The Ascent of Mind: Ice Age Climates and the Evolution of Intelligence (Paperback)

~ William Calvin (Author)
Key Phrases: canal bottleneck, savannah theory, cold spikes, Puget Sound, Ice Age, North Atlantic (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As delightful as it is thought-provoking." -- The Los Angeles Times

Product Description

Daniel C. Dennet’s description of this scientist’s travelogue: “How did the mind evolve? It takes a scientist of extraordinary breadth who is also a master storyteller to sketch the boundaries of this mega-narrative, and William Calvin has once again given us a feast of new perspectives, enriching the vision of our future as much as our past.”

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Product Details

• Paperback: 324 pages
• Publisher: IUniverse (January 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595161146
• ISBN-13: 978-0595161140
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #941,994 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unearth this out-of-print gem on human evolution!, September 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Ascent of Mind (Hardcover)

It is a pity that this spirited rant,which theorizes how sudden and cyclical global climate change pumped out ever stranger variations of hominids, is typically purchased by readers who buy books on cognition and neurology. Despite the "brainy" title, it is chock full of fascinating theories not just on the size and performance of the human brain but on many aspects of natural selection mechanics, and would be equally at home on the bookshelf of an anthropologist, paleontologist, geologist or meteorologist. Bringing home his ideas with modern everyday examples and an entertaining narrative structure, Calvin explains the usually stuffy and arcane study of our prehistoric ancestors and their less fortunate cousins in terms of systems of complex cause and effect, including the fluctuating environment and hominids' own changing mix of attributes. Dig this book up! [p.s. Great airplane reading--can't tell you why.]