This book is a tribute to one of the great minds in evolutionary biology, Richard D. Alexander. His help and encouragement during our graduate careers at the University of Michigan was invaluable to both of us, and we miss the penetrating discussions of complex topics in human and animal behavior and evolution that he loved to engage in. His contributions to science, and the humanities, should become standard reading for generations to come, and we hope this volume will help to make that goal a reality. Dr. Alexander provided unstinting help with various facets of the process of developing and producing this volume, and we thank him for his efforts.
We also would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the people who contributed to this volume—their contributions have served to highlight Dr. Alexander’s work, and illuminate the many contributions he has made to our understanding of human social evolution. These contributors also illustrate how Dr. Alexander’s legacy is being passed on through the scientists that he trained and influenced during the course of his career. He taught so many of us how to think about evolution, and humanity, and how to turn these thoughts into productive science.
We also thank our families, who have tolerated our absent-mindedness, and absences during the long hours and late nights required to complete this volume.
K.S. and B.C.