As noted, Dr. Abraham is also an evoltionary biologist. Two of his publications are "La Saboteuse: An Ecological Theory of Sexual Dimorphism in Animals," questioning sexual selection (Darwin's second theory of evolution) as it applies to animals. Abraham further challenges the theory in plants, with his paper "Insect Choice and Floral Size Dimorphism: Sexual Selection or Natural Selection?" Below, he discusses his sub-discipline of animal behavior.

An excerpt from Happiness: A Physician/Biologist Looks at Life.

In addition to practicing medicine, I pursue research in animal behavior. Studying animals and why they make the choices they make can tell us many surprising things about ourselves, and all of humanity. From observing animals, biologists have begun to suspect that maybe the real reasons for our choices are not always the reasons we tell ourselves. I hope to provide a better understanding of the conflict between why we think we do certain things, and why- perhaps- we really do them.

When I mention my work in animal behavior to people outside of biology, I frequently receive a humorous invitation to take a look at someone's kids, or their spouse, their boss, etc. Actually, animal behavior isn't related to psychology, psychiatry, sociology, or even neurology. It's related to economics.

Despite being much more complicated, human economics is still an outgrowth of the strategies of animals: we acquire resources (food, water, shelter et al.), maintain acquisitions (protect territory, food sources), limit loss (not get injured or eaten), and then try to invest our resources so as to obtain the greatest return (produce offspring). But then, that's hardly surprising: we refer to the marketplace as a "jungle," where it's "eat or be eaten," while we are trying to "keep the wolf from the door," and put aside "a few nuts for the winter." Those metaphors are not just coincidence. Business and survival are the same general game; it's just that the playing pieces have changed.

At right: Cypress Lake, University of Louisiana