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Alan S. Miller
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Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters: From Dating, Shopping, and Praying to Going to War and Becoming a Billionaire-- Two Evolutionary Psychologists Explain Why We Do What Wedo Paperback – 2 Sept. 2008

by Alan Miller (Author), Satoshi Kanazawa (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 231 ratings
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Now available in paperback?a provocative new look at biology, evolution, and human behavior ?as disturbing [as it is] fascinating? (Publishers Weekly).

Why are most neurosurgeons male and most kindergarten teachers female? Why aren't there more women on death row? Why do so many male politicians ruin their careers with sex scandals? Why and how do we really fall in love? This engaging book uses the latest research from the field of evolutionary psychology to shed light on why we do the things we do?from life plans to everyday decisions. With a healthy disregard for political correctness, Miller and Kanazawa reexamine the fact that our brains and bodies are hardwired to carry out an evolutionary mission? an inescapable human nature that actually stopped evolving about 10,000 years ago.

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  1. Print length
    272 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Tarcherperigee
  4. Publication date
    2 Sept. 2008
  5. Dimensions
    14.07 x 1.78 x 20.98 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    0399534539
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0399534539
  8. See all details
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Product description

Review

?A powerful jump-starter for conversations about the nature of being human.?
?"Seattle Post-Intelligencer"

?A rollicking bit of pop science.?
?"Los Angeles Times"

?An exuberant, accessible, exhilarating, intellectually aerobic workout.?
?David P. Barash, author of "Madame Bovary's Ovaries"



A powerful jump-starter for conversations about the nature of being human.
"Seattle Post-Intelligencer"
A rollicking bit of pop science.
"Los Angeles Times"
An exuberant, accessible, exhilarating, intellectually aerobic workout.
David P. Barash, author of "Madame Bovary s Ovaries"

aA powerful jump-starter for conversations about the nature of being human.a
a"Seattle Post-Intelligencer"
aA rollicking bit of pop science.a
a"Los Angeles Times"
aAn exuberant, accessible, exhilarating, intellectually aerobic workout.a
aDavid P. Barash, author of "Madame Bovaryas Ovaries"

That mouthful of a title says it all. According to Kanazawa, a media-savvy researcher whose studies of "beautiful people" have been covered by the BBC and the New York Times, and the late Miller, a professor of social psychology, evolutionary psychology explains almost everything about human behavior. Proponents of what they call "the Standard Social Science Model" believe that the human mind is exempt from biological pressures, while evolutionary psychologists hold that people are an animal species driven by animal needs. The authors suggest that human evolution stopped when agriculture began changing the world much faster than the world could change us, and now 10,000-year-old impulses to find the right mate and produce healthy offspring control nearly every aspect of our existence, from choosing jobs to religious belief. This accessible book opens the youthful field of evolutionary psychology wide for examination, with results often as disturbing as they are fascinating. ("Publishers Weekly")

About the Author

Alan S. Miller was a professor of behavioral science at Hokkaido University and an affiliate associate professor of sociology at the University of Washington. He was the coauthor, with Satoshi Kanazawa, of Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters: From Dating, Shopping, and Praying to Going to War and Becoming a Billionaire--Two Evolutionary Psychologists Explain Why We Do What We Do, Why Men Gamble and Women Buy Shoes: How Evolution Shaped the Way We Behave and Order by Accident: The Origins and Consequences of Conformity in Contemporary Japan.

Satoshi Kanazawa is a British-American evolutionary psychologist who is currently a reader in management at the London School of Economics. He is the coauthor, with Alan Miller, of Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters: From Dating, Shopping, and Praying to Going to War and Becoming a Billionaire--Two Evolutionary Psychologists Explain Why We Do What We Do; Why Men Gamble and Women Buy Shoes: How Evolution Shaped the Way We Behave; and Order by Accident: The Origins and Consequences of Conformity in Contemporary Japan.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tarcherperigee; Reprint edition (2 Sept. 2008)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0399534539
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0399534539
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 14.07 x 1.78 x 20.98 cm
  • Customer reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 231 ratings

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Alan S. Miller

Alan S. Miller

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
231 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

paul smith
5.0 out of 5 stars excellent book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 April 2020
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Well written and a must read for those who want to
understand why we do the things we do
One person found this helpful
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Adrien
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing but Bad shape
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 January 2017
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excellent book, eye-opening on how prehistoric behaviors influence our lives today.
However, book was received in very bad shape, scraped
2 people found this helpful
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Philmore East
4.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 August 2008
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A good introduction, not as gripping as Robert Wright's classic '94 popularization was years ago - the subject is becoming mainstream - but very easy to read, fairly concise (why must all books be long ?) and quite catchy (will make for good dinner conversation pieces).
The book is organized so that you can skip from chapter to chapter or read randomly; however, the little positive achieved thus is unfortunately more than compensated by very noticeable repetition all over the book. (that's why 4 stars not 5)
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Mr. T. White
5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this book & Learn Something about How the Social World We Know Is Not Exactly The World We Think We Know. & Moreover - Why!?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 July 2015
An unbelievably interesting book. And firstly may I just say - the "....wit" who gave this one star obviously doesn't know his elbow from his wrist.

Anybody who is capable of thinking will revel in the many, many wonders exposed by both Miller and the late Satoshi Kanazawa's most impressive work on evolutionary psychology. Actually, just writing that term, evolutionary psychology, will sound alarm bells in some, but it really shouldn't: you are here in for an instantly fascinating, and always easily accessible read. There are no generalizations here, because this book is very carefully footnoted with extensive referencing throughout.

Yet it's still a book for everyone of the few of we who enjoy thinking for thinking's sake (and I'm sure you know what I mean in saying that!).

Buy this book and learn something about how the world we know is not exactly the world we think we know. And more importantly, why!?
Because this is one of the most interesting psychology books I've ever read, I most surely give it an unquestionable 5/5

PS if you want to believe anyone who gave it less than 5/5, just read their other reviews for all the reasons why they're so very blissfully mistaken. 'Nuff said...
3 people found this helpful
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caroline
3.0 out of 5 stars Some chapters were ok didn't keep me hooked
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 August 2017
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Some chapters were good, as I continued to read I skipped to the more interesting headed chapters. Not sure if i would buy from the author again..
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L. Farrell
5.0 out of 5 stars superb accessible provocative intro to evo-psychology
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 May 2010
My girlfriend purchased this book for me and it is a little gem of an intro to evo-psych. Not gonna say too much more as there is a far more intelligent prior review other than it covers the basics in a refreshing and novel easy reading style that is provocative and witty. Excellent.
3 people found this helpful
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Josephine Davids
5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating read.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 September 2007
Do you want to find out about the origin of dumb blonde jokes? Or why polygamy is good for women? If you do, you will really enjoy this book. It is provocative, politically incorrect, uncomfortable and brutal but it is also a very clearly written and passionate introduction to the the exciting field of evolutionary psychology.
25 people found this helpful
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Burhan Atif
4.0 out of 5 stars Nice
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2019
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I like the content. Pretty cool stuff
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Joshua R. Wardell
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in Canada on 12 January 2024
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Hard to put this book down
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Adam
5.0 out of 5 stars Curious about evolutionary psychology? Get this book. It's fun and easy to read.
Reviewed in the United States on 20 November 2022
Verified Purchase
Most of this book was written by Satoshi Kanazawa, not Alan Miller who sadly passed away during its composition. Either way, it is an excellent source of information about evolutionary psychology. Kanazawa may not be politically correct, but he hits the mark almost every time. Were there a few points that I disagreed with? Sure. Did he draw a few conclusions that may require further investigation? Probably. But the bulk of this book draws conclusions that make abundant sense to me.

The best thing about this work is that it's so easy to read. The language is perfectly understandable for the average literate American adult. I recommend reading each chapter in order, but you don't have to. Most of the chapters are self-contained units and Kanazawa reviews key concepts from time to time throughout.

Most of the book deals with the central concerns of evolutionary psychology, namely dating, mating, relations between the sexes, and the evolutionary basis for human behavior. So if you're uncomfortable with this topic, then obviously this book won't be for you. Also be aware that this book was written during the peak "War on Terror" years during the mid-2000s, and so some of the political references may seem outdated for readers in the 2020s. (This is such a minor issue, but if you're going to write a review you have to let people know what to expect.) I found literally every page of it to be fascinating regardless, and I plan to purchase other works by Kanazawa soon.
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Giorgio
5.0 out of 5 stars Consigliato 10/10 per capire perchè la nostra societá é com'é
Reviewed in Italy on 23 March 2020
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Ottima lettura
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Amazon Kunde
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
Reviewed in Germany on 6 November 2015
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Very interesting and well written book about evolutionary psychology, especially easy to understand for people who are new to the topic.
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Richard
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing knowledge
Reviewed in Spain on 25 August 2015
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Amazing book! Great insight to make questions we have always thought about but never asked and some never thought about but just as important.
I highly recommend this amazing book
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