Nature's Oracle
The Life and Work of W.D.Hamilton
Published on 28. February 2013
Book
Hardback
464 pages
978-0-19-860727-4 (ISBN)
Description
W.D.Hamilton (1936-2000) was responsible for a revolution in thinking about evolutionary biology - a revolution that changed our understanding of life itself.
He played a central role in the realization that what matters in evolution is not the survival of the individual but of the survival of its genes. This provided the solution to the long standing problem of animal altruism that vexed even Darwin himself, and in due course resulted in terms like selfish genes, kin selection, and sociobiology becoming familiar to a wider public. Hamilton went on to solve many more major problems, and open up ever new fields - he shaped much of our current
understanding of central problems including the evolution of sexual reproduction and ageing. He became world famous and garnered international prizes.
But this is all in hindsight. In fact, Hamilton's recognition came late - his career is a classic case of misunderstood genius. In this illuminating and moving biography Ullica Segerstrale documents Hamilton's extraordinary life and work, revealing a man of immense intellectual curiosity, an uncompromising truth-seeker, a naturalist and jungle explorer, a risk-taker, an unconventional scientist with a poet's soul and a deep concern for life on earth and mankind's future.
He played a central role in the realization that what matters in evolution is not the survival of the individual but of the survival of its genes. This provided the solution to the long standing problem of animal altruism that vexed even Darwin himself, and in due course resulted in terms like selfish genes, kin selection, and sociobiology becoming familiar to a wider public. Hamilton went on to solve many more major problems, and open up ever new fields - he shaped much of our current
understanding of central problems including the evolution of sexual reproduction and ageing. He became world famous and garnered international prizes.
But this is all in hindsight. In fact, Hamilton's recognition came late - his career is a classic case of misunderstood genius. In this illuminating and moving biography Ullica Segerstrale documents Hamilton's extraordinary life and work, revealing a man of immense intellectual curiosity, an uncompromising truth-seeker, a naturalist and jungle explorer, a risk-taker, an unconventional scientist with a poet's soul and a deep concern for life on earth and mankind's future.
Reviews / Votes
Ullica Segerstrale... has produced an interesting and readable biography based on Hamilton's letters, published work and the testimonies of friends and family. It is detailed and uncompromising. * A. M. Mannion, The Biologist * with its wealth of new information and anecdotes, Natures Oracle fills an important gap in our knowledge of recent history of evolutionary biology. Historians interested in this topic, or in Bill Hamiltons ideas, will find in the book a useful springboard for further research. * Guido Caniglia, Journal of the History of Biology * Segerstrale has done a terrific job. Natures Oracle is a biography truly worthy of a scientist of Hamiltons stature and it will be an invaluable source of insight for anyone interested in the life and science of one of the giants of twentieth-century biology. * J. Arvid Agren, Journal of Genetics * William Hamilton's name stands above all others in evolutionary biology since the Modern Synthesis of the 1930s and '40s. As John Maynard Smith, with whom he had a troubled relationship, said, "He's the only bloody genius we've got." As geniuses often are, he was a complex character and an exceptional challenge for any biographer. Ullica Segerstrale is ideally qualified to rise to that challenge. She achieves a genuinely affectionate yet warts-and-all portrait of hersubject, combined with a good understanding of the deep subtleties of his thinking. Those who loved him, as I did, and those who wish to know more of the astonishing originality and versatility of his contributions to science, will treasure this book. * Richard Dawkins * This is an outstanding biography of a truly brilliant scientist. Segerstrale beautifully interweaves Hamilton's epic work with the details of his life. * Robert L. Trivers * Interesting and readable * The Biologist * Bill Hamilton's remarkable story has now been told: a truly great naturalist, who thought his way to the very heart of evolution by natural selection, completing and expanding the insights of Darwin as he discovered the disorienting and enlightening perspective of the gene itself. * Matt Ridley, author of The Red Queen *
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Illustrations
20 B&W
Dimensions
Height: 241 mm
Width: 162 mm
Thickness: 41 mm
Weight
858 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-860727-4 (9780198607274)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
05/2015
Oxford University Press
€26.60
Shipment within 15-20 days
E-Book
02/2013
1st Edition
OUP Oxford
€46.29
Available for download
E-Book
01/2013
1st Edition
OUP Oxford
€46.29
Available for download
Person
Ullica Segerstrale is Professor of Sociology at Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago and director of its Camras Scholars Program.
She holds a PhD in sociology from Harvard, a MA in communication from the University of Pennsylvania, and MS degrees in both organic chemistry and sociology from the University of Helsinki. She has held Guggenheim and Fulbright fellowships, and been supported by the American Philosophical Society, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Sloan Foundation, among others. She is a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, and the Finnish Academy of Sciences and Letters.
Segerstrale has written and lectured widely internationally on science and values, the ethics of research, and the debates about what it means to be human. Her books include Defenders of the Truth: The battle for science in the sociobiology debate and beyond, and Beyond the Science Wars: The missing discourse about science and society.
She holds a PhD in sociology from Harvard, a MA in communication from the University of Pennsylvania, and MS degrees in both organic chemistry and sociology from the University of Helsinki. She has held Guggenheim and Fulbright fellowships, and been supported by the American Philosophical Society, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Sloan Foundation, among others. She is a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, and the Finnish Academy of Sciences and Letters.
Segerstrale has written and lectured widely internationally on science and values, the ethics of research, and the debates about what it means to be human. Her books include Defenders of the Truth: The battle for science in the sociobiology debate and beyond, and Beyond the Science Wars: The missing discourse about science and society.
Content
Preface ; Introduction ; 1. Growing up at Oaklea ; 2. Finding Life's Pattern ; 3. Schoolboy at Tonbridge ; 4. Fisher Found and Lost ; 5. The Struggle for Altruism ; 6. Altruism through the Looking Glass ; 7. Brazilian Break ; 8. Sex and Death ; 9. Challenges of Social Life ; 10. The Price Effect ; 11. Creativity in a Tight Spot ; 12. Priority Matters ; 13. When Leaving is Better than Staying ; 14. Encounters with Sociobiology ; 15. The Parasite Paradigm ; 16. Cooperation without Kinship ; 17. The Oxford Move ; 18. Defending the Queen ; 19. In Tune With Nature ; 20. Truth at any Price ; 21. Creative Strategies ; 22. Through a Glass Darkly ; 23. The Final Defiance ; 24. The Edge of Creativity ; Notes ; Glossary ; References ; Index