Books

A Darwinian Worldview: Sociobiology, Environmental Ethics and the Work of Edward O Wilson
Dr Brian Baxter
Ashgate

This new book discusses the application of Darwin’s theory of natural selection to human beings. He examines the various sociobiological approaches to the explanation of human behaviour as the product of evolution, and considers the main arguments for and against this approach.

A key issue examined in the book, which enters a relatively new area of research, is the connection between this Darwinian perspective on human beings and contemporary environmental ethics. The latter also often assume that human beings are part of an evolved living world, and seek to draw moral conclusions about humanity’s moral responsibilities towards that world. The implications of these positions for the meaningfulness of human life are also examined, as is the claim that a Darwinian Worldview is a new kind of religion.

Throughout the discussion the positions in sociobiology and environmental ethics developed by the important American biologist and environmental ethicist Edward O.Wilson are taken as an exemplar of the characteristic features of a Darwinian worldview, and the arguments of Wilson and his chief critics are thoroughly examined.

Dr Brian H Baxter is a senior lecturer at the School of Humanities, University of Dundee.

Circles
Nicholas Wade
Dundee University Press

This book is not only about the science but also about the sight of circles - it is a celebration of the circle, that most powerful of symbols.

Circles have shaped our lives in numerous ways. Coins, crockery, pictures and many of our manufactured materials use them. They are an early stage in children’s drawing, representing a myriad of objects from suns to smiling faces. However the study of circles has been in the province of science - circles have been enlisted to plumb the depths of geometry or to scale the peaks of the cosmos. Artists have drawn circles but not accorded them the prominence they deserve.

Throughout this richly illustrated book, circles are used to express simple but powerful principles of perceptual organisation. They are also arranged to provide patterns that are both pleasing and perplexing. Readers will recognise the power and potency of their vision. The eye is the first circle.

Nicholas Wade is a Professor from the School of Psychology, University of Dundee.

Approaching Multivariate Analysis - an Introduction for Psychology
John Todman and Pat Dugard
Psychology Press

Approaching Multivariate Analysis provides an introduction to a range of advanced statistical techniques that are used in psychology in an accessible, non-mathematical way. John Todman and Pat Dugard take a practical approach with an emphasis on helping the reader to gain an understanding of what each method is for, what it does and how it does it.

Areas covered include discriminant analysis, logistic regression and loglinear analysis.

John Todman is a Professor of Psychology

Medicine and Surgery: An integrated textbook
Eric Kian Saik Lim, Yoon Kong Loke, Alastair M. Thompson
Churchill Livingstone

"Medicine and Surgery" is a stunning new hybrid textbook that has evolved as a direct response to the increasing integration of the two disciplines of medicine and surgery in todays medical curricula. The advantage of this combined approach is it reduces the amount of reading by the elimination of repetition (and inconsistencies) to provide an integrated explanation of the common problems faced both by students during exams and clinicians in daily practice. This book’s greatest asset is the ability to illustrate that medical and surgical treatment options are actually part of a continuum in the management of disease.

Erik Kian Saik Lim, Yoon Kong Loke and . Alastair Thompson is a Professor of Surgical Oncology, School of Medicine, University of Dundee.