Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Diamond, Jared

ISBN 10: 0393038912 / ISBN 13: 9780393038910

Published by W. W. Norton & Company, 1997

About this Item

Dj Has Light Edgewear With Couple Tiny Tears & Light Soiling. Light Wear. Light Soiling. The Bottom Corner, Near Hinge Of The First Several Pages Are Wavy Like They Have Been Damp & A Few Of The Them Also Have A Small Tear Near Hinge. Seller Inventory # 034856

Bibliographic Details

Title: Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human ...

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Publication Date: 1997

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Good

Dust Jacket Condition: Good

Edition: First Edition

About this title

Synopsis:

An intriguing study of the rise of civilization argues that human development is not based on race or ethnic differences but rather is linked to biological diversity, discussing the evolution of agriculture, technology, writing, political systems, and religious belief. Tour.

Review:

Life isn't fair--here's why: Since 1500, Europeans have, for better and worse, called the tune that the world has danced to. In Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared Diamond explains the reasons why things worked out that way. It is an elemental question, and Diamond is certainly not the first to ask it. However, he performs a singular service by relying on scientific fact rather than specious theories of European genetic superiority. Diamond, a professor of physiology at UCLA, suggests that the geography of Eurasia was best suited to farming, the domestication of animals and the free flow of information. The more populous cultures that developed as a result had more complex forms of government and communication--and increased resistance to disease. Finally, fragmented Europe harnessed the power of competitive innovation in ways that China did not. (For example, the Europeans used the Chinese invention of gunpowder to create guns and subjugate the New World.) Diamond's book is complex and a bit overwhelming. But the thesis he methodically puts forth--examining the "positive feedback loop" of farming, then domestication, then population density, then innovation, and on and on--makes sense. Written without bias, Guns, Germs, and Steel is good global history.