At the Dawn of Humanity: The First Humans

by Gerard M. Verschuuren

Overview

Gerard Verschuuren examines the question of how genes may have changed from generation to generation. Then he asks if such genetic mechanisms could explain the faculties of language, rationality, morality, and self-awareness. Are these traits unique to man, or do they in some way derive from the non-human animal world? The answer may surprise you.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781621385523
Publisher:	Angelico Press
Publication date:	06/19/2020
Pages:	214
Sales rank:	1,129,726
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.49(d)

About the Author

GERARD M. VERSCHUUREN is a human geneticist with a doctorate in the philosophy of science. He has studied and worked at universities in Europe and the United States. Currently semi-retired, he spends most of his time as a writer, speaker, and consultant on the interface of science and religion, faith and reason. His most recent books from Angelico Press are: Life's Journey-A Guide from Conception to Growing Up, Growing Old, and Natural Death; Aquinas and Modern Science-A New Synthesis of Faith and Reason; and The Myth of an Anti-Science Church-Galileo, Darwin, Teilhard, Hawking, Dawkins.

Table of Contents

table of CONTENTS

preface ix

1 Common Descent 1

Unifying the Living World 1

Natural Selection 3

2 Evolution Step by Step 7

Survival of the Fittest 7

Genetics 11

Gene Duplicates 15

Gradualism 16

3 Speciation Step by Step 19

The Species Concept 19

The Process of Speciation 21

4 Evolution with Leaps 27

Saltationism 27

Regulatory Genes 29

5 Humanity Step by Step 33

Common Ancestry 33

Gradualism 5

6 The Language Divide 45

Anthropomorphism 45

Linguistics 47

Speech 50

When and How 52

7 The Rationality Divide 57

Conceptual Understanding 57

Concepts in the Animal World? 63

Conceptual Reasoning 70

Reasoning in the Animal World? 74

Only Humans Deal with Facts 83

8 The Morality Divide 89

How Unique Is Morality? 89

A Moral Code or a Genetic Code? 95

Where Does the Moral Code Come From? 105

9 The Self-Awareness Divide 113

What Is Self-Awareness? 113

The Mirror Test 120

At the Dawn of Self 124

10 The Religion Divide 129

Self-Transcendence 129

A Gene for Religion? 134

Religion Explains Everything Else 144

11 The Soul Divide 157

More than Matter 157

The Power of the Mind 163

Immortal Souls 174

Adam and Eve? 181

A FINAL WORD 189

Index 199