Complex Tears: Why Humans Like to Cry: Tragedy, Evolution, and the Brain by Michael Trimble Oxford University Press, 2012 ($29.95)
Mammals can all produce tears, yet humans are the only ones who cry. In his new book Why Humans Like to Cry , neurologist Trimble delves into how evolution and culture seemingly shaped the human brain to express emotion on a higher level than the rest of the animal kingdom.
Weeping may have been one of the earliest forms of hominid communication. Initially a method to keep the eye lubricated and a response to pain, Trimble argues that crying became a way for early humans to share feelings of sorrow, joy and compassion and to empathize with others long before we developed language.
[More]
