Recent years have seen a dramatic increase in our understanding of the social behaviour of microbes. Here, we take advantage of these developments to present an undergraduate laboratory exercise that uses the cooperative flocculating behaviour of yeast ("Saccharomyces sp.") to introduce the concept of inclusive fitness and teach the…

After accepting the editor's invitation to write a response to Richard Machalek and Michael W. Martin's "Evolution, Biology, and Society: A Conversation for the 21st-Century Sociology Classroom," the author took up their recommendation to learn more about recent work on biology and social behavior. She considered seriously Machalek and Martin's…

Presents models that ascribe social behavior, such as altruism and parental sacrifices for the young, to a kind of genetic imperative wherein individuals maximize their genetic contribution to the next generation. (GS)

The fates of phrenology and evolutionary theory in the 19th Century are studied in order to assess the current status of sociobiology and predict its future. (Author/AM)

There are some important similarities between biological and societal evolution, but these similarities should not blind the enormous differences between them. Each system must be analyzed on its own merits and according to its own peculiar properties and principles. (Author/AM)

There is no clearly defined, universally accepted evolutionary theory that social anthropologists must accept. There has been great progress in the understanding of genetic mechanisms, but there are still major controversies. The most fundamental problem comes from postulating genes to account for behaviors. (Author/AM)

This article addresses the following questions: (1) What are the aims and claims of contemporary sociobiology? (2) How does the enterprise fit into the history of ideas? and (3) Does sociobiology have the earmarks of being the beginning of a major synthesis? (Author/AM)

When the findings of sociobiology and ethology are properly interpreted, they are surprisingly compatible with commonsense ethical values, adding to our understanding of moral and ethical principles as an essential element of human social behavior. This paper provides a brief overview of the broader scientific interpretation to illustrate this…

Sociobiology, although in its formative stage, is the most promising paradigm for bridging the gap between biology and the social sciences. (Author/AM)

Presents pro and con comments with regards to 1975 APA presidential address under the heading of genetic basis of behavior--especially of altruism. Other comments are subsumed under the heading of biological versus social evolution, and the value of tradition. (Author/AM)

The excitement of sociobiology comes from the promise of the role it will play in humanistic investigation. Its potential importance beyond zoology lies in its logical position as the bridging discipline between the natural sciences on the one hand and social sciences and humanities on the other. (Author/AM)

Presents pro and con comments with regards to 1975 APA presidential address under the heading of biological versus social evolution. Other comments are subsumed under the headings of the genetic basis of behavior-especially of altruism, and the value of tradition. (Author/AM)

Presents pro and con comments with regards to 1975 APA presidential address under the heading of the value of traditions. Other comments are subsumed under the headings of biological versus social evolution, and the genetic basis of behavior especially of altruism. (Author/AM)

Notes that most of those who criticized the authors' 1975 APA presidential address seem to explicitly or implicitly share the belief that issues discussed are important areas of study on which divergent perspectives should be developed and discussed even where the best available evidence falls far short of dependable scientific fact. (Author/AM)