When should you treat a fever? Evolution holds the answer
Article excerpt
Nature, Published online: 27 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02313-x Understanding natural selection can improve medical treatments, social policies and crop yields.
Jonathan R. Goodman is a social scientist in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, UK, and the author of Invisible Rivals (2025).
A raised body temperature is a natural response that helps to fight off infection. Credit: Getty
Force of Nature: Understanding Evolution’s Deepest Logic, and Putting It to Use Owen D. Jones W. W. Norton (2026)
From antimicrobial resistance and vaccines to drugs design and even policymaking, evolution is fundamental to many aspects of our lives. Yet, too often, Darwinian thinking is neglected.
In Force of Nature , biologist and legal scholar Owen Jones argues convincingly that understanding how evolution by natural selection works can inform humans’ interactions with their environment and with each other, and that misunderstanding it can create problems. He cites case studies from a range of fields, including medicine, agriculture and law, to support his position.
What is the future of intelligence? The answer could lie in the story of its evolution