Det tidlige menneske

Rebecca Wragg Sykes’ bog "Neandertaler – Liv, død, kunst og kærlighed" er selve bogen om, hvad vi ved – og det er alligevel meget – om neandertalerne. Rebecca Sykes, en ung britisk forsker, hvis bog Kindred er blevet en international bestseller. Hendes bog tog anmelderne med storm – bl.a. skrev Sunday Times: ’One of the best books of 2020’.Rebecca Sykes er arkæolog, ph.d. fra University of Sheffield i 2010, og har viet sit liv til studiet af neandertalerne. Med videnskaben i hånden gør hun neandertalernes verden levende og går i detaljer med deres åndsliv og sexliv. Sykes gør dem nærværende ved at vise, at de ligesom os var primært højrehåndede, hun formår at uddrage, hvad vi kan sige om det at være barn for 100.000 år siden, om neandertalernes nomade- og huleliv, om deres kost og også om, hvad vi ved om den første og den allersidste neandertaler.Rebecca Sykes har erklæret, at hendes store formidlingsforbillede er Jean Auel, forfatteren til de populære bøger Hulebjørnens klan. Sykes formår selv at levendegøre neandertalernes verden i en letlæst stil, der også har mindelser af det bedste fra National Geographic.Neandertalerne er det moderne menneskes, homo sapiens, nærmeste slægtninge, og de uddøde for cirka 40.000-30.000 år siden. Neandertalerne forsvandt fra jordens overflade efter at have være en del af det eurasiske landskab i mere end 300.000 år. Men de har efterladt et genetisk aftryk i os, idet mellem 2 og 3 procent af vores DNA stammer fra dem. Den store interesse for vores slægtninge krones lige nu af en stor udstilling på Moesgaard Museum, ’Neandertaler – i mammutjægernes land’.

A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEKA TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEARA SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR'Powerfully argued... Fascinating and pacy' Sunday Times, Book of the Week'Superbly written... sure to please readers of Yuval Noah Harari or Rutger Bregman' The Times'Full of amazing facts' Observer'The book shines when it brings cutting-edge science to bear' Financial Times'A dizzying range of material' The Economist'A humbling story for humankind' SpectatorChallenges some of the greatest cliches about colonialism... A revelation' SATHNAM SANGHERA'Thrilling and eye-opening' LEWIS DARTNELL'Science and history at its best' MARK HONIGSBAUM'Unpicks everything we thought we knew... Mind blowing' CAL FLYNIn this revelatory book, Dr Jonathan Kennedy argues that germs have shaped humanity at every stage, from the first success of Homo sapiens over the equally intelligent Neanderthals to the fall of Rome and the rise of Islam.How did an Indonesian volcano help cause the Black Death, setting Europe on the road to capitalism? How could 168 men extract the largest ransom in history from an opposing army of eighty thousand? And why did the Industrial Revolution lead to the birth of the modern welfare state?The latest science reveals that infectious diseases are not just something that happens to us, but a fundamental part of who we are. Indeed, the only reason humans don't lay eggs is that a virus long ago inserted itself into our DNA, and there are as many bacteria in your body as there are human cells. We have been thinking about the survival of the fittest all wrong: evolution is not simply about human strength and intelligence, but about how we live and thrive in a world dominated by microbes.By exploring the startling intimacy of our relationship with infectious diseases, Kennedy shows how they have been responsible for some of the seismic revolutions of the past 50,000 years. Provocative and brimming with insight, Pathogenesis transforms our understanding of the human story, revealing how the crisis of a pandemic can offer vital opportunities for change.

A book for men and women from middle age to advanced years who have suddenly and unexpectedly become confronted with the huge effects that the male prostate can have on the body. It is a tale of what can happen to both men and women when the prostate transforms over time as the body changes, free of any of the minor or major taboos surrounding those involved.The book presents both a subjective and an objective account, from a female and a male perspective, of what the prostate is and of the physical, psychological and social effects that changes to the prostate can bring as one ages or reaches old age. The latest medical, psychotherapeutic and social measures available to help men with prostate issues and their partners are discussed. It also addresses the therapeutic taboos that have previously prevented us from attempting a systemic approach to the physical, psychological and social transformation that men and women undergo when they reach middle age and beyond.

Most people have some dissatisfaction or concern about body weight, fatness, or obesity, either personally or professionally. This book shows how the popular understanding of obesity is often at odds with scientific understandings, and how misunderstandings about people with obesity can further contribute to the problem. It describes, in an approachable way, interconnected debates about obesity in public policy, medicine and public health, and how media and social media engage people in everyday life in those debates. In chapters considering body fat and fatness, genetics, metabolism, food and eating, inequality, blame and stigma, and physical activity, this book brings separate domains of obesity research into the field of complexity. By doing so, it aids navigation through the minefield of misunderstandings about body weight, fatness, and obesity that exist today, after decades of mostly failed policies and interventions.

In this acclaimed bestseller, an explorer and Neanderthal hunter takes us on a riveting journey of discovery'With the style of a poet and imagination of a philosopher, Ludovic Slimak probes the minds of Neanderthals. . . This fun and provocative book is a reminder that we still have a lot to learn about biological intelligence' Steve BrusatteWhat if we have completely misunderstood who the Neanderthals truly were?For over a century we saw them as inferior to Homo Sapiens. Today, Neanderthals are seen as fully human, different from us only because of their distant cultural traditions. But does the truth lie somewhere else entirely?Neanderthal hunter and paleoanthropologist Ludovic Slimak understands these enigmatic creatures like no one else after studying them for three decades. Taking us on a fascinating archaeological investigation from the Arctic Circle to the deep Mediterranean forests, he traces their steps, deciphering their stories through every single detail they left behind.In this stunning, bold book, he argues that Neanderthals should be understood on their own terms. They had their own history, their own rituals, their own customs. Their own intelligence. A remarkable intelligence, for sure, but an intelligence that may have been very different from ours - although it can still teach us much about ourselves.A thought-provoking detective story, written with wit and verve, The Naked Neanderthal shifts our understanding of deep history - and in the process reveals just how much we have yet to learn.

The first book to examine the iconic depiction of evolution, the “march of progress,” and its role in shaping our understanding of how humans evolved

Have you ever wondered whether we are alone in the universe, or if life forms on other planets might exist? If they do exist, how might their languages have evolved? Could we ever understand them, and indeed learn to communicate with them? This highly original, thought-provoking book takes us on a fascinating journey over billions of years, from the formation of galaxies and solar systems, to the appearance of planets in the habitable zones of their parent stars, and then to how biology and, ultimately, human life arose on our own planet. It delves into how our brains and our language developed, in order to explore the likelihood of communication beyond Earth and whether it would evolve along similar lines. In the process, fascinating insights from the fields of astronomy, evolutionary biology, palaeoanthropology, neuroscience and linguistics are uncovered, shedding new light on life as we know it on Earth, and beyond.

Hvordan endte et dyr med at skabe civilisationer, udvikle sprog og tæmme andre dyrearter? Gennem årtusinder har mennesket forsøgt at forstå denne sære dobbelthed. Svaret er, at vi mennesker har tæmmet os selv for at blive til det, vi er i dag. I ”Menneskedyret” kortlægges årtiers forskning i udviklingen af de genetiske, fysiske og mentale fordele, som gjorde, at vi endte som den eneste tilbageværende menneskeart. Udgivelsen er en storskrift-udgave til svagsynede i serien MAGNUMBØGER Lindhardt og Ringhof.

Travel back in time almost eight million years to explore the roots of the human family tree. Written and authenticated by a team of experts and with a foreword by Professor Alice Roberts, Evolution brings us face to face with our ancestors. Interweaving latest discoveries, maps, and incredible illustrations, it tells the story of our origins and helps us better understand our species, from tree-dwelling primates to modern humans. Renowned Dutch paleoartists the Kennis brothers bring our ancestors to life with their beautiful, accurate reconstructions that visually trace each step in our evolutionary history. Combined with clear prose, this comprehensive yet accessible book provides a rich history of each stage of human evolution, from human anatomy and behaviour to the environment we live in.

A philosphical journey hunting down the answers to who we are and what makes us human. With an ancient skull as his starting point, Westerman travels the globe, tracing the search for the first human being: the missing link between humans and apes.

In a thrilling adventure that flips between modern world catastrophe and primitive survival, archaeologist Ivy Carter holds the fate of humankind in her hands.

Cognitive Archaeology, Body Cognition, and the Evolution of Visuospatial Perception offers a multidisciplinary and comprehensive perspective on the evolution of the visuospatial ability in the human genus. It presents current topics in cognitive sciences and prehistoric archaeology, to provide a bridge between evolutionary anthropology and neurobiology. This book explores how body perception and spatial sensing may have evolved in humans, as to enhance a "prosthetic capacity? able to integrate the brain, body, and technological elements into a single functional system. It includes chapters on touch and haptics, peripersonal space, parietal lobe evolution, somatosensory integration, neuroarchaeology, visual behavior, attention, and psychometrics. Cognitive Archaeology, Body Cognition, and the Evolution of Visuospatial Perception represents an essential resource for evolutionary biologists, anthropologists, archaeologists, and neuroscientists who are interested in the role of body perception and spatial ability in human cognition.

Med humor og tyngde dissekerer prosaværket Originalen det sælsomme, almindelige menneske med næsetip og navle, med forplantningskløe, landvindinger og en solblind stræbsomhed. Originalen er et satirisk portræt af menneskearten. Bogen skildrer menneskets status som jordens dominerende art i en tid, hvor planeten og de øvrige arter bliver presset i stadig højere grad. Originalen er antropologi, biologi og poesi sløjfet sammen.Originalen er Filip Granlies tredje bog. Han dobbeltdebuterede i 2010 med Børnebog Eske og Fugle om digte, hvor Kamilla Löfstrøm i Information blandt andet skrev: "legende let og fuld af tyngde"– og det gælder i den grad også for Originalen.

Udviklingen fra de første menneskelignende aber til det moderne menneske, vi kender i dag, har været en langproces.Det er netop denne lange og snørklede proces, der beskrives i bogen. Bogen giver læseren en indsigt i hovedlinjerne i mennesketshistorie og en forståelse for udviklingen. Der hører et opgavehæfte til bogen.