Charles J. Lumsden (born 1949) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

in the Department of Medicine and Institute of Medical Science,

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. He has been an early proponent of

sociobiology Sociobiology is a field of biology that aims to explain social behavior in terms of evolution. It draws from disciplines including psychology, ethology, anthropology, evolution, zoology, archaeology, and population genetics. Within the study of ...

, looking to our genetic nature to supplement culture in describing what makes us human. He wrote two influential books in collaboration with Edward O. Wilson ''Genes, Mind and Culture: The Coevolutionary Process.'' (Harvard University Press, 1981) and ''Promethean Fire: Reflections on the Origin of Mind'' (Harvard University Press, 1983). Part of his interests lies in the mathematical and philosophical bases of physical theory in biology, and the origins of

creativity Creativity is the ability to form novel and valuable Idea, ideas or works using one's imagination. Products of creativity may be intangible (e.g. an idea, scientific theory, Literature, literary work, musical composition, or joke), or a physica ...

. He has also co-edited biology textbooks, notably ''Physical Theory in Biology: Foundations and Explorations'' 1997.

References

Lumsden: Selected bibliographyStephen Jay Gould discussed ''Promethean Fire: Reflections on the Origin of Mind'' in ''The New York Review of Books'', June 30, 1983
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lumsden, Charles J. Canadian biologists Academic staff of the University of Toronto Living people 1949 births