The Strange Case of the Rickety Cossack：and Other Cautionary Tales from Human Evolution
- 作者
- 出版社 St. Martin's Press
- 出版时间 2015年6月
- ISBN 9781137278890
内容简介
InhisnewbookhumanpaleoanthropologistIanTattersallarguesthatalongtraditionof"humanexceptionalism"inpaleoanthropologyhasdistortedthepictureofhumanevolution.Drawingpartlyonhisowncareer-fromyoungscientistinaweofhiselderstocrotchetyelderstatesman-Tattersalloffersanidiosyncraticlookatthecompetitiveworldofpaleoanthropology,beginningwithCharlesDarwin150yearsago,andcontinuingthroughtheLeakeydynastyinAfrica,andconcludingwiththelatestastonishingfindingsintheCaucasus.Thebook'stitlereferstothe1856discoveryofaclearlyveryoldskullcapinGermany'sNeanderValley.Thepossessorhadabrainaslargeasamodernhuman,butaheavylowbraincasewithaprominentbrowridge.Scientiststriedhardtoexplainawaytheinconvenientpossibilitythatthiswasnotactuallyourdirectrelative.Oneextremeinterpretationsuggestedthatthepreservedlegboneswerecurvedbybothrickets,andbyalifeonhorseback.Thepainoftheunfortunateindividual'safflictionhadcausedhimtochronicallyfurrowhisbrowinagony,leadingtotheexcessivedevelopmentofboneabovetheeyesockets.Thesubsequenthistoryofhumanevolutionarystudiesisfullofsimilarlyfancifulinterpretations.Withtactandhumour,Tattersallconcludesthatwearenottheperfectedproductsofnaturalprocesses,butinsteadtheresultofsubstantialdosesofrandomhappenstance.
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