Lewis Wolpert

Why does every society around the world have a religious tradition of some sort? Professor Lewis Wolpert investigates the nature of belief and its causes. He looks at belief''s psychological basis and its possible evolutionary origins in physical cause and effect. Wolpert explores the different types of belief - including that of animals, of children, of the religious, and of those suffering from psychiatric disorders. And, he asks whether it is possible to live without belief at all, or whether it is a necessary component of a functioning society.

Esta extraordinaria obra, escrita por uno de los más influyentes biólogos de nuestro tiempo, Lewis Wolpert, revela los principios universales que gobiernan el proceso del desarrollo. Se centra en los sistemas que mejor representan los principios comunes y permite de esta manera una comprension mas facil de los complejos procesos que determinan el desarrollo biologico. Combina una cuidadosa exposicion de cada uno de los temas con los aportes de investigadores de todo el mundo, brindando asi tanto los procesos esenciales como los ultimos descubrimientos. Sus caracteristicas sobresalientes son: - Las lecturas complementarias cuidadosamente seleccionadas que alientan al estudiante a explorar el tema en un nivel mas avanzado y lo motivan a utilizar la literatura de base. - Las hermosas y claras ilustraciones en color que ayudan a visualizar los experimentos y mecanismos enunciados y facilitan su comprension. - Las numerosas secciones de resumenes, en textos y diagramas, que permiten reconocer y asimilar los principales conceptos y proporcionan una invalorable ayuda de revision. - El enfasis en los mecanismos celulares y moleculares del desarrollo que refleja la direccion de la investigacion moderna, y la inclusion de numerosos avances recientes, como la comprension de la formacion del eje, del desarrollo ...

Some years ago Lewis Wolpert had a severe depressive episode: despite a happy marriage and a successful scientific career, he could think only of suicide. When he eventually recovered, he became aware of the stigma attached to depression and of how difficult it was to get reliable information. So he undertook this written investigation into what science and psychiatry - and his own personal experience - could reveal about depression. Now with an additional introduction following the associated BBC2 series, this work also recounts the author''s struggle with a second bout. After he captures the essence of his subject so succinctly in his title, it''s a wonder that noted scientist Lewis Wolpert went on to write a whole book. Luckily for us, Malignant Sadness: The Anatomy of Depression lives up to its title, explaining the state of our knowledge and enlightening bystanders who have never been crippled by psychic pain about just what they''re missing. Wolpert''s training as a developmental biologist helps him sift through the scientific literature, while his devastating episode of depression is the base of his eloquent descriptions of its subjective experience. Far from a deficit, his lack of psychiatric training allows him to explore more freely the unclear and ambiguous depths of our understanding of this all-too-common ailment.

An excellent book, the most objective short account I know of all the various approaches to depression. Anthony Storr Several years ago, Lewis Wolpert had a severe episode of depression. Despite a happy marriage and successful scientific career, he could think only of suicide. When he did recover, he became aware of the stigma attached to depression - and just how difficult it was to get reliable information. With characteristic candour and determination he set about writing this book, an acclaimed investigation into the causes and treatments of depression, which formed the basis for a BBC TV series.This paperback edition features a new introduction, in which Wolpert discusses the reaction to his book and BBC series, and recounts his own recurring struggle with depression.

Why does every society around the world have a religious tradition of some sort? Professor Lewis Wolpert investigates the nature of belief and its causes. He looks at beliefs psychological basis and its possible evolutionary origins in physical cause and effect. Wolpert explores the different types of belief - including that of animals, of children, of the religious, and of those suffering from psychiatric disorders. And he asks whether it is possible to live without belief at all, or whether it is a necessary component of a functioning society.

How do we move, think and remember? Why do we get ill, age and die? Distinguished biologist Lewis Wolpert explains how cells provide the answers to the fundamental questions about our lives.Cells are the basis of all life in the universe. Our bodies are made up of billions of them: an incredibly complex society that governs everything, from movement to memory and imagination. When we age, it is because our cells slow down; when we get ill, it is because our cells mutate or stop working.In How We Live and Why We Die, Wolpert provides a clear explanation of the science that underpins our lives. He explains how our bodies function and how we derive from a single cell - the egg. He examines the science behind the topics that are much discussed but rarely understood - stem-cell research, cloning, DNA - and explains how all life evolved from just one cell. Lively and passionate, How We Live and Why We Die is an accessible guide to understanding the human body and, essentially, life itself.

We now live longer today than at any time in history. In the UK, more people are aged over sixty-five than under sixteen and by 2050, over a third of the developed world will be over sixty. How should we deal with this phenomenon? What are the scientific reasons for ageing? And can - or should - we prevent it? Lewis Wolpert, distinguished biologist and octogenarian, explores the scientific background and the implications of our ageing population. In this engaging investigation, he tackles every aspect of the subject from ageism to euthanasia to anti-ageing cream and, through it all, tries to better understand his own ageing. Witty, frank and often inspiring, Lewis Wolpert is the perfect guide to looking very well.

This book shows that many of our understandings about scientific thought can be corrected once we realise just how "unnatural" science actually is. Quoting scientists from Aristotle to Einstein, the author argues that scientific ideas are, with rare exceptions, counter-intuitive and that common sense often makes no sense at all. A passionate advocate of the beauty and importance of science, the author examines a range of issues, including why science and technology are quite different, why psychoanalysis is not properly scientific and why philosophers and sociologists have made so little contribution to understanding sciences true nature. He demonstrates the folly of holding scientists responsible for many of societys problems, and the equal folly of looking to science for a miracle cure.

Why are there two sexes? How different are they and why? Why cant a woman be more like a man? Or should the question be: why cant a man be more like a woman?Controversy rages around sex and gender, but just what are the differences and how are they determined? Lewis Wolpert, distinguished scientist, broadcaster and author, has tackled depression, religion and old age from a developmental biologists perspective. Now he enters the gender debate, starting with his argument that men are fundamentally modified females - if the genes present at fertilisation did not do their job properly, we would all be women - and journeying through MRI techniques, the nature of sexual attraction, neurosexism and whether men are really better at maths. With fresh and persuasive research and with his customary intelligence and curiosity, Lewis Wolpert sets out to make his mark on this controversial topic - and makes some surprising discoveries along the way.

Este libro es una apasionante y clarificadora guía dedicada a un elemento fundamental del cuerpo humano y del que depende la vida propiamente dicha: la célula. Nuestro cuerpo se compone de miles de millones de ellas, y su estructura, de extraordinaria complejidad, gobierna fenomenos tan cruciales para la existencia de los organismos como el crecimiento, la reproduccion y el envejecimiento. Ademas, la actividad celular incide en el modo en que enfermamos y nos defendemos de las agresiones de bacterias y virus, y tiene que ver con la actividad mental en procesos relacionados con la imaginacion o la memoria.El destacado biologo Lewis Wolpert estudia en estas paginas no solo la anatomia de la celula, sino tambien cuestiones tan debatidas y actuales como la investigacion con celulas madre, las implicaciones de la clonacion o los pros y contras de la manipulacion genetica, ademas de explicar con minuciosidad el fascinante proceso que lleva a una unica celula fertilizada a convertirse en un ser humano adulto.

Tras dedicar años de fructífera investigación al desarrollo de los embriones, el biólogo Lewis Wolpert decidió que era hora de estudiar la otra cara de la moneda: esa etapa que viene despues de la madurez, la edad del "por ti no pasan los años". Wolpert, un reputado cientifico y un octogenario que no ha perdido un apice de curiosidad intelectual, explica en este libro por que envejece el ser humano, que repercusiones tiene para nuestro cuerpo y nuestra mente el paulatino deterioro celular y, sobre todo, como prevenirlo.Explora asimismo los multiples factores asociados con la longevidad, desde los estrictamente biologicos hasta la larga historia de los tratamientos contra las huellas del paso del tiempo, pasando por la busqueda de la eterna juventud. Tambien analiza con lucidez y numerosos datos las consecuencias economicas, sociales y culturales derivadas de un mundo poblado cada dia por mas ancianos, y en el que crece la discriminacion y el maltrato hacia estos.