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David M. Buss – The Murderer Next Door: Why The Mind Is Designed To KillQuote:As acclaimed psychological researcher and author David Buss writes, “People are mesmerized by murder. It commands our attention like no other human phenomenon, and those touched by its ugly tendrils never forget.” Though we may like to believe that murderers are pathological misfits and hardened criminals, the vast majority of murders are committed by people who, until the day they kill, would seem to be perfectly normal.David Buss’s pioneering work has made major national news in the past, and this provocative book is sure to generate a storm of attention. The Murderer Next Door is a riveting look into the dark underworld of the human psyche—an astonishing exploration of when and why we kill and what might push any one of us over the edge. A leader in the innovative field of evolutionary psychology, Buss conducted an unprecedented set of studies investigating the underlying motives and circumstances of murders, from the bizarre outlier cases of serial killers to those of the friendly next-door neighbor who one day kills his wife.Reporting on findings that are often startling and counterintuitive—the younger woman involved in a love triangle is at a high risk of being killed—he puts forth a bold new general theory of homicide, arguing that the human psyche has evolved specialized adaptations whose function is to kill. Taking readers through the surprising twists and turns of the evolutionary logic of murder, he explains exactly when each of us is most at risk, both of being murdered and of becoming a murderer. His findings about the high-risk situations alone will be news making.Featuring gripping storytelling about specific murder cases—including a never used FBI file of more than 400,000 murders and a highly detailed study of 400 murders conducted by Buss in collaboration with a forensic psychiatrist, and a pioneering investigation of homicidal fantasies in which Buss found that 91 percent of men and 84 percent of women have had at least one such vivid fantasy—The Murderer Next Door will be necessary reading for those who have been fascinated by books on profiling, lovers of true crime and murder mysteries, as well as readers intrigued by the inner workings of the human mind.Open for everyoneNumber of pages: 288Year of publication: 2006Url: https://www.amazon.com/Murderer-Next-Door-Mind-Designed/dp/0…Amazon rating: 3.8 out of 5 stars (39 reviews)Amazon 5 star review wrote:Dr. Buss has written one of the most engrossing cross-over books I have ever read. There is so much to learn! And the true life renditions of what takes some people over the edge rung a bell. I think everyone at some time or another hears about a murder that is just a little too close to home — and now we know why. This book provides a great read and gives you the real-deal information on the statistics around murder. At the same time it gave me true life stories to tell and generate conversation with while I’m out with friends or meeting new people in social settings. It is odd how much people are interested in precisely the kinds of killings Dr. Buss talks about in his book. Great conversation starter. And so relevant in today’s CSI and Court TV culture.What I liked most was how the book opened my mind and made me think differently about society and it’s ills. Frankly, there is a good argument that society, as in the current time frame, has very little to do with how our minds are fashioned or designed. Time is the great teacher and the scale of time that Dr. Buss thinks in is much greater than anyone else I’ve previously read. It made me change my own way of thinking about culture and society. I enjoyed this book because I felt like I was learning about scientifically sound work and reading a thriller book at the same time. The book also gets better with each chapter. I hate that feeling of starting a book and then it seems to lose steam. Not the case here. Actually, I was left with a lot of questions that I hope to learn more about. Hopefully Buss will keep on writing interesting books that invite the nonscientists of the world into the “back room” of academic research. Books that are based on scientific discoveries that reveal the underlying structure of human relationships in an interesting way are hard to find. This book is a must have for people who are trying to build interesting libraries in their own homes — one of my passions. Thanks for the chance to share my thoughts on this book.May you find peace, reasons to not do the above, and prosperity,Aeon