The First Humans - Origin and Early Evolution of the Genus Homo

This volume addresses the origin of the human genus Homo, a major transition in human evolution and associated with major changes in brain size, locomotion, and culture, but one with many unanswered questions. How many different species of Homo were there, and how were they interrelated? Are stone tools a characteristic of early Homo? What was their function? How does the use of stone tools relate to changes in the dentition and brain size? Did adaptations for long distance running first appear with the origin of this genus? How does this relate to its diet and cultural abilities.

The Monster in the Box

In Edgar-winner Rendell's 22nd Inspector Wexford novel, the British police detective confronts a man from his past, Eric Targo, who he suspects is guilty of multiple murders. Years earlier, Targo stalked and taunted Wexford, daring him to press charges. A squat, creepy bully with a purple birthmark disfiguring his neck, Targo has graduated from smalltime thug to prosperous businessman, ensconced in a nouveau-riche spread complete with private zoo and lion in Kingsmarkham.

Writing Around the World: A Guide To Writing Across Cultures

Cultures use different writing strategies because they strive for different goals. Some cultures rely on writer responsibility while other cultures rely on reader responsibility. Writer responsibility emphasizes clear and concise prose, actions over subjects, practical implications, and follows a deductive logical structure. The latter emphasizes flowery prose, subjects instead of actions, theoretical implications, and follows an inductive logical structure. The differences between both responsibilities help explain why some cultures prefer clarity when other cultures prefer complexity. The problem is that both writing styles are perfectly acceptable, but only within their given context.

The Babes in the Wood

Wexford fans may be disappointed by the shortage of memorable characters in Rendell's latest mystery to feature the chief inspector, a solid, if not spectacular, entry in the series. As in her previous Wexford, Harm Done (1999), the author explores issues of spousal abuse and focuses on a troubled married couple. The children of Katrina and Roger Dale disappear just as the city of Kingsmarkham is inundated with a flood of quasi-Biblical proportions. Both parents' reactions are somewhat bizarre, with Roger curiously antsy to be done with police questioning to get back to his job and Katrina quite certain her children have already drowned.

Not a Chimp - The Hunt to Find the Genes That Make Us Human

Humans are primates, and our closest relatives are the other African apes - chimpanzees closest of all. With the mapping of the human genome, and that of the chimp, a direct comparison of the differences between the two, letter by letter along the billions of As, Gs, Cs, and Ts of the DNA code, has led to the widely vaunted claim that we differ from chimps by a mere 1.6% of our genetic code. A mere hair's breadth genetically!