Interesting book about human evolution and how human politics influence scientific research. Written by 3 geologists.

RELEASE NOTES:

This one goes out as RABCK to urfin. Merry Christmas!

Book has arrived safely. Thank you so much!
and A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to You!

Yesterday, in the bus coming home from my skiing trip, I read about evolutionary medicine. So, why not follow this up with this one?

Some days later... Quite interesting. In the first chapter, there is lots on (rock) dating methods, which reminded me of a presentation I gave back in the gymnasium Biology class. And then I learned a lot about Java itself. Then came some chapters that where revealing (they dealt with the not so rational interactions of the people involved in science) but less interesting to me. Fortunately, then came more on history of science esp. anthropology and on the evolution of the theories of origin of mankind, with the description of different hypotheses about the speciation of Homo. All in all, a very good read. :o)

p.249 "In anthropology, which hypothesis an individual favors tends strongly to influence his or her interpretation of data, perhaps more so than in any other science"
p.251 "Different truths are in the eyes of different beholders."

Some interesting sounding references for further reading: The language instinct, etc.

And finally, the remarkable second last sentence, a take home message sort of:
Almost certainly, everyone in the world today is a descendant of a population of newly emerged humans who, in their inexorable spread across the world, caused the extinction of species of humans that were like us, but weren't us.

This is a difficult one for wild release. I shall offer it in the thread for books read in the Von-hinten-nach-vorn-Challenge (it's my February entry), and if it's not taken there, I maybe put it in the Naturkundemuseum?

Heute im Briefkasten versenkt. Geht als RABCK an die tiger-kuh-katze, die es auf meinem Shelf entdeckt hat (oder im Challenge-Fred?)

many thanks- both for the rabck and the job offer you alerted me to!

i found the detailed info about the split between IHO and BGC a bit too much,
but otherwise really fascinating.

@urfin: wie soll es weitergehn?
auf inständiges bitten von ardik hänge ich bc nicht ganz an den nagel,
aber im dt forum wird man mich nicht mehr sehen..
willst du das buch neu ausrufen udn dann ggf mir eine adrese pm-en?

oder soll ich es in den bücherschrank stellen?

oder ardik mitgeben wenn er das nächste mal nahc usa reist?
(geschätzt anfnag next year?)