Customer Reviews

The Dominant Animal: Human Evolution and the Environment

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I read this book several times. Each time I was surprised. The Dominant Animal begins by considering the ways in which humans influence the environment and the environment, modified by humans, shapes everything else. The book then parades through the delightful minds of Paul and Anne Ehrlich. In that parade one will see, more clearly presented than you will find anywhere else, the intertwined stories of human culture, evolution, and human actions toward and in the environment and how those have changed through time. In the parade one will find Darwin, Wallace, and the early history of evolution alongside traditional peoples living as hunter- gatherers in villages, sequoia trees and tangled banks.
The Ehrlichs' tone in the Dominant Animal is both friendly and approachable. Again and again the reader feels as though she has had something logical and intuitive revealed to her. Natural Selection, in the Ehrlichs' hands seems obvious, as does much else in the story of life and the human domination of it. It is easy to find oneself nodding again and again with what this book has to say. The surprise is what the clearly explained facts lead to; the train wreck of our current situation. Every time I read the book, I find myself forgetting what is coming and then there it is, in front of me, the other train.

It is clear early in the book that much is wrong in the world and that those problems have tremendous consequences. Yet this not a doomsday book. Most of the book is actually about the basics of ecology and evolution. There are chapters on evolution, culture, cultural evolution, the interactions between genes and the environment, and even how we perceive the world and how that perception influences our decisions. The book, in walking carefully through those basics all framed around the story of humans, would be very useful for an undergraduate biology course. Each chapter is, in and of itself, a kind of essay or perhaps more so a kind of Ehrlichian lecture; wide ranging, thought provoking and ultimately wound together into a strong thesis. The book binds these essays into a broader thesis about who we are and can be as humans. The Ehrlich's have looked further into the future than most scientists are willing to. They have at times been proven wrong, but more often they have just proven ahead of schedule. To read this book is to see what they are thinking now and, if history serves, to see what, for all of us, lays ahead.

After laying a clear foundation for understanding built on insights drawn from ecology, evolution, anthropology, economics and lifetimes spent talking with others of the ecological intelligentsia, the Ehrlichs turn to what remains before us. Natural selection favored beavers who built damns that improved their environments and improved their odds of surviving. Dammed ponds are, to beavers, a better environment than the one they found when they arrived. Humans, instead of dams, built cities and roads and global networks of communication and commerce. Instead of making our environment better for ourselves we have, in many ways, made it worse, less conducive to our own survival. Beavers dam ponds, but we've, in our way, damned ourselves. Reading this book will make clear the complex causes of this situation, why we've arrived at this point in history and where, if we are wise, we might go from here. This book is full of nuance and joy but also the ecological and evolutionary realities of our situation.

In reading this book I was reminded of another new book, The Superorganism by Burt Holldobler and Ed Wilson (I recently reviewed the book for Natural History Magazine). In The Superorganism, Holldobler and Wilson consider the simple rules that ultimately hold insect societies together. They are rules about communication and division of labor. They are rules that are reinforced because those colonies that do not work efficiently and effectively to produce new generations, fail to pass on their genes. The organization of The Dominant Animal is similar to The Superorganism. In both there are chapters about the evolution of societies, about the rise and fall of populations, and about how societies shape the environment around them. The difference between the stories of humans and those of insect societies is pointed out by Holldobler and Wilson who indicate that unlike ants, humans are conscious of what they are doing and make decisions about their fate. The Ehrlichs are perhaps less optimistic about humans ability to make the right decisions about their societies and the environments of which they are a part. Yet the last chapter of The Dominant Animal is, in part, a foundation for the kinds of rules and governance necessary to sustain human societies. If human societies really are more self-aware and self-determined than those of ants then the ideas laid out in the Ehrlichs' chapters "Saving our Natural Capital" and "Governance: Tackling Unanticipated Consequences" are what we should be paying attention to. Dysfunctional societies of ants are rare because those that were did not pass along their genes. Let's hope that we can choose to determine our fate rather than, like the ant colonies that didn't make it, letting selection decide.

Rob Dunn
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology, North Carolina State University

Paul and Anne Ehrlich have done an incredible job assembling a coherent look at one of the world's biggest issues: the relationship between humanity and the natural environment. "The Dominant Animal" puts humanity into frame, connecting our species' immense accomplishments with the history of human cultural evolution, the distribution and use of resources across the globe, and the serious challenges facing our continued existence. By no means are these topics simple or uncontroversial, but the Ehrlichs bring decades of research and detailed support to illustrate their ideas, and the result is a book that is appropriate for newcomers to environmental issues, as well as those who make it their lives' work.

I often hear people seek to discredit the Ehrlichs' writing (including some reviewers at this site) as though their efforts are nothing more than ideology. That attitude is unfortunate. Whether or not one agrees with its conclusions, the most remarkable thing about this book is the transparency of its arguments. The Ehrlichs make clear distinctions between mainstream scientific thought, and where they have an opinion about an unresolved issue, or about ethical matters. I hope that skeptical readers will find a copy at their library and give it a chance; it's the kind of book that wants you reflect, on your own terms.

In the coming years, environmental issues will grow in importance. There's no better place to start a conversation about how to respond than with this book.

Paul and Anne Ehrlich's THE DOMINANT ANIMAL is not only the most sensible and up-to-date book I've read about sustainability; it's also well organized and well written, a true delight to read. As the bad news increasingly piles up -- mass extinctions on land and in the oceans, decreased availability of cheap energy, increased unemployment, floods and droughts leading to crop failures, polar ice caps melting, and famines, to mention only a few -- it becomes crucial that we quickly make informed and sensible choices. THE DOMINANT ANIMAL provides well researched and balanced pros and cons about the most important issues facing us today. I can only agree with the solutions the authors favor, from the unbridled consumption issue (my current line of work) to their analysis of nuclear energy, pp. 306-308 (pertinent to my past life as a physicist). Though the news are grim, I have great hope that if books such as this are widely read we'll be able save ourselves and our grandchildren from a very harsh future that is already encroaching on us.

In an easily readable style that resists simplifying the complex relationship between humans and their environment, this book explains why we find ourselves facing the almost overwhelming challenges confronting us and future generations; challenges such as global warming, the threat of nuclear war, resource scarcity and skyrocketing energy prices. Finally, a book that treated me like an adult who wants to be educated without being subjected to fear-mongering, demonizing those who made decisions which resulted in unintended consequences, or making me feel dumb for not having a sophisticated background in science. I loved it! What a great gift for my friends and family who want to make sense of this world but don't want to feel "beat up," manipulated or discouraged when the final page is turned.

The book links genetics-culture-population- perception-energy- consumption- ecosystems and globalization and concludes by describing governance and individual choices that can reverse the current momentum towards an increasingly unstable and inequitable world. It fluctuates between being very discouraging and very energizing, calling for intelligent action.

Forty years after The Population Bomb shaped a generation, The Dominant Animal may help redirect our personal choices in our homes and in the ballot box.

Joan Diamond
MBA

It is sad that C. Hardin, instead of reading and reviewing "The Dominant Animal," simply offers an unsubstantiated attack on its author. Ehrlich has written dozens of books and hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific papers, and received virtually every honor the scientific community can offer for his work in ecology, evolution, and environmental science. "Dominant Animal" is a brilliant book, by far the best volume ever written explaining where we came from and where we're going. Despite the enormous breadth of the topics covered, the book is concise and an easy read. It explains everything from how genetic and cultural evolution led us to dominate the earth to why climate change, destruction of biodiversity, toxic chemicals, and vast new epidemics could end civilization as we know it. And, as a glance at the acknowledgements would show, the book has been reviewed by the cream of the scientific community. "Dominant Animal" fills in the gaps largely ignored by our educational system. I wish it were a required book for every college freshman; it should certainly be read by every politician - especially presidential (and vice-presidential) candidates.

I was fortunate to get a copy of the Ehrlich's new book while teaching a summer course on global climate change in the United States. My job would have been much easier if the students had all had an opportunity to read "The Dominant Animal" when they entered college. It is the best summary I have ever seen of how the world works - what every Australian (and citizen of any country) should know about why human beings came to dominate the planet, and the threat that dominance now poses to our environment. The discussions of genetic and cultural evolution, processes basic to how we took over the world, are clear and compelling, and the summary of the environmental predicament completely up to date and the best I have ever seen. It's a fine read, even if it won't leave you cheered up - but at the end the Ehrlichs do show us how we might escape

The Ehrlich's have produced a magistral review of everything the reader needs to know in order to properly understand what humankind is doing to the global environment. The background education offered on evolutionary biology, the evolution of culture, and the global environment, is breathtaking, and at times demanding of the reader. The most important part of the book is the last third, which tackles the current state of the earth and prospects and prescriptions for the future.This is an important book and deserves reading by decision-makers and informed citizens. I recommend it!

Using the theory of evolution as a framework, 'The Dominant Animal' provides a brilliant biological, cultural, economic, psychological, and political synthesis of the human condition at the dawn of the 21st century. Concepts and facts from an impressively wide variety of fields are skillfully integrated to achieve a coherent picture. The writing style is crystal clear, engaging, and elegant. Very, very few scientists are capable of putting across such complex and important ideas in such an accessible manner. Although 'The Dominant Animal' illuminates the interrelated nature of the enormous environmental and political challenges we face today, the book also points to real solutions. The behavior of humans is not mechanistically determined by genes, but can in key respects be re-directed and re-shaped by cultural forces. We can choose between many different 'human natures'. Thus, this book gives us a scientific basis for hope.
'The Dominant Animal' is a book for everyone!
Fathali M. Moghaddam
Professor, Department of Psychology
Director, Conflict Resolution Program, Department of Government
Georgetown University

The authors of THE DOMINANT ANIMAL carry on a persistent battle to acquaint the often resistant population from observing scientific truths. The Ehrlichs, as do many scientists, keep us on the track to learning what is happening in the world around us, and often, as what has happened and what will happen. On occasion, the timetable has been somewhat off, but that does not negate the value of the information. They must overcome the uneducated, misinformed and prejudiced, a mighty task. Because most of their books since The Population Bomb are read by too few, what I would like to happen is that their search for the truth might be more widely circulated in the popular press.

Allan J. Rosenberg, M.D.
San Carlos, California

In 1974 a little book authored by Dr. Archie S. Mossman was published bearing the simple title, Conservation. The few differences between it and Drs. Paul and Anne Ehrlich's are mostly matters of degree and emphasis. But given 35 years between them, substantive issues remain discouragingly similar. Both books describe the principles of ecology, the progression and current state of mankind's impact upon the environment, relationships between human institutions and the importance of others as instruments of change, and provide options for a sustainable way forward. And both project a feeling of cautious optimism.

I agree with others who assert The Dominant Animal should be a must read. I would also add that, if one can find a copy, Dr. Mossman's book should also be a must read. Perhaps having read both, the reader will come away with a better understanding of the underlying obstacles to fundamental human change. I don't exactly agree with the quote about history because few events are ever exactly the same. But I do believe that if we do not correct our mistakes, our history will catch up with us. A reading of both these books clearly tells us we humans have a lot of correcting yet to do.