Evolution
Was there ever a time of equality in human society?
Living in open savannahs, men and women had no choice but to cooperate. But evolution caused men to fight and dominate, resulting in sexism and social hierarchy
Our need to get drunk in company may be innate
It was once a favourite theory of optimistic drunkards that a suitably ‘moderate’ level of alcohol consumption provided covert health…
How Neanderthal are you?
I’m Neanderthal and proud of it
Is the threat of capital punishment really the foundation of good behaviour?
Richard Wrangham embraces controversy, and appears to enjoy munching apples from carts he upsets himself. While his new book seems…
Humans are animals, and our extinction is inevitable – but we’re still pretty amazing
Ever since enlivenment of the primordial blob, before thoughts were first verbalised, all nature has always been motivated by a…
Learning to talk
One of the great achievements of science is that so many of its branches, from astronomy to zoology, have been…
Cathedral of creation
Sometimes, it pays to rediscover what’s already under your nose. I’ve been umpteen times to the Natural History Museum but…
The legend of the honest estate agent
Selling with honesty An Essex estate agent sold a flat in Westcliff-on-Sea for £22,500 over the £125,000 asking price after…
The top loo books of 2015
There is not, sadly, a dedicated Trivia Books section in your local Waterstones, although at this time of year there…
Matt Ridley manages to Pangloss over the nastier aspects of evolution
Before I read this book, I wasn’t aware that I was a creationist. But Matt Ridley tells me I am,…
Letters: Booming churches, brilliant Swedes and who gets the VC
Growing congregations Sir: I would like to take issue with Damian Thompson (‘Crisis of faith’, 13 June) and his assertions…
The toughest, smartest, strangest creatures ever to evolve are nearing the end of their continental shelf life
The rich, strange, finely balanced ecosystems of the oceans — on which our lives depend — are profoundly threatened, says Rose George
Humans hunger for the sacred. Why can’t the new atheists understand that?
Atheists are blind to a fundamental human need
An Appetite for Wonder, by Richard Dawkins - review
It is peculiarly apt that the author of this autobiography should be the man who coined that now fashionable term…
E.O. Wilson has a new explanation for consciousness, art & religion. Is it credible?
His publishers describe this ‘ground-breaking book on evolution’ by ‘the most celebrated living heir to Darwin’ as ‘the summa work…
