Books: Why (Brain) Size Really Matters ; Humans Developed Their Show-Off Skills - from Jokes to Philosophy - to Attract Mates. It's the Survival of the Wittiest, Argues Colin Tudge

Tudge, Colin, The Independent (London, England)

The Mating Mind

by Geoffrey Miller

Heinemann, pounds 20, 537pp

Charles Darwin made not one, but two great contributions to evolutionary theory. The first is the one that everyone thinks they know: the mechanism of "natural selection", leading to what Herbert Spencer called "survival of the fittest". The other is "sexual selection by mate choice", formally proposed in 1871, which says that creatures who reproduce sexually must evolve features to attract mates, for they will not leave offspring unless they do. The two driving forces are largely in conflict, as illustrated by the peacock's tail: wonderful for pulling hens, but potentially disastrous for …

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Publication information: Article title: Books: Why (Brain) Size Really Matters ; Humans Developed Their Show-Off Skills - from Jokes to Philosophy - to Attract Mates. It's the Survival of the Wittiest, Argues Colin Tudge. Contributors: Tudge, Colin - Author. Newspaper title: The Independent (London, England). Publication date: May 13, 2000. Page number: 10. © 2009 The Independent - London. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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