November 3rd, 2009 - Wendy Northcutt

~Now in Paperback~

THE DARWIN AWARDS' NEXT EVOLUTION: Chlorinating the Gene Pool By Wendy Northcutt

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, and celebrations throughout will also mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of his landmark work, Origin of the Species. With 1.5 million books sold, and one million monthly website visitors, perhaps nothing pays homage better to Darwin, the father of evolution, than THE DARWIN AWARDS, one of the most successful online humor series today. Named in honor of the renowned scientist, Darwin Awards are given to those who improve the gene pool by inadvertently removing themselves from it. Now available in paperback from Plume, the newest edition, THE DARWIN AWARDS' NEXT EVOLUTION: Chlorinating the Gene Pool popular New York Times bestselling author Wendy Northcutt is back with more examples of how uncommon common sense can be.

Based on www.DarwinAwards.com, the Darwin Awards show that the human species is still evolving. "People sometimes expire due to their own brainless calculations," says Northcutt. "We conclude that the next generation is now one idiot smarter."

New recipients of the Darwin Award include:
-A lawyer who electrocuted himself by prodding the power lines-with a pool skimmer!
-A couple who climbed into a helium advertising balloon to "get high."
-A college student who rocked out on his air guitar with such enthusiasm that he rocked himself right out the third-floor window!

And let us not forget the At Risk Survivors-who narrowly lived to tell about it: -A mangled scuba diver who kissed a shark in Florida. "I do it all the time," he confessed. -A traveler who guzzled two pints of vodka to keep it away from airport security.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Wendy Northcutt is a graduate of UC Berkeley with a degree in molecular biology. In 1993 she founded the community at www.DarwinAwards.com. She is the author of four international bestsellers: The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action, The Darwin Awards 2: Unnatural Selection, The Darwin Awards 3: Survival of the Fittest, and The Darwin Awards 4: Intelligent Design.