What if intelligent life on Earth evolved not once, but twice? The octopus is the closest we will come to meeting an intelligent alien. What can we learn from the encounter?
In Other Minds, Peter Godfrey-Smith, a distinguished philosopher of science and a skilled scuba diver, tells a bold new story of how nature became aware of itself - a story that largely occurs in the ocean, where animals first appeared.
Tracking the mind's fitful development from unruly clumps of seaborne cells to the first evolved nervous systems in ancient relatives of jellyfish, he explores the incredible evolutionary journey of the cephalopods, which began as inconspicuous molluscs who would later abandon their shells to rise above the ocean floor, searching for prey and acquiring the greater intelligence needed to do so - a journey completely independent from the route that mammals and birds would later take.
But what kind of intelligence do cephalopods possess? How did the octopus, a solitary creature with little social life, become so smart? What is it like to have eight tentacles that are so packed with neurons that they virtually 'think for themselves'? By tracing the question of inner life back to its roots and comparing human beings with our most remarkable animal relatives, Godfrey-Smith casts crucial new light on the octopus mind - and on our own.
- ISBN:
- 9780008485153
- 9780008485153
-
Category:
- Marine biology
- Format:
- Paperback
- Publication Date:
-
29-09-2021
- Publisher:
- HarperCollins Publishers
- Country of origin:
- United Kingdom
- Pages:
- 272
- Dimensions (mm):
- 198x129x18mm
- Weight:
- 0.21kg
Our Australian supplier has this title on order. You can place a backorder for this title now and we will ship it to you when it becomes available.
While we are unable to provide a delivery estimate, most backorders will be delivered within 120 days. If we are informed by our supplier that the title is no longer available during this time, we will cancel and refund you for this item. Likewise, if no delivery estimate has been provided within 120 days, we will contact our supplier for an update. If there is still no delivery estimate we will then cancel the item and provided you with a refund.
If we are able to secure you a copy of the title, our supplier will despatch it to our Sydney warehouse. Once received we make sure it is in perfect condition and then despatch it to you via the Australia Post eParcel service, which includes online tracking. You will receive a shipping notice from us when this occurs.
Share This Book: