(The Seven-Million-Year Story of How and Why We Survived)
-by chip walter
2013
Science journalist walter synthesizes our knowledge of all humyn species (27 and counting), and asks "Why, when there are multiple species of big cat, elephant, monkey, and innumerable others, is there only ONE humyn species left alive?" (although considering that there were denisovans as recently as 10,000 years ago, it's possible that there are yet pockets of non-sapiens out there in some isolated corner of the world). He takes a look at what made us successful - an adaptability that exponentially dwarfs any other creature, and attempts to explain how that came to be (lonnnnng extended childhoods), what are its strengths...and weaknesses (schizophrenia, autism, depression). He speculates on our evolutionary future, and the possibility that that which made us so successful may easily kill us as well. As shatner said, this is a book to make you jump up and say "YES".
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