1. The Singularity Is Near (Ray Kurzweil)
- projects the next 40-50 years of technological evolution and its implications for humanity 2. Guns, Germs, and Steel (Jared Diamond)
- attempts to understand why there was disproportionate cultural and technological development over the past 10,000 years 3. What It Means to be 98% Chimpanzee (Jonathan Marks)
- deconstructs biological and social science and creates a new model for understanding human evolution, variation and behaviour 4. The Better Angels of Our Nature (Stephen Pinker)
- explores the history of human violence from the Paleolithic to modern times 5. The Ancestor's Tale (Richard Dawkins)
- creates an accessible reverse narrative of the past 3.5 billion years of biological evolution
He has been criticized for being an environmental determinist and for not incorporating a more inclusive theory with room for cultural autonomy. Although these criticism are valid, I have yet to read a book that both explains the emergence of Eurasian city-state networks and the lack of development elsewhere. In the future, I hope that someone can adequately build on what he has done. As far as him not being a credible source in anthropology, I can say that most people in my department have nothing but positive things to say about this work. If I have a major criticism, it may be that it is too simplistic and does not focus enough (or at all) on the environmental factors that led to European colonial expansion. Either way, it is on my list because of what it taught me at a key point in my academic trajectory.
My roommate has Song of the Dodo! I should give it a read when I get back from NYC.
I really admire this work because I think it is a great mental exercise for people who have a difficult time conceptualizing deep time and how speciation occurs. However, I have heard many people say that they generally find Dawkins writing boring.
Have you read Human Natures: Genes, Cultures and the Human Prospect by Paul E Ehrlich? It's one of my favourite (American) anthropological books. I read it when I was sixteen and it really ignited my interest in anthropology.
No I have not. Thanks for suggesting this though, I'm going to have to give it a read soon.