"Fossil Men is the riveting science-adventure story of the brilliant team who discovered the "Ardi" skeleton, a human more than a million years older than the famous Lucy, and their 20-year quest to redefine our understanding of human evolution"--

A biologist shows the influence of wild species on our well-being and the world and how nature still clings to us—and always will.

We evolved in a wilderness of parasites, mutualists, and pathogens, but we no longer see ourselves as being part of nature and the broader community of life. In the name of progress and clean living, we scrub much of nature off our bodies and try to remove whole kinds of life—parasites, bacteria, mutualists,

...

National Book Critics Circle Award—2017 Nonfiction Finalist

"Nothing less than a tour de force—a heady amalgam of science, history, a little bit of anthropology and plenty of nuanced, captivating storytelling."—The New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice

A National Geographic Best Book of 2017

In our unique genomes, every one of us carries the story of our species—births,...

This generously illustrated book tells the story of the human family, showing how our species' physical traits and behaviors evolved over millions of years as our ancestors adapted to dramatic environmental changes.

"In the last decade, the science of understanding the human brain and replicating its most complicated processes through artificial intelligence has grown exponentially. Intricate neurological functions ranging from writing poetry to crafting original articles, arenas that had long been thought of as science fiction, have become our reality. And yet, large gaps remain in what AI can achieve-gaps that, as pioneering artificial intelligence entrepreneur...

For too long the Neanderthals have been seen as dim-witted evolutionary dead-enders who looked and behaved completely differently from us, but in recent years their story has been transformed thanks to new discoveries and advances in scientific techniques. In a compelling narrative one that has not previously been told in a way that encompasses the entire dramatic arc from evolution to expansion to extinction this book takes a fresh and engaging look...

Overview: An innovative and illuminating look at how the evolution of the human species has been shaped by the world around us, from anatomy and physiology, to cultural diversity and population density. Where did the human species originate? Why are tropical peoples much more diverse than those at polar latitudes? Why can only Japanese peoples digest seaweed? How are darker skin, sunlight, and fertility related? Did Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens ever...

Approximately 200,000 years ago, as modern humans began to radiate out from their evolutionary birthplace in Africa, Neanderthals were already thriving in Europe-descendants of a much earlier migration of the African genus Homo. But when modern humans eventually made their way to Europe 45,000 years ago, Neanderthals suddenly vanished. Ever since the first Neanderthal bones were identified in 1856, scientists have been vexed by the question, why did...