How Humans Evolved

The science of human evolution, not just the sites.

How Humans Evolved remains the most up-to-date, forward-looking book in physical anthropology. Through a unique and balanced blend of evolutionary theory, population genetics, and behavioral ecology, the authors move beyond merely describing anthropological “finds” to showing students the big picture about how humans lived in the past and why they have evolved into the people they are today. The fully revised and updated Sixth Edition offers the best of current research, including important new coverage of Ardipithecus, the Neanderthal genome, early complex tool-making and symbolic behavior, and much more.

Robert Boyd has written widely on evolutionary theory, focusing especially on the evolution of cooperation and the role of culture in human evolution. His book Culture and the Evolutionary Process received the J. I. Staley Prize, and he has also published numerous articles in scientific journals and edited volumes. Boyd is currently the Origins Professor in the School of Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University.

Joan B. Silk has conducted extensive research on the social lives of monkeys and apes, including extended fieldwork on chimpanzees at Gombe Stream Reserve in Tanzania and on baboons in Kenya and Botswana. She is also interested in the application of evolutionary thinking to human behavior. She has published numerous articles in scientific journals and edited volumes. She is currently a professor in the School of Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University.