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The Selfish Gene and Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think* SIS_5_66-88_x 15.05.2007 10:49 Uhr Seite 84 The Selfish Gene+ and Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think* +By Richard Dawkins *Edited by Alan Grafen and Mark Ridley Reviewed by Bernhard Haubold, Fachhochschule Weihenstephan, Germany If you are not interested in how and it is natural selection we must species, evolution works by maximis- evolution came about, and cannot understand if we are to comprehend ing what he referred to as an individ- conceive how anyone could be seri- our own identities.” ual’s “inclusive fitness”. Starting from ously concerned about anything other This quote gives us a taste of the the simple idea that, genetically than human affairs, then do not read kind of hyperbole that has accompa- speaking, my own survival is equiva- it: it will only make you needlessly nied public debates of evolution since lent to that of two of my siblings, this angry,” wrote John Maynard Smith the mid-19th century. To imply that suggests that fitness calculations about The Selfish Gene. Richard people who do not understand natu- should include not only direct off- Dawkin’s classic exposition of mod- ral selection have no comprehension spring but also relatives, because they ern evolutionary biology was pub- of their own identities is so pompous too carry copies of an individual’s lished in 1976 and has recently been that anger might well be the reaction genes. This gene-centred – rather than reissued as a 30th anniversary edition of a reader unaware of the rules of group-centred – perspective leads to with a new introduction by the popular science writing. neat explanations for a wide range of author. Why should anyone get angry But I do not want to suggest for an animal behaviour, including the al- about a book on evolutionary biolo- instant that Dawkins’ book is in any truism of worker bees, which under gy? Maynard Smith’s cautionary com- way cheap. In fact, it is a lucid state- the new theory turns out to be a strat- ment is interesting, if only because he ment of what turned out to be a para- egy for maximising their genetic is one of the four biologists cited in digm shift in evolutionary biology. progeny. the introduction to the first edition of Before the publication of The Selfish Inclusive fitness also implies that The Selfish Gene as providing its intel- Gene, many biologists were happy to animals should be capable of quanti- lectual basis (along with R.A. Fisher, accept the idea that natural selection fying the degree of relatedness G. C. Williams, and W. D. Hamilton). acted to maximise the success of a between themselves and others. In a But Maynard Smith’s warning to the species or a group. For example, paper published in Nature on 15 non-biologist is strangely at odds Nobel laureate Konrad Lorenz advo- February 2007, Debra Lieberman and with Dawkins’ express intention “to cated this view in his once immensely colleagues show for the first time that examine the biology of selfishness popular book On Aggression, pub- humans do indeed possess a kin and altruism” – what could be closer lished in 1963. According to Dawkins, detection system that influences their to human affairs? In his preface to Lorenz “got it totally and utterly disposition towards others. The rele- this edition, Harvard biologist Robert wrong” because he “misunderstood vance of inclusive fitness to human Trivers supports Dawkins’ claim of how evolution works”. affairs has become a lot clearer since universal relevance when he writes Hamilton was the first to argue that Hamilton postulated it in 1964 in the that “natural selection has built us, instead of maximising the good of the context of social insect societies and 84 Science in School Issue 4 : Spring 2007 www.scienceinschool.org SIS_5_66-88_x 15.05.2007 10:49 Uhr Seite 85 Reviews The Selfish Gene was the place where a new generation of biologists first learned about it. ChemMatters CD-ROM Thirty years ago, Dawkins advocat- ed a set of ideas that were mature enough to coalesce into a coherent view of evolution but still new enough to be confined to a select Reviewed by Tim Harrison, University of Bristol, UK group of mainly English and American biologists. The whiff of rev- olution, combined with deep insights ChemMatters is an award-winning ers’ guides. These magazine supple- into the mechanics of altruism, is magazine published quarterly by the ments contain additional information, what makes the book exciting to read American Chemical Society for sec- comprehension questions, laboratory even today. ondary-school students. Each issue is activities related to articles, and other The context is very different for the full of readable articles about the activities such as instructions for authors contributing to the volume of chemistry used in everyday life, and building a methane ice model out of essays published simultaneously with is of interest to budding chemists and card (October 1995 issue). the anniversary edition of The Selfish their teachers alike. The ChemMatters Gene. Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist CD-ROM (version 3.0) contains two Web references Changed the Way We Think – Reflections decades of the magazine from w1 - For the free archive of articles, by Scientists, Writers, and Philosophers, February 1983 (volume 1, number 1) see: edited by Alan Grafen and Mark to December 2003 (volume 21, num- www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/ Ridley, is a rather mixed collection of ber 4). 1/acsdisplay.html?DOC short pieces. Too many are of the This archive of more than 300 arti- =education\curriculum\ ‘Dawkins is brilliant’ school of writ- ing, which is true in some respects cles is a useful resource for students, chemmatters\issue_arch.html but ultimately boring. There are whether they are working on specific exceptions, though, and I particularly projects or undertaking general Ordering recommend David Haig’s musings on research. All the material is suitable The ChemMatters CD-ROM costs ‘The Gene Meme’. This takes up the for school students studying pre-uni- US$25 for a single user or US$99 for a idea of a meme as a unit of cultural versity chemistry and much of it single school site licence, which evolution, proposed by Dawkins in would be accessible to bright 15-year- allows all the information to be the last chapter of The Selfish Gene. olds. shared across a school or library net- The concept of the gene might be For teachers, it is a great source of work. It can be purchased online from such a meme and Haig traces its evo- background information for enliven- http://chemistry.org/chemmatters/ lution to conclude that a gene-centred ing lessons with snippets of informa- cd3.html view of biology is more fruitful than a tion that hook students. Whether your meme-centred perspective on culture. students want to know the chemistry If this leaves you intrigued, go and involved in measuring ground-level (re)read Dawkins’ original – but don’t ozone (September 2001 issue) or what get angry. the atmospheres on other planets in our Solar System are like (October Details 2003 issue), then this is the right The Selfish Gene resource for you. Users can search the whole CD- Publisher: Oxford University Press ROM for keywords in articles, or Publication year: 2006 browse the magazine issues one page ISBN: 0199291152 at a time. The articles are in Adobe Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist PDF format and can be printed easily. Changed the Way We Think The American Chemical Society Publisher: Oxford University Press websitew1 includes a free archive of Publication year: 2006 samples from more recent magazine ISBN: 0199291160 issues (February 2003 to December 2006), plus a full archive of the teach- www.scienceinschool.org Science in School Issue 4 : Spring 2007 85.
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