Monkeyluv: And Other Essays on Our Lives as Animals (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780743260169)

How do imperceptibly small differences in the environment change one's behavior? What is the anatomy of a bad mood? Does stress shrink our brains? What does People magazine's list of America's "50 Most Beautiful People" teach us about nature and nurture? What makes one organism sexy to another? What makes one orgasm different from another? Who will be the winner in the genetic war between the sexes? Welcome to Monkeyluv, a curious and entertaining collection of essays about the human animal in all its fascinating variety, from Robert M. Sapolsky, America's most beloved neurobiologist/primatologist. Organized into three sections, each tackling a Big Question in natural science, Monkeyluv offers a lively exploration of the influence of genes and the environment on behavior; the social and political -- and, of course, sexual -- implications of behavioral biology; and society's shaping of the individual. From the mating rituals of prairie dogs to the practice of religion in the rain forest, the secretion of pheromones to bugs in the brain, Sapolsky brilliantly synthesizes cutting-edge scientific research with wry, erudite observations about the enormous complexity of simply being human. Thoughtful, engaging, and infused with pop-cultural insights, this collection will appeal to the inner monkey in all of us.

Author: Robert M. Sapolsky
ISBN-10: 0743260163
ISBN-13: 9780743260169
Publisher: Scribner Book Company
Language: English
Published: 10/10/2006
Pages: 224
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.45lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.58w x 0.56d

Review Citation(s):
New York Times 12/10/2006 pg. 32