“. . .the themes introduced by the authors are likely to be among the central ones of any new world-view. . .David Loye’s central insight, which motivates this book, is in my opinion right on the money. The organizing principle of the new faith—a faith of human beings about human beings—is evolution itself. Not the traditionally taught evolutionary scenario dominated by competition and selfishness, but an understanding closer to the original Darwinian one that sees cooperation and transcendence of the self as the most exciting parts of the story.” — from the Foreword by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi   The Great Adventure: Toward a Fully Human Theory of Evolution has been published by the second largest university press in America — State University of New York, or SUNY Press — to properly launch progressive science for the 21st century. Ranging from the physics of global interconnection and the biology of love through brain research, psychology and all the rest of social science into moral and spiritual evolution and evolutionary ACTION, chapters by members of the multinational and multidisciplinary General Evolution Research Group explore the fifteen levels of liberating potential that progressive science reveals for the evolution of our species. Written for a general as well as a scholarly readership, The Great Adventure is also designed to serve as the textbook for The Great Adventure: Distance Learning and On Campus Courses in New Evolution Studies.   Convenient online purchasing! Paperback: Hardcover:

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PSYCHOLOGY / SCIENCE

The Great Adventure
Toward a Fully Human Theory of Evolution
David Loye, editor
Foreword by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Working to achieve the dream of the great spiritual and scientific visionaries, an international and multidisciplinary group of advanced evolution theorists explores how a new morally-sensitive and action-oriented theory of human evolution can help guide our species through troubled times to reach a higher plateau for humanity. The Great Adventure probes how chaos and complexity theories, new brain research, studies of child development, new theories of creativity and consciousness, and other neglected social and systems science discoveries cumulate to reveal a new full-spectrum, action-oriented theory. In addition to describing how to build such a theory, and course outlines for new internet distance learning studies, the book outlines how a new working partnership between psychologists and evolutionary system scientists can meet a pivotal challenge for the 21st century.

Contributors include General Evolution Research Group members Ervin Laszlo, founder, and Ken Bausch, Raymond Bradley, Allan Combs, Alexander Christakis, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Riane Eisler, Sally Goerner, David Loye, Alfonso Montuori, Ruth Richards, and Stanley Salthe

David Loye is a co-founder of The General Evolution Research Group and Vice President of the Center for Partnership Studies. Among his books are the award-winning The Healing of a Nation; The Leadership Passion; The Knowable Future; The Sphinx and the Rainbow; and An Arrow Through Chaos.

A volume in the SUNY series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology Richard D. Mann, editor

November 2003 / 352 pages
[Illustrated: 2 tables, 24 figures]
$23.95 paperback ISBN 0-7914-5924-
$71.50 hardcover ISBN 0-7914-5923-3

Table of Contents

Downloads   SAMPLES for introductory downloading are provided with “hot” links . . .
	Foreword Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
	Introduction David Loye
	The Toronto Manifesto
	Darwin, Maslow, and the Fully Human Theory of Evolution David Loye
PART I:	THE EVOLUTIONARY BASE IN PHYSICS AND BIOLOGY
ONE	Matter and Mind: The New Holism and the Greater Humanity Ervin Laszlo
TWO	Biology and Beyond Biology: The Natural Path to the Future Stanley Salthe
PART II:	THE CULTURAL BASE IN THE BRAIN AND SYSTEMS OF LOVE VS. DOMINATION
THREE	A Multinlinear Theory of Cultural Evolution: Genes, Culture, and Technology Riane Eisler
FOUR	Love, Power, Brain, Mind, and Agency Raymond Bradley
PART III:	THE HIGHER REACHES OF CREATIVITY AND CONSCIOUSNESS
FIVE	Creativity, Consciousness, and the Building of an Integral World Sally Goerner
SIX	Technology to Liberate Rather than Imprison Consciousness Kenneth Bausch and Alexander Christakis
SEVEN	Creativity, Consciousness, and the Direction for Human Development Alfonso Montuori, Allan Combs, and Ruth Richards
PART IV:	THE DARWINIAN END GAME
EIGHT	What Should It Look Like? Foundations and Guidelines for the Fully Human Theory, A Summary of Chapters One through Seven David Loye
NINE	How Do We Build It? Of Systems Science, Psychology, Students, Teachers, and the Destruction or Liberation of Humanity David Loye
End Documents
	A. Course Outlines and Teacher Training for The Great Adventure
	B. Guide to Books on Darwin and Evolution
	C. A Brief History of the General Evolution Research Group
	D. The Darwin Project
	Index
	Contributors

                          Use This Press Release
                        to Help Spread the Word!

Writers, editors, reviewers, teachers, newswomen and newsmen, help give the New Year – and the New Century – a boost by putting this release to use.  Feel free to cut and paste, rewrite, whatever works for you.

                                                               * * *

                                UPDATE FOR EVOLUTION OFFERS                                                      NEW HOPE FOR OUR SPECIES

        Are we going backward or forward in evolution?

        Along with terrorists and right wing politics is an outdated PseudoDarwinian paradigm for science driving our species toward extinction?

        Can expanding and updating a horse and buggy theory of human evolution to meet the rocket speed needs of the 21st century help end environmental devastation, wars, terrorism, nuclear overkill, and put us back on track toward the better future?

        These questions are explored in a new book being published by the State University Press of New York (SUNY Press), second largest in the U.S. Titled The Great Adventure: Toward a Fully Human Theory of Evolution, the book is the result of a collaboration of eleven members of The General Evolution Research Group, or GERG, an advanced research group composed of European and Asian as well as U.S. scientists.

       Politics, Economics, and Fifteen Levels for Human Evolution

       Hailed in the Foreword by internationally known psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi for themes “likely to be among the central ones of any new world-view,” instead of the traditional scientific and popular focus only on cosmic and biological evolution The Great Adventure explores 15 levels for the “tree” of human evolution. In addition to our “roots” in cosmic, chemical, and biological evolution, the book probes the evolution of the brain as the “trunk” for the tree branching out and flowering into cultural, social, political, economic, educational, and technological evolution at the human level.

       Going still further, The Great Adventure explores the 21st century urgency for radically accelerating moral evolution, and the need for a new bridge between progressive science, progressive philosophy, and progressive religion in defining and exploring what constitutes spiritual evolution.

       At the top for the 15 levels is the pressing question of evolutionary action— or how do we advance rather than lag disastrously behind or even go backward in human evolution.

                           Discovery of Darwin’s Lost Theory

      A startling feature of the book is the report of its editor and GERG co-founder, psychologist and systems scientist David Loye, of the discovery of a lost completion for Darwin’s theory of evolution. In long ignored but basic writings, Darwin anticipates the humanistic psychology of Abraham Maslow, the biology of love, even chaos theory and many other comparatively recent but similarly ignored discoveries of brain research, psychology, and nonlinear systems science.

       As Loye notes in an introductory chapter, in The Descent of Man Darwin writes only twice of “survival of the fittest.” But wholly contrary to the emphasis for science, all levels of education, and the media throughout the 20th century, in Descent Darwin writes 95 times of love and 92 times of moral sensitivity as prime drivers for evolution at our species level.

                               The Darwin Project and Council

       To shift the emphasis in science, education, and the media away from fixation on the “first half” Darwinism of “survival of the fittest” and selfishness to the new prosocial or humanistic completion for Darwin’s “top” or “better half,” a new organization with a Council composed of 50 leading American, European, and Asian scientists and educators has been formed.

       Among Council members for The Darwin Project are two of the world’s greatest living brain scientists, Paul McLean and Karl Pribram; internationally known scientists Ervin Laszlo, founder of The General Evolution Research Group, psychologists Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and Stanley Krippner, chaos theorist Ralph Abraham, cultural historian Riane Eisler; leading progressive educators Nel Noddings, Ron Miller, and David Scott; and Hans Kung, developer of the Global Ethic endorsed by 100 leaders of the world’s religions during the World Parliament of Religions.

                      New Distance Learning Courses and Website

       Using The Great Adventure as a text book and for general readership, The Darwin Project plans to launch distance learning and on campus courses in new evolution studies aimed at building the “full spectrum, action-oriented,” or fully human theory of evolution the book outlines. To globally interlink everyone interested in the hopeful new prospects for Darwin’s lost theory and advanced modern scientific studies that affirm and expand it, a new website (www.thedarwinproject.com) is being launched by The Darwin Project.

        In addition to free downloads of sample chapters of The Great Adventure and other books, www.thedarwinproject.com will provide full information on the new distance learning and on campus evolution studies, a library and book store, and links to other websites, organizations and publications actively working to re-open the way to a better future and build a better world.

        From the Foreword by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: “...the themes introduced by the authors are likely to be among the central ones of any new world-view. . . David Loye’s central insight, which motivates this book, is in my opinion right on the money. The organizing principle of the new faith—a faith of human beings about human beings—is evolution itself.  Not the traditionally taught evolutionary scenario dominated by competition and selfishness, but an understanding closer to the original Darwinian one that sees cooperation and transcendence of the self as the most exciting parts of the story.”


                                              * * *

FOR GENERAL AND PRESS INFORMATION FOR REVIEWS, INTERVIEWS, PHOTOS, FEATURE STORIES CONTACT: Elliot Sanders, The Darwin Project.  Email: elliotsanders@thedarwinproject.com. Phone: 831-626-1004.  Fax: 831-626-3734.

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