Nature via Nurture by Matt Ridley

Nature via Nurture by Matt Ridley

Acclaimed author Matt Ridley's thrilling follow-up to his bestseller Genome. Armed with the extraordinary new discoveries about our genes, Ridley turns his attention to the nature versus nurture debate to bring the first popular account of the roots of human behaviour. What makes us who we are? In February 2001 it was announced that the genome contains not 100,000 genes as originally expected but only 30,000. This startling revision led some scientists to conclude that there are simply not enough human genes to account for all the different ways people behave: we must be made by nurture, not nature. Matt Ridley argues that the emerging truth is far more interesting than this myth. Nurture depends on genes, too, and genes need nurture. Genes not only predetermine the broad structure of the brain; they also absorb formative experiences, react to social cues and even run memory. They are consequences as well as causes of the will. Published fifty years after the discovery of the double helix of DNA, Nature via Nurture chronicles a new revolution in our understanding of genes. Ridley recounts the hundred years' war between the partisans of nature and nurture to explain how this paradoxical creature, the human being, can be simultaneously free-willed and motivated by instinct and culture. Nature via Nurture is an enthralling, up-to-the-minute account of how genes build brains to absorb experience.

‘This clever and ambitious book is full of novel insights and reflections’ James Le Fanu, Sunday Telegraph

‘Ridley belongs to the coterie that truly pushes science forward and brings it within the broader purlieus of “culture”. Nature via Nurture is another fine contribution to an already outstanding oeuvre.’ Colin Tudge, Independent Magazine

‘An unrivalled view of cutting-edge research into the roots of human behaviour.’ Clive Cookson, Financial Times

‘A balanced, entertaining gallop through the world of environmental influences and genetic impulses.’ Robin McKie, Observer

‘Eminently readable.’ Dylan Evans, Evening Standard

‘Profoundly intelligent and persuasive.’ John Cornwell, Sunday Times

Matt Ridley received his BA and D Phil at Oxford researching the evolution of behaviour. He has been science editor, Washington correspondent and American editor of The Economist. He has a regular column in the Daily Telegraph. He is also the author of The Red Queen (1993), The Origins of Virtue (1996) and Genome (1999). Matt Ridley is currently the chairman of The International Centre for Life.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781841157467
ISBN 10	1841157465
Title	Nature via Nurture
Author	Matt Ridley
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	HarperCollins Publishers
Year published	2004-05-04
Number of pages	352
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.