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Paleofantasy: What Evolution Really Tells Us about Sex, Diet, and How We Live by Marlene Zuk
carolynf's review against another edition
4.0
As a history teacher who wanted to know more about the life of prehistoric people, I found this book very helpful! It discusses the diet, life span, and sex life of people before and after the development of agriculture. It is framed as a debunking of many of the myths commonly believed about evolution and what the modern human body is genetically suited for. But the author manages to explain the science of natural selection and genetics in a way that a non-science person can understand. I found especially interesting the section on how only within the last 9000 years humans have developed the trait that allows 35% of us to process lactose, and how studying the food caught in the teeth of Australopithecus helps us understand the primitive diet.
Because I do not have a science background I'm not entirely sure how accurate any of this is. Most of it rang true and seemed to make a lot of sense. The only false note was regarding the use of the term "Paleolithic." The author seemed to use this term to refer to all prehistoric people whether before or after the agricultural revolution. 9000 years ago is not Paleolithic - it is either Mesolithic or Neolithic depending on the area of the world that you are looking at.
Because I do not have a science background I'm not entirely sure how accurate any of this is. Most of it rang true and seemed to make a lot of sense. The only false note was regarding the use of the term "Paleolithic." The author seemed to use this term to refer to all prehistoric people whether before or after the agricultural revolution. 9000 years ago is not Paleolithic - it is either Mesolithic or Neolithic depending on the area of the world that you are looking at.
librariann's review against another edition
4.0
Science! Let's talk about scienceing it for a moment. Zuk does a really good job of debunking all sorts of recent paleomyths - incorporating data and evidence that wouldn't be out of place in a college level anthropology course - with (unintentionally humorous and frequently 'sic'ed) postings from paleo-lifestyle adherents on message boards such as cavemanforum.com. If there's fault with this book, it's that it isn't tailored to a mainstream audience - its arguments can be academic in a way that Mary Roach's books aren't.
But! If that is what you are looking for... (which as it turns out, I am into)...
Zuk puts forth a lot of compelling and recent research, quoting many studies from as recent as 2010. She highlights how we're continually changing and adapting (aka why we're *not* stuck in the bodies of our paleolithic ancestors) and why our ancestors themselves were not ideally adapted for their environments. I may have read this too fast to retain all the tidbits - a chapter a night might be a better pace to pick through it all - but I found myself continually fascinated.
But! If that is what you are looking for... (which as it turns out, I am into)...
Zuk puts forth a lot of compelling and recent research, quoting many studies from as recent as 2010. She highlights how we're continually changing and adapting (aka why we're *not* stuck in the bodies of our paleolithic ancestors) and why our ancestors themselves were not ideally adapted for their environments. I may have read this too fast to retain all the tidbits - a chapter a night might be a better pace to pick through it all - but I found myself continually fascinated.
settingshadow's review against another edition
3.0
Dr. Zuk sets out to explore all of the ways that our preconceptions of the Paleo era may differ from how people really lived. I found the book as a whole pretty shallow -- some theories of paleolithic parenting, diet, etc. were introduced, but mostly it wasn't a very scholarly approach. Yes, it's a pop!sci book, but Dr. Zuk's popular works on entomology were much better.
sprague's review against another edition
3.0
With a catchy title and a generous helping of strawman arguments, the author presents the case against the Paleo lifestyle with two main points: genetic changes can happen quickly, and there has always been great variation among humans.
But ultimately the book disappoints because it attacks a caricature "Paleo", the one you see in the comments section on various obscure fan blogs out there. This is one of the only books I've read that quotes extensively, not from respectable sources but from the anonymous commenters on blogs -- as though "Paleo Dude" represents the entire genre of those who think human evolution should inform the best ways to diet or exercise.
Lots of interesting new facts about ancient humans from an author who knows the subject well, but definitely not a good case against the ancestral lifestyle.
But ultimately the book disappoints because it attacks a caricature "Paleo", the one you see in the comments section on various obscure fan blogs out there. This is one of the only books I've read that quotes extensively, not from respectable sources but from the anonymous commenters on blogs -- as though "Paleo Dude" represents the entire genre of those who think human evolution should inform the best ways to diet or exercise.
Lots of interesting new facts about ancient humans from an author who knows the subject well, but definitely not a good case against the ancestral lifestyle.
book_hoarding_dragon's review against another edition
5.0
The Paleodiet is one of the many "fad diets." The diet is based on the assumption that we have evolved to be active and eat the foods we were eating about +10,000 years ago and we are not suited, biologically, as an agricultural society. Thus, the way we are living now is causing detrimental harm to our bodies. The way to do so is to eat lots and lots of meat, no grain, no milk, no tomatoes, etc.
Paleofantasy draws from blogs, forums, and articles discussing the Paleodiet and uses archaeological, genetic, paleoanthropoligical evidence to debunk the misconceptions that is involved in the Paleodiet. Furthermore, Zuk addresses misconceptions about evolution.
Personally, I really enjoyed this book. I had to have this book for Advanced Biological Anthropology: Human Origins and this one is a keeper in my mind.
Paleofantasy draws from blogs, forums, and articles discussing the Paleodiet and uses archaeological, genetic, paleoanthropoligical evidence to debunk the misconceptions that is involved in the Paleodiet. Furthermore, Zuk addresses misconceptions about evolution.
Personally, I really enjoyed this book. I had to have this book for Advanced Biological Anthropology: Human Origins and this one is a keeper in my mind.
collegecate's review against another edition
3.0
Things this book taught me: humans are not as homogeneous as we might seem. There are extensive regional/cultural difference in genes. So when they say "we've sequenced the human genome" that means they've recorded the genes of many individuals to get an idea of what's generally true about people. But there's a lot of variation. Also, there was no time that people were perfectly adapted because evolution and natural selection are ongoing; they do not have a finish line that we are striving for. In consequence, paleofantasies have no real basis. HOWEVER, I could wish that the author delved a little more into why we have these fantasies. Additionally, in an effort to through disprove the relevance of those fantasies, the author focuses on the extremists. I'm still a little curious about paelo-imaginations. Little things that seem logical at face value. My only other critique is that the chapters on food were just a hair too technical and I got lost in the jargon a few times. In contrast, the chapters on sex and family, which are the author's specialties, were much easier to grasp.
susanreadstheworld's review against another edition
2.0
It's dull and drags too much. I'm writing 3/4 of the way in.
crowyhead's review against another edition
5.0
This was fabulous and fascinating. The basic bent of the book is probably best summed up in this quote from the conclusion:
"A simpler life with more exercise, fewer processed foods, and closer contact with our children may well be good for us. But we shouldn't seek to live that way because we think it emulates our ancestors. We can mimic the life of a preindustrial, or preagricultural, society only in its broadest sense. Rather than trying to use our past to proscribe our present, or our future, we can use it as a way to understand where we came from. Paleofantasies call to mind a time when everything about us -- body, mind, and behavior -- was in sync with the environment. But [...] no such time existed. We, and every other living thing, have always lurched along in evolutionary time, with the inevitable trade-offs that are a hallmark of life." (p. 270)
Basically, Zuk, a scientist who studies ecology, evolution, and behavior, uses the fringe elements of the "paleo" movement as a jumping off point to discuss what we actually know about human evolution and human history. Key to her argument is the concept that humans did not evolve to a certain maximum level 10,000 years ago and then just stop: we are always evolving. In one particularly enlightening section, Zuk discusses the evolution of the ability to digest lactose, a capacity that appears to have arisen independently in differing areas of the globe, at different times, with a different genetic component. Lactose tolerance in some areas of Africa (mainly what is now southern Kenya and northern Tanzania) is estimated to have arisen only approximately 3,000 years ago, when people in these areas began keeping herd animals.
Overall, there is little patience here with speculation as to what humans were "meant" to do -- Zuk is mainly interested in what humans CAN do, and when these traits arose. She is particularly irked by people who talk about the "unintended" consequences of evolution, because evolution has no intentions. Traits arise that may or may not be beneficial, and there are always trade-offs. The genetic trait that makes some people more resistant to HIV infection also seems to make them more susceptible to West Nile Virus. Humans who have the tuberculosis-resistant genotype appear to be more susceptible to auto-immune diseases. The list goes on.
If you are looking for a point-by-point refutation of pop culture versions of evolutionary biology, this will be a bit of a disappointment. However, if you're interested in evolution in general and human evolution specifically, you will find this absolutely fascinating.
"A simpler life with more exercise, fewer processed foods, and closer contact with our children may well be good for us. But we shouldn't seek to live that way because we think it emulates our ancestors. We can mimic the life of a preindustrial, or preagricultural, society only in its broadest sense. Rather than trying to use our past to proscribe our present, or our future, we can use it as a way to understand where we came from. Paleofantasies call to mind a time when everything about us -- body, mind, and behavior -- was in sync with the environment. But [...] no such time existed. We, and every other living thing, have always lurched along in evolutionary time, with the inevitable trade-offs that are a hallmark of life." (p. 270)
Basically, Zuk, a scientist who studies ecology, evolution, and behavior, uses the fringe elements of the "paleo" movement as a jumping off point to discuss what we actually know about human evolution and human history. Key to her argument is the concept that humans did not evolve to a certain maximum level 10,000 years ago and then just stop: we are always evolving. In one particularly enlightening section, Zuk discusses the evolution of the ability to digest lactose, a capacity that appears to have arisen independently in differing areas of the globe, at different times, with a different genetic component. Lactose tolerance in some areas of Africa (mainly what is now southern Kenya and northern Tanzania) is estimated to have arisen only approximately 3,000 years ago, when people in these areas began keeping herd animals.
Overall, there is little patience here with speculation as to what humans were "meant" to do -- Zuk is mainly interested in what humans CAN do, and when these traits arose. She is particularly irked by people who talk about the "unintended" consequences of evolution, because evolution has no intentions. Traits arise that may or may not be beneficial, and there are always trade-offs. The genetic trait that makes some people more resistant to HIV infection also seems to make them more susceptible to West Nile Virus. Humans who have the tuberculosis-resistant genotype appear to be more susceptible to auto-immune diseases. The list goes on.
If you are looking for a point-by-point refutation of pop culture versions of evolutionary biology, this will be a bit of a disappointment. However, if you're interested in evolution in general and human evolution specifically, you will find this absolutely fascinating.