Understanding Evolution

Why is evolution so difficult to understand? Uncover the common misconceptions and core concepts in this concise and accessible book.

Kostas Kampourakis (Author)

9781108746083, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 24 September 2020

216 pages, 7 tables
17.8 x 12.7 x 1.1 cm, 0.24 kg

'This book is entitled Understanding Evolution, but it is perhaps as much about the understanding of evolution and why some people do not understand it or refuse to understand it. … The book says a great deal about creationism and the reasons people resist evolution. … Dr Kampourakis concludes that people's skepticism or uncertainty about evolution is not directly related to their religion or lack of religion. Rather, he says that we are bound by our intuitions and, among other things, conflate living organisms with human artifacts. … I greatly appreciated the final chapter on the nature of science. In addition to a good introduction to the philosophy of science, Dr Kampourakis introduces us to the limits of scientific thinking and concludes that some topics, such as the existence or nonexistence of God, are beyond the reach of science …' Matt Young, pandasthumb.org

Why do the debates about evolution persist, despite the plentiful evidence for it? Breaking down the notion that public resistance to evolution is strictly due to its perceived conflict with religion, this concise book shows that evolution is in fact a counterintuitive idea that is difficult to understand. Kostas Kampourakis, an experienced science educator, takes an insightful, interdisciplinary approach, providing an introduction to evolutionary theory written with clarity and thoughtful reasoning. Topics discussed include evolution in the public sphere, evolution and religion, the conceptual obstacles to understanding evolution, the development of Darwin's theory, the most important evolutionary concepts, as well as evolution and the nature of science. Understanding Evolution presents evolutionary theory with a lucidity and vision that readers will quickly appreciate, and is intended for anyone wanting an accessible and concise guide to evolution.

Preface: There is more to resistance to evolution than religion
1. The public acceptance of evolution
2. Religious resistance to accepting evolution
3. Conceptual obstacles to understanding evolution
4. Charles Darwin's conceptual change
5. Common ancestry
6. Evolutionary processes
7. Evolution and the nature of science
Concluding remarks: the implications of evolution for human life
Index.

Subject Areas: Evolution [PSAJ], Popular science [PDZ], History of science [PDX], Philosophy of science [PDA], Religion & science [HRAM3]