Sperm Wars
"Using a series of fictional scenes involving some form of sexual contact, followed by an interpretation of the behavior from the viewpoint of an evolutionary biologist," the author explains how the "old programming [prompts] sexual behavior that is often in conflict with... rational plans."--Jackets.
Stats for nerds
7recommend
18mentions
13people
2010–2024years
50% recommend50% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Not sure it's the same angle, as I can't open the paywall. But the book Sperm Wars, published 1996, covers the topic quite well. It puts forwards a mechanism where a spectrum of sexuality is genertically inhereited via selection.
- The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins; Red Queen, Matt Ridley; Sperm Wars, Robin Baker;
Read in that order, the books explain much of what is going on in our society and lives. This has enabled me to to analyse my own, and others, actions and motives.
- >Sex at Dawn
I hate to be that guy, but I thought that book was unreadable. Had some weird obsessive chip on the shoulder about Darwin (mentioned on almost every page). Complete with nearly contentless USA Today style infographics. I'd recommend "Sperm Wars" instead.
- The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins (Evolution) The Red Queen - Matt Ridley (Sex and evolution) Sperm Wars - Robin Baker (Sex as the driving force in society)
The books, if red in that order, provide a total picture of evolution in our society and the driving forces.
- Both you and yummyfajitas are making the classic error of espousing an unpopular opinion amongst people who tend to irrationally believe magical romantic things about evolved bags of meat.
It's a fairly well established biological fact( caveat - there are of course exceptions )that female primates, including humans, respond sexually favorably toward high status behavior on the part of males.
The Red Queen is a good book, but there are countless others. Sperm Wars, Sex At Dawn, The Evolution of Desire, and myriad academic papers that these books reference, paint a very clear picture of female sexuality that few will ever want to believe.
n=1 is irrelevant in this discussion. As far as I'm concerned, the actual scientific evidence is quite clear on this matter.
Edit: removed reference to emo hipsters. Not constructive.
- The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, by Julian Jaynes, is the best book I've read this year. It profoundly changed the way I look at things. I also found Sperm Wars to be very enlightening, ditto Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer.
