Genetics and the Logic of Evolution

Front Cover
John Wiley & Sons, Jan 23, 2004 - Science - 560 pages
In this book the authors draw on what is known, largely from recent research, about the nature of genes and cells, the genetics of development and animal and plant body plans, intra- and interorganismal communication, sensation and perception, to propose that a few basic generalizations, along with the modified application of the classical evolutionary theory, can provide a broader theoretical understanding of genes, evolution, and the diverse and complex nature of living organisms.

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Contents

A Genetic Repertoire
67
Communication
177
Communicating Between Cells
253
Detecting and Destroying Internal Invaders
279
Information Transfer between
313
Chemical Signaling and Sensation from the Outside World
343
Detecting Light
367
The Development and Structure of Nervous Systems
395
Integrating Signals from the Environment
421
Evolutionary Order and Disorder between Phenotypes
455
References
485
Index
515
Copyright

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About the author (2004)

Kenneth M Weiss is Evan Pugh Professor of Anthropology and Genetics at Penn State University. After majoring in mathematics at Oberlin College, he received graduate training in Biological Anthropology and genetics at the University of Michigan, where he received his PhD in 1972. He has written widely on evolutionary principlesand biology, human genetics and the complexities of therelationships between genes and traits like human disease or developmental patterns. He writes a regular column onproblems and issues in evolution and genetics for the journal Evolutionary Anthropology, and is the author of Genetic Variation and Human Disease: Principles and Evolutionary Approaches. He has also been a professional meteorologist.

Anne Buchanan is Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Anthropology at Penn State University. She has a BA in Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts and a DrPH in Population Studies from the University of Texas School of Public Health. She has worked on population-scale problems in relation to health and genetics, and on molecular and developmental genetics, and has published in a diversity of areas, including anthropology, demography, epidemiology, genetic epidemiology, and developmental genetics.

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