Annalee Newitz has a fascinating article at IO9 on early neolithic societies: How Farming Almost Destroyed Ancient Human Civilization. Roughly 9,000 years ago, humans had mastered farming to the point where food was plentiful. Populations boomed, and people began moving into large settlements full of thousands of people. And then, abruptly, these proto-cities were abandoned for … Continue reading How Farming Almost Destroyed Ancient Human Civilization
Tag: History
Digitization is increasing the accessibility of old scientific papers, and of history
Apparently, scientific papers have tended to fade away as they got older, with most papers only getting citations within the first decade or so after their publication. But a Physics arXiv entry reveals that, with digitization, that is changing. The results show a clear trend. “Our analysis indicates that, in 2013, 36% of citations were … Continue reading Digitization is increasing the accessibility of old scientific papers, and of history
The decline of religion in western societies
Huffington Post UK has published the results of a survey showing that half of Britain thinks religion does more harm than good, and that you don't need it to be a good person. This seems to be a trend in Europe that was started in the Scandinavian countries. It's in contrast to the United States, … Continue reading The decline of religion in western societies
Is the human species still evolving? Of course.
It looks like Bill Nye, the science guy, is coming out with a new book on evolution, with an excerpt at Popular Science: Is The Human Species Still Evolving? | Popular Science. We cannot step away from evolution. Our genomes are always collecting mutations, and we are always making mate selections. Are humans preferentially mating with … Continue reading Is the human species still evolving? Of course.
The conquest of the Americas
This morning, I came across an essay by Howard Zinn, the famous historian and activist (now deceased), on the real historical Christopher Columbus. I suspect Zinn's portrayal of events was a bit one sided (I doubt the Native Americans were quite the lambs that he portrayed), but he probably overcompensated to some extent for the version we … Continue reading The conquest of the Americas
The myth of the eight-hour sleep
For much of my adult life, I've had trouble sleeping throughout the night, often waking up in the early morning hours, unable to go back to sleep. On weekends or on vacation, I've simply gotten up, drank and/or ate something, maybe read a little bit, and then eventually gone back to sleep, knowing that I had … Continue reading The myth of the eight-hour sleep
The evolution of the scientific method.
Empiricism, the idea that sensory experience is a source of knowledge, is ancient. People have obviously learned through sensory experience as long as there have been people. Studying the night skies gave ancient humans insight into the flow of the seasons, crucial knowledge as the agricultural revolution kicked into gear. And farming techniques, medicinal practices, food … Continue reading The evolution of the scientific method.
Hans Rosling and Ola Rosling: How not to be ignorant about the world
Worried the world is going to hell in a handbasket? You'll feel better after watching this video, and also get some insight into why you might have thought it was. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sm5xF-UYgdg Watching this video also reminded me of something I learned years ago, not to trust numbers given in isolation. Whenever I hear about the … Continue reading Hans Rosling and Ola Rosling: How not to be ignorant about the world
The Great Recession was less severe than the Great Depression because we do learn from history.
As is quickly becoming usual, Tina at Diotima's Ladder asks excellent questions: Roosevelt and Obama: Did we avoid a Great Depression? | Diotima's Ladder. For the past week I’ve been rushing home every night to catch The Roosevelts: An Intimate History by Ken Burns. I’m not really a big Ken Burns fan. And yes, it’s the fiddle music. … Continue reading The Great Recession was less severe than the Great Depression because we do learn from history.
Origins of Hierarchy: How Egyptian Pharaohs Rose to Power
Stephanie Pappas has an interesting post at LiveScience: Origins of Hierarchy: How Egyptian Pharaohs Rose to Power. The rulers of ancient Egypt lived in glorious opulence, decorating themselves with gold and perfumes and taking their treasures with them to the grave. But how could such a hierarchical, despotic system arise from egalitarian hunter-gatherer societies? The … Continue reading Origins of Hierarchy: How Egyptian Pharaohs Rose to Power
SelfAwarePatterns 