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Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors | 
 enlarge | Author: Nicholas Wade
Creator: Michael Prichard
Publisher: Tantor Media
Category: Book
List Price: $24.99
Buy New: $10.78
You Save: $14.21 (57%)
New (14) Used (7) from $10.78
Avg. Customer Rating:  78 reviews
Sales Rank: 638349
Format: Audiobook, Cd
Media: MP3 CD
Edition: MP3 Una
Number Of Items: 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.6
ISBN: 1400152321
Dewey Decimal Number: 599.938
EAN: 9781400152322
ASIN: 1400152321
Publication Date: May 1, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand New and Factory Sealed Item Fast Shipping
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Product Description
Based on a groundbreaking synthesis of recent scientific findings, critically acclaimed New York Times science reporter Nicholas Wade tells a bold and provocative new story of the history of our ancient ancestors and the evolution of human nature.In wonderfully lively and lucid prose, Wade reveals the answers that researchers have ingeniously developed to so many puzzles. This will be the most talked about science book of the season.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 73 more reviews...
 Engrossing June 17, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Wonderful a book of distinction. Relates well with Spenser Wells.
The whole National Geographics / genographic project has opened a new world of understanding.
A global revolution.
Dik in Henderson, nv
Simply the Best Survey of Human Prehistory for the Layman June 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This was, far and away, the best book I have ever read on the subject of our distant prehistory. I have been studying anthropology, human evolution, and earth history as a hobby for several years now. It was refreshing to read a book that successfully synthesized the findings of such diverse fields as physical anthropology, sociobiology, and genetics to piece together a coherent picture of who our earliest ancestors were, where they came from, and how they lived. Nicholas Wade does a magnificent job of sifting through the literature and presenting what we know now about who we once were. Ultimately, he shines a clear and sparkling mirror on who we have become.
Nice layman's book but perhaps still too difficult for the average reader June 1, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
While this book is targeted at the layman, the information in it is sometimes too difficult for the average reader. I found myself(I am quite knowledgeable about pre-history) many times skipping the details of the genetic basis for many of the author's claims. I am happy that he has used his scientific knowledge to discuss various viewpoints. One of the problems with most books is the author only presents his view. Wade does none of these acts and should be commended for it. However, the actual scientific reasoning behind many of the claims can easily be put into a nice works cited page.
Speaking of the works cited page. This book has one of the best works cited pages that I have seen in a while. Over 350 notes have been compiled in order for the reader to understand the author. I highly recommend this book if only for the reason of future reading.
Riveting May 13, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
This fascinating book would have been impossible to write prior to the time that the human genome was mapped. That single accomplishment has given rise to various sub-specialties of science, such as evolutionary biology and genetic anthropology, which in turn are helping scientists make connections among disciplines that, taken together, reveal startling truths about we humans, both ancient and modern.
Before the Dawn offers compelling accounts of how we came to be as a species, including the human types who came before us and, tantalizingly, the types who may come after us. At points, this nonfiction book actually becomes a page-turner, such as when Wade discusses the ingenious ways that scientists have learned to trace human DNA back in time to reveal in which parts of the world today's human populations evolved, as well as the likely migration paths that our ancient forebears took as they spread out from Africa to populate the world.
One of the most interesting sections of the book is the discussion of the ways in which natural selection and a companion evolutionary process called genetic drift have worked together over the millennia to differentiate a quite small "ancestral population" of humans (about 200) into what Wade calls the "five continental races" of the world. He argues convincingly that there really are biological differences among groups of humans, that these differences are adaptations to the environment and that they are directly related to the area of the world to which one's ancestors migrated when humans originally came out of Africa.
Wade acknowledges that in taking about racial differences among humans he is moving dangerously close to discredited theories of eugenics and he takes pains to explain the science behind the new knowledge he presents. He offers several intriguing examples of these differences, such as the ability of some adults to digest lactose, that are directly linked to the type of environment in which a population evolved.
Bottom line: Before the Dawn is a great read for anyone who is interested in human origins and who wants to know something about the mapping of the human genome, which may be the greatest scientific achievement of our time.
Wow! May 8, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I bought and finally read Nicholas Wade's - "Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors" after catching references to it around the blogosphere (e.g. TDAXP)
I loved it.
This book makes an interesting pass at writing down the "pre-history" of humans mostly based upon on genetics and human DNA analysis.
Wade notes the following as the themes driving the book:
- There is a clear continuity between the ape world of 5 million years ago and the human world that emerged from it.
- A principle force in the shaping of human evolution has been the nature of human society.
- The human physical form was attained first, followed by continued evaluation of human behavior.
- Most of human prehistory occurred in, and was shaped by the last ice age.
- The adaptaions for three principal social institutions - warfare, religion, and trade - had evolved by 50,000 years ago.
- The ancestral people had a major limitation to overcome: they were too aggressive to live in settled communities.
- Human evolution did not halt in the distant past but has continued to the present day.
- People probably once spoke a single language from which all contemporary languages are derived.
- The human genome contains excellent records of the recent past, providing a parallel history to the written record.
Everybody should read this book. I am passing my copy onto my family.
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