I haven't read Wade's book, but the more I read about it, the more skeptical I become. Especially after reading the review in American Scientist by Greg Laden, a biological anthropologist: http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/a-troubling-tome/1 For example: [Wade] argues that differences in intellectual capacity between what he calls the three major races are innate, and that those differences can explain disparities between regions in economic and political success. Wade writes that “a part of the world has grown steadily and vastly richer over the last 300 years. This is not an accident or luck, and a reasonable explanation is available in terms of human evolution. . . The explanation is that there has been an evolutionary change in human social behavior that has facilitated the new, posttribal social structure on which modern societies are based.” He catalogs “Jewish adaptations” as primary examples, referring for instance to rates of winning Nobel prizes. In making the argument that such adaptations are genetic, Wade intimates why no other group is like the Jews: “People are highly imitative, and if the Jewish advantage were purely cultural, such as hectoring mothers or a special devotion to education, there would be little to prevent others from copying it.” More likely, he concludes, “the adaptation of Jews to a special cognitive niche . . . represents a striking example of natural selection’s ability to change a human population in just a few centuries.” Or: Wade claims that both chimpanzees and humans “inherited a genetic template” for social behavior from their common ancestor and asks why humans “should ever have lost the genetic template for . . . social behaviors.” But it has not been demonstrated that chimpanzee social behaviors differentiate because of genetics. Chimpanzee subspecies are very different from each other genetically. In 1999 Henrik Kaessmann, Victor Wiebe, and Svante Pääbo reported in Sciencethat “comparison to humans shows the diversity of chimpanzee sequences to be almost four times as high . . . as the corresponding values of humans.” That same year, Richard Warangham, Jane Goodall, and their colleagues published a Nature paper characterizing a great diversity in chimpanzee culture, including 39 distinct behavioral patterns, that could not be sorted out on the basis of subspecies and that were observed to be highly variable within subspecies. In short, chimp genetic variation has not been shown to correlate with cultural variation. Unlike humans, chimpanzees do have true races, but racial differences just don’t explain cultural differences among chimps. Elsewhere, Wade refers problematically to the “nomadic life of hunter- gatherer bands.” Making no reference to actual studies, he uses a broad brush to paint a hunter-gatherer culture unsubstantiated by any recognizable ethnography. His descriptions of how hunter-gatherers deal with social transgressions and interpersonal violence instead recall the writings of 19th century armchair anthropologists. Wade does not appear familiar with the primary and current literature on foragers, and he makes the additional mistake of accepting psychologist Steven Pinker’s mischaracterization of the data on the high rate of violence among hunter-gatherers. The archaeological record shows periods when violence rates spiked in some ancient groups, but skeletal remains from ancient foragers are rare and so the data are sparse. We who study living hunter-gatherers generally have the impression that they are violence averse. There is a good chance that changes in levels of violence in past human societies have been multidirectional and complex. I'm certainly skeptical that genetic differences could have arisen in only a few hundred years that would explain why, for example, western European countries are more economically successful. > Date: Sun, 29 Jun 2014 15:41:13 -0400 > From: dankimel@comcast.net > To: y-dna-haplogroup-i@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [yDNAhgI] Recommended book > > My dear distant cousin Nicolas, > > I address you this way because you are on this forum. > > But Nicolas, you need some work with your English. I see the quote, > "using below waste techniques, " Do you mean waist for waste? So who > is using such techniques? Could it be you who totally from out of the > blue says that people who are pushing for freedom to read and make > independent judgements are pushing Hitler's agenda? Give me a break! > > Dan > > > > > On 6/29/2014 3:03 PM, nicolas.taban wrote: > > Guys, > > > > I am sorry to jump in this brito-american debate but I feel from an neutral stand point that this looks like all against Debbie ... becoming all Americans against Debbie ... because she dares going against outrageous affirmations ... which seems to be, her, main stream thinking. > > > > If you took the time to read her arguments and respond on them instead of using below waste techniques all this would be far more interesting. > > > > Wake up ... if you want to make historical analogies, more recent in time, this looks pretty much the same arguments than Hitler was pushing forward. Biasing scientifical results to suits own ideology. > > Provocation is good to open debates, but it needs to be scientifically argumented. > > > > I too have been missing the list but I am kind of desapointed, since it came back online: all but 1 (ok may be 2) posts on this thread was more about feelings and suppositions that science and fact. > > > > So guys stay focused please! > > > > Mvh/Regards > > > > Nicolas Taban > > > > -------- Original message -------- > > From: John <jgdb@twcny.rr.com> > > Date:29/06/2014 20:18 (GMT+01:00) > > To: y-dna-haplogroup-i@rootsweb.com > > Subject: Re: [yDNAhgI] Recommended book > > > > Debbie, > > > > On behalf of my fellow Americans I'd like to object to your repeated digs at > > our ability to read and make intelligent analysis of controversial subject > > matter. Intentionally or not, YOU are presenting a very stereotypical image > > of your own nationality. > > > > Mr. Wades book will have followers and detractors over here no different > > than on your side of the pond. Rather than so inelegantly trying to censor > > his book, which I believe from your own statement you have not bothered to > > read, it might be better for your cause to present well reasoned > > counter-points to the assertions he makes in the book. > > > > John Beardsley > > an intelligent, open minded American > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Debbie Kennett > > Sent: Sunday, June 29, 2014 10:17 AM > > To: y-dna-haplogroup-i@rootsweb.com > > Subject: Re: [yDNAhgI] Recommended book > > > > In Nicholas Wade's feeble attempt to rebut his critics he says "I don't care > > what the science may say because I'll never change my position". I think > > just about says it all. If he wishes to ignore the scientific evidence to > > advance his own personal beliefs then that's entirely his choice. I hadn't > > realised he was British. It's perhaps not surprising that he's ended up in > > America. He would find much less tolerance of his views over here. > > > > There's a very good article here by Kenan Malik on why both sides of the > > debate are wrong: > > > > https://kenanmalik.wordpress.com/2012/03/04/why-both-sides-are-wrong-in-the- > > race-debate/ > > > > Debbie > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: y-dna-haplogroup-i-bounces@rootsweb.com > > [mailto:y-dna-haplogroup-i-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Obed W Odom > > Sent: 29 June 2014 14:35 > > To: y-dna-haplogroup-i@rootsweb.com > > Subject: Re: [yDNAhgI] Recommended book > > > > I think the review by the NY Times was somewhat more charitable. There seems > > to be no question, though, that Wade's book has hit a raw nerve in some > > circles of his fellow Brits. > > > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > Y-DNA-HAPLOGROUP-I-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without > > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to Y-DNA-HAPLOGROUP-I-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to Y-DNA-HAPLOGROUP-I-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to Y-DNA-HAPLOGROUP-I-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message