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Evolution...textbook theory or vital force?

Posted on: Saturday, 8 November 2003, 06:00 CST

Understand the forces that shape the human species with this captivating 24-lecture series on Biological Anthropology in audio or video

What is evolution? How did the idea itself evolve? Is it even relevant today?

The answers may surprise you. By considering evolution as a force that has shaped and continues to shape humankind, award-winning professor Barbara J. King of The College of William and Mary will help you synthesize what a century of scholarship has to offer about these questions and many others in Biological Anthropology: An Evolutionary Perspective.

Two Centuries of Controversy

From the time Charles Darwin first set foot on the Galapagos Islands in 1835 and changed his mind about the "fixity of species," evolution has been a subject of controversy. Evolution, and its theoretical tool, natural selection, are central in both scientific and religious debates over the human race, its origins, and its future.

Professor King draws on her own field experience in exploring primate anatomy and behavior as it relates to evolution. She adds information from molecular anthropologists to explore fossils, ancient skeletal remains, cave art, and stone tools.

Evolution in Today's World

But Professor King considers evolution much more than just a dry, textbook theory based on old bones. She asserts that evolution continues to influence human culture in complex ways as she discusses modern issues including obesity, AIDS, and genetics.

Professor King includes a detailed course guide with species descriptions, lecture outlines, a timeline, and a glossary, so whether you choose the course in an audio or video format, you will get the most from your learning experience.

Red Bull, Lascaux, Dordogne, France.

These lectures will open your eyes to the awesome power of natural selection at work in the world today.

A Great Teacher

Dr. Barbara J. King is a biological anthropologist at The College of William and Mary. Dr. King has won three teaching awards, including William and Mary's Thomas Jefferson Teaching Award and the Virginia State Council of Higher Education's Outstanding Faculty Award. A Guggenheim Fellow for 2002-2003, she is currently conducting research on gorillas at the Smithsonian's National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., and has studied ape and monkey behavior in Gabon, Kenya, and the Language Research Center at Georgia State University. She has published two books on anthropology.

Enjoy the Best in Teaching

For more than a decade, The Teaching Company has been recording America's best college lecture professors. Our more than 150 Great Courses make it easy for you to gain access to a wealth of teaching talent unequalled on any single campus anywhere. And with our frequent sales and discounts, you can enjoy a lecture a day for as little as the price of a cup of coffee.

Lecture Titles

1. What is Biological Anthropology?

2. How Evolution Works

3. The Debate Over Evolution

4. Matter Arising-New Species

5. Prosimians, Monkeys, and Apes

6. Monkey and Ape Social Behavior

7. The Mind of the Great Ape

8. Models for Human Ancestors?

9. Introducing the Hominids

10. Lucy and Company

11. Stones and Bones

12. Out of Africa

13. Who Were the Neandertals?

14. Did Hunting Make Us Human?

15. The Prehistory of Gender

16. Modern Human Anatomy and Behavior

17. On the Origins of Homo sapiens

18. Language

19. Do Human Races Exist?

20. Modern Human Variation

21. Body Fat, Diet, and Obesity

22. The Body and Mind Evolving

23. Tyranny of the Gene?

24. Evolution and Our Future

About The Teaching Company:

We review hundreds of top-rated professors from America's best colleges and universities each year. From this extraordinary group, we choose only those rated highest by panels of our customers. Fewer than 10% of these world-class scholar-teachers are selected to make The Great Courses. We've been doing this since 1990, producing more than 1,800 hours of material in modern and ancient history, philosophy, literature, fine arts, the sciences, and mathematics for intelligent, engaged, adult lifelong learners. If a course is ever less than completely satisfying, you may exchange it for another or we will refund your money promptly (excluding shipping).

Copyright Science Service, Incorporated Oct 25, 2003

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