ENDORSEMENTS "Nicholas Humphrey has made major contributions to our understanding of topics that range across psychology, evolutionary theory, consciousness, and theory of mind. Now we can add Why Is the World So Beautiful? He tackles a topic that has been central to philosophizing since Plato but has never before been subjected to this particular intense combination of rigorous empirical examination and sharp philosophical analysis. A splendid book: provocative, passionate, and to a remarkable degree persuasive." --Sir Geoffrey Lloyd, Faculty of Classics, University of Cambridge "Humphrey's skills as an expositor on the science/philosophy interface shine through here. He doesn't definitively answer the question in the title--nobody could! But he offers insights that will deepen any reader's understanding of the issues." --Lord Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal; Member of the UK's House of Lords; former President of the Royal Society "In answer to the question 'What is the essence of beauty?' Humphrey offers a bold and compelling answer: our aesthetic instincts are shaped by an innate sensitivity to rhyme--not just in poetry, but in the echoes, patterns, and symmetries that pervade the visual, auditory, and even conceptual realms. This is an illuminating and deeply thought-provoking exploration--one that will reshape how we understand aesthetics, evolution, and the very nature of human experience." --Paul Broks, neuropsychologist; author of The Darker the Night, the Brighter the Stars "Nicholas Humphrey's enquiry into the nature of beauty is full of fresh insights.

His emphasis on rhyme has primed me to look at flowers and trees anew and hear Bach's music better. I am grateful for this sparklingly original book." --Rupert Sheldrake, biologist; author of Science Set Free.