawkins have a much broader, more generalized, look at natural selection and evolution.
TSG is an entirely different type of book because it is particularly academic and a very complex ... Read More
Rating: 
- Dawkins Drastically Dumbs Down Darwin
Richard Dawkins is a respected scientist, and as a communicator to the public of the marvels and intricacies of evolutionary biology he has no rival but Stephen Jay Gould. "The Blind Watchmaker" and "Climbing Mount Improbable" are enthralling, the best kind of popular science-writing. "The Ancestor's Tale", richer and denser, is equally excellent.
Is this what has given Dawkins the Omniscience Delusion: the belief that he can also write authoritatively about history, sociology, cultural ... Read More
Rating: - I'm not impressed.
When a Creationist asked Mr. Dawkins "Can you give an example of a genetic mutation or an evolutionary process which can be seen to increase the information in the genome?", Dawkins was clearly stumped.If the socalled authority on the topic is unable to answer this simple question, what value is his book?Creationists can answer it.Evolution is a dead dogmatic institution rotting on the dusty book shelves of universities.Only social outcasts and weird beard professors are capable of sustaining ... Read More
Rating: - Possibly my favorite read of all time
Wow.When I finished this book, I did something I had never done before: I read the same book again.The second time through, I underlined things and scribbled thoughts on the inside covers and in the margins and wrote emails to friends about questions forming in my mind.After that second pass, I bought and read Dawkins's "The Blind Watchmaker" and "The God Delusion" and watched his TED video and several other videos of his on YouTube."The Ancestor's Tale" and "The Extended Phenotype" are on my ... Read More
Rating: 
- Dissecting "The Selfish Gene"
"The Selfish Gene" is Richard Dawkins masterpiece, and admiration for the scope and detail of his exploration of animal life has been world wide.His gift of analysis and synthesis is like a giant microscope givng an entrance into an area of knowledge never revealed before.
He outdistances Charles Darwin in his penetration into animal life, animal behavior, and the biological mechanisms that influence and sometimes determines behavior.As a scientific study and exposition, it has no parallel ... Read More
- Neo-Darwinian Genetic Evolution of Altruism and Social Behaviour that shook Group SelectionistsThe first thing I will say about The Selfish Gene (TSG) is that it is not the first book on evolution you should read although as a Dawkins book it is not a bad choice but for those unfamiliar with both, then I would suggest Climbing Mount Improbable or The Blind Watchmaker first. Both of those books by Dawkins have a much broader, more generalized, look at natural selection and evolution.
TSG is an entirely different type of book because it is particularly academic and a very complex ... Read More
- Dawkins Drastically Dumbs Down DarwinRichard Dawkins is a respected scientist, and as a communicator to the public of the marvels and intricacies of evolutionary biology he has no rival but Stephen Jay Gould. "The Blind Watchmaker" and "Climbing Mount Improbable" are enthralling, the best kind of popular science-writing. "The Ancestor's Tale", richer and denser, is equally excellent.
Is this what has given Dawkins the Omniscience Delusion: the belief that he can also write authoritatively about history, sociology, cultural ... Read More
- I'm not impressed.When a Creationist asked Mr. Dawkins "Can you give an example of a genetic mutation or an evolutionary process which can be seen to increase the information in the genome?", Dawkins was clearly stumped.If the socalled authority on the topic is unable to answer this simple question, what value is his book?Creationists can answer it.Evolution is a dead dogmatic institution rotting on the dusty book shelves of universities.Only social outcasts and weird beard professors are capable of sustaining ... Read More
- Possibly my favorite read of all timeWow.When I finished this book, I did something I had never done before: I read the same book again.The second time through, I underlined things and scribbled thoughts on the inside covers and in the margins and wrote emails to friends about questions forming in my mind.After that second pass, I bought and read Dawkins's "The Blind Watchmaker" and "The God Delusion" and watched his TED video and several other videos of his on YouTube."The Ancestor's Tale" and "The Extended Phenotype" are on my ... Read More
- Dissecting "The Selfish Gene""The Selfish Gene" is Richard Dawkins masterpiece, and admiration for the scope and detail of his exploration of animal life has been world wide.His gift of analysis and synthesis is like a giant microscope givng an entrance into an area of knowledge never revealed before.
He outdistances Charles Darwin in his penetration into animal life, animal behavior, and the biological mechanisms that influence and sometimes determines behavior.As a scientific study and exposition, it has no parallel ... Read More
