≡ PDF Gratis The Price of Altruism George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness Oren Harman 9780393067781 Books

The Price of Altruism George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness Oren Harman 9780393067781 Books

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The Price of Altruism George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness Oren Harman 9780393067781 Books

It would take hours to do justice reviewing this book. Although the cover indicates it is primarily about George Price and his work, it is in fact a sweeping discussion of the development of the theory of altruism and the many well known scientists involved in its development. You will find discussions about Darwin, Huxley, R.A. Fischer, JBS Haldane and many others and their contribution to the theory. As a biology and statistics major (way back in the 70's), I was blown away by the breadth of this book. If you want greater depth into the story, the copious endnotes give you a great starting point. The key role of George Price in developing a mathematical expression for explaining altruism covers approx. the last fifth of the book, although he makes appearances thru-out the book, interacting with some of the greatest minds in genetics, theoretical biology, computer science, statistics and more. A tremendous accomplishment and a great read.

edit: sorry - last fifth of book concerns the last years of Price's life, his contribution to the mathematical theory of altruism comes earlier.


Tags : The Price of Altruism: George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness [Oren Harman] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <strong>The moving tale of one man's quest to crack the mystery of altruism, an evolutionary enigma that has haunted scientists since Darwin.</strong> Survival of the fittest or survival of the nicest?<br /><br /> Since the dawn of time man has contemplated the mystery of altruism,Oren Harman,The Price of Altruism: George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness,W. W. Norton & Company,0393067785,Philosophy & Social Aspects,Altruistic behavior in animals,Geneticists - Great Britain,Geneticists - United States,Geneticists;Great Britain;Biography.,Geneticists;United States;Biography.,Population genetics,Price, George Robert,Scientists - Great Britain,Scientists - United States,Scientists;United States;Biography.,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Science & Technology,Biography,Biography Autobiography,Geneticists,Great Britain,History of engineering & technology,Life Sciences - Evolution,Philanthropy & Charity,SCIENCE Philosophy & Social Aspects,Science,ScienceLife Sciences - Evolution,ScienceMathematics,Scientists,Scientists - General,Social SciencePhilanthropy & Charity,United States

The Price of Altruism George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness Oren Harman 9780393067781 Books Reviews

I read this book all the way through, hoping that I would get a feel for the main character but it didn't happen. Not sure that this was because of George Price himself or the way that he was depicted.
Harman's The Price of Altruism is an engaging read that explores the personality and life of George Price as he works through his major contributions to the population genetics of altruistic behavior. Nuanced concepts of population genetics are introduced cleverly without unnecessary detail. The inclusion of only a few equations in the text is remarkable this topic is difficult to explain without equations. Also the personality of Prince is slowly explored without any emotional treatment of this peculiar man who was such a poor husband and father. Instead, Price's behavior is contrasted artfully to his lifelong attempt to explain the basis of altruism.
The only negative feature of the book is the abrupt transitions in topic, especially at the beginning where Harman establishes the historical context for the story. The reader is dropped into a series of short presentations of various people who will be relevant later in the book. Also Harman's wordsmithing requires the reader to stop occasionally to mentally rewrite a difficult sentence to produce a clearer one. Regardless of these minor technical issues, the topic is an extremely interesting one that Harman presents in remarkable detail. He took the task of researching the topic and man very seriously. The result is an exceptional treatment of George Price and an extremely clear presentation of the underpinnings of altruistic behavior.
This is an intriguing biography of George Price, a little-known population geneticist, interwoven with an intellectual history of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. While the story of Price's life is diverting and compelling in its own right, the real thrill of this book is that it unveils some very contemporary improvements in the science of group selection and, as the subtitle suggests, the origins of kindness. Oren Harmen does a great job picking through the advanced statistics and elements of game theory that led to Price's most substantial breakthrough, giving the reader a good commonsense understanding of how individual and group behaviors can both be perpetuated through evolutionarily stable strategies.

Yes, Price did end his life after a rather spectacular descent into homelessness and futile ministrations to a community of destitute alcoholics, but the attempts that Harmen makes to link the body of Price's professional work to his personal life are a bit of a stretch. While there is an appealing symmetry to the study of altruism and the surrendering of one's autonomy to the idea of Jesus Christ, there seems to be little indication that Price's late-life fundamentalism and erratic behavior correlated meaningfully with his relatively passionless theorizing. What make it a good story is that it comes together in meaningful ways in the imagination of the reader, rather than in the life of the subject.
It would take hours to do justice reviewing this book. Although the cover indicates it is primarily about George Price and his work, it is in fact a sweeping discussion of the development of the theory of altruism and the many well known scientists involved in its development. You will find discussions about Darwin, Huxley, R.A. Fischer, JBS Haldane and many others and their contribution to the theory. As a biology and statistics major (way back in the 70's), I was blown away by the breadth of this book. If you want greater depth into the story, the copious endnotes give you a great starting point. The key role of George Price in developing a mathematical expression for explaining altruism covers approx. the last fifth of the book, although he makes appearances thru-out the book, interacting with some of the greatest minds in genetics, theoretical biology, computer science, statistics and more. A tremendous accomplishment and a great read.

edit sorry - last fifth of book concerns the last years of Price's life, his contribution to the mathematical theory of altruism comes earlier.