A Taste for the Beautiful

The Evolution of Attraction

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Evolution
Cover of the book A Taste for the Beautiful by Michael Ryan, Princeton University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Michael Ryan ISBN: 9781400889150
Publisher: Princeton University Press Publication: January 16, 2018
Imprint: Princeton University Press Language: English
Author: Michael Ryan
ISBN: 9781400889150
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication: January 16, 2018
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Language: English

From one of the world's leading authorities on animal behavior, the astonishing story of how the female brain drives the evolution of beauty in animals and humans

Darwin developed the theory of sexual selection to explain why the animal world abounds in stunning beauty, from the brilliant colors of butterflies and fishes to the songs of birds and frogs. He argued that animals have “a taste for the beautiful” that drives their potential mates to evolve features that make them more sexually attractive and reproductively successful. But if Darwin explained why sexual beauty evolved in animals, he struggled to understand how. In A Taste for the Beautiful, Michael Ryan, one of the world’s leading authorities on animal behavior, tells the remarkable story of how he and other scientists have taken up where Darwin left off and transformed our understanding of sexual selection, shedding new light on human behavior in the process.

Drawing on cutting-edge work in neuroscience and evolutionary biology, as well as his own important studies of the tiny Túngara frog deep in the jungles of Panama, Ryan explores the key questions: Why do animals perceive certain traits as beautiful and others not? Do animals have an inherent sexual aesthetic and, if so, where is it rooted? Ryan argues that the answers to these questions lie in the brain—particularly of females, who act as biological puppeteers, spurring the development of beautiful traits in males. This theory of how sexual beauty evolves explains its astonishing diversity and provides new insights about the degree to which our own perception of beauty resembles that of other animals.

Vividly written and filled with fascinating stories, A Taste for the Beautiful will change how you think about beauty and attraction.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

From one of the world's leading authorities on animal behavior, the astonishing story of how the female brain drives the evolution of beauty in animals and humans

Darwin developed the theory of sexual selection to explain why the animal world abounds in stunning beauty, from the brilliant colors of butterflies and fishes to the songs of birds and frogs. He argued that animals have “a taste for the beautiful” that drives their potential mates to evolve features that make them more sexually attractive and reproductively successful. But if Darwin explained why sexual beauty evolved in animals, he struggled to understand how. In A Taste for the Beautiful, Michael Ryan, one of the world’s leading authorities on animal behavior, tells the remarkable story of how he and other scientists have taken up where Darwin left off and transformed our understanding of sexual selection, shedding new light on human behavior in the process.

Drawing on cutting-edge work in neuroscience and evolutionary biology, as well as his own important studies of the tiny Túngara frog deep in the jungles of Panama, Ryan explores the key questions: Why do animals perceive certain traits as beautiful and others not? Do animals have an inherent sexual aesthetic and, if so, where is it rooted? Ryan argues that the answers to these questions lie in the brain—particularly of females, who act as biological puppeteers, spurring the development of beautiful traits in males. This theory of how sexual beauty evolves explains its astonishing diversity and provides new insights about the degree to which our own perception of beauty resembles that of other animals.

Vividly written and filled with fascinating stories, A Taste for the Beautiful will change how you think about beauty and attraction.

More books from Princeton University Press

Cover of the book The Wheel of Law by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Trustworthy Men by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book The Nature of Space and Time (New in Paper) by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book In Harm's Way by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Beautiful Game Theory by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book The Rhetorical Presidency by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Diaspora, Development, and Democracy by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book The Social Life of Money by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book The Politics of Opera by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book An Introduction to the Global Circulation of the Atmosphere by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Iran Rising by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book High-Frequency Financial Econometrics by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Contentious Curricula by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book Changes of State by Michael Ryan
Cover of the book New Impressions of Africa by Michael Ryan
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy