Big History

Descrizione
Books about a wide swathe of history from the creation of spacetime until now, even extending into what we can see of the future, plus the associated science/mathematics. Could cover smaller bits (e.g. evolution of multicellularity, or the history of Asia) but has to be wide-ranging in time or space or both. Popular books mostly.
1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of the universe.
2
29 utenti
1 recensione
5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of time.
3
23,110 utenti
398 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Should be a good overview.
4
1,327 utenti
17 recensioni
4.2
6
625 utenti
4 recensioni
½ 4.3
7
579 utenti
15 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: David Christian is the originator of "Big History" and this is his latest book, which I presume to be the most up-to-date and best-written, which may not be true.
8
5,360 utenti
40 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Just what is spacetime, anyway?
9
83 utenti
1 recensione
4.1
10
111 utenti
5 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Not 100% sure this belongs, but understanding the Earth is necessary for understanding history.
11
82 utenti
½ 3.7
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: A textbook but supposedly very well-written. On here for the same reason as the previous book.
12
344 utenti
12 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: The evolution of earth itself from rock to living planet.
13
120 utenti
7 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: The origin of life is one of the big phase transitions in history.
14
657 utenti
13 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Should be a good overview of the big phase transitions in evolution on earth, and give us some hooks to hang our hats on as we move through the next few books.
15
96 utenti
2 recensioni
4.1
16
2,539 utenti
73 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Not sure this belongs on the list yet.
18
303 utenti
3 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Gotta understand microbes before we understand more complex organisms.
19
218 utenti
3 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: I feel that a good understanding of ecology is necessary to understand history. I'm hoping this fills in the "plant life" gap. We'll see.
20
1,866 utenti
61 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Supposedly an excellent book, and I feel an understanding of the dinosaur age and how it came to an end is important in history.
21
12,167 utenti
375 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Not surprising that this is on here. I hope it lives up to the hype.
22
748 utenti
22 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: DNA has been a major source of recent insight into human origins. I hope this gives a good oversight into what we've learned.
23
654 utenti
4 recensioni
4
24
136 utenti
2 recensioni
½ 3.5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: The evolution of consciousness is another big bottleneck in world history. I'm not sure there are any good books about it but this seems like it may fit the bill.
25
362 utenti
2 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: I wanted something about cave art. That this also delves into consciousness is helpful.
26
4,763 utenti
32 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Stories are probably the crucial thing that differentiates us from animals (language more generally, but some species do approximate language - stories are clearer). What forms do our oldest stories take?
27
3,645 utenti
33 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: A classic from Carl Sagan about yet another bottleneck, the evolution of intelligence. I'm not sure if human intelligence is too narrow. We'll see.
28
3,325 utenti
114 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Goes from ancient history through technology etc, but I think this would be a good book in conversation with Dragons of Eden, since intelligence plays a big part in information.
29
363 utenti
13 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: I think this is probably the best book going about how geography drives history.
30
2,050 utenti
43 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Added here in conversation with "Origins", because as I understand it, Graeber's thesis is that individuals make a big difference in the sweep of world history rather than just things like geography. I suspect it's a "por que no los dos" situation.
31
77 utenti
4 recensioni
½ 3.7
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: I know little about this book but I do know it tries to pry as much as we can possibly know about prehistory from a mixture of fields, so this probably belongs. I'll make a decision on it after I've read it.
32
157 utenti
4 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Societies among other animals, displaying altruism etc, probably show how our own societies began.
33
83 utenti
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: So humans have evolved...how do they band together?
34
331 utenti
3 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Added this in conversation with the previous book. Understanding another kind of complex society - insect societies - is important in understanding our own. Not sure if this or E.O. Wilson's original "Insect Societies" is better, but this is certainly more up-to-date.
35
683 utenti
18 recensioni
3.9
36
1,101 utenti
4 recensioni
½ 3.6
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: A classic in anthropology. Hoping the patterns will be sweeping enough to make this book belong.
37
100 utenti
½ 3.3
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Something about the history of sexuality seemed apropos for this list.
38
146 utenti
3
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Another anthro classic about basic human relations. Not sure if it belongs though. We'll see.
39
4,093 utenti
162 recensioni
½ 4.4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: May be a little modern in coverage, but I think social stratification is an important topic in history.
40
2,768 utenti
70 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: First of the economic history books on here.
41
2,014 utenti
36 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Religion is incredibly important in human history, but how did it arise? Not sure yet if this is the best book on the topic.
42
47 utenti
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Hoping this will give some insight into comparative religion without getting bogged down by details.
43
99 utenti
1 recensione
3.9
44
di DK
475 utenti
1 recensione
½ 4.4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Should be a good overview of world history in cartographic form. Helps to see where things are taking place.
45
288 utenti
4 recensioni
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Urbanism was another big turning point in human history, and understanding it seems important.
46
361 utenti
4 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: For understanding how cities evolve to meet the needs of citizens.
47
312 utenti
1 recensione
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Overview of ancient civilizations.
48
259 utenti
3 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Overview of medieval civilizations.
49
1,384 utenti
10 recensioni
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Book on medieval civilizations, focusing more on medieval thought, to bridge with the Braudel book later, which is mostly focused on the modern era.
51
776 utenti
22 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Second economic history book. I know little of it other than it seems to have good reviews.
52
17 utenti
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Seems useful to have historical trade illustrated in map form.
53
952 utenti
43 recensioni
½ 3.5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: "There are only nine meals behind mankind and anarchy," said Alfred Henry Lewis in 1906. Understanding the history of food and farming seems important. There don't seem to a lot of good books on the topic but hopefully this will fill in the gap.
54
24,863 utenti
373 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Probably the most prominent example of Big History, and one that historians aren't big fans of, but I figure you need to know what it says in order to criticise it.
55
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Materials science in history
56
4,372 utenti
42 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: The scientific impulse
57
73 utenti
4.2
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Human beings are technology-using animals, so a history of technology seems apropos. Hopefully will correct anything Diamond got wrong about technology's effect on history.
58
2,463 utenti
21 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Technology and warfare are tightly connected, so I put this in conversation with the previous book.
59
160 utenti
3 recensioni
½ 3.5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Disease is, as we are all painfully aware, a big component in history. Hopefully will fix some of the deficiencies of Diamond on the germs part of Guns, Germs and Steel.
60
897 utenti
9 recensioni
½ 3.5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: A French view of the major civilizations of today.
61
239 utenti
6 recensioni
½ 3.5
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: An overview of world history from the Treaty of Westphalia until now. Hope it's good.
62
168 utenti
1 recensione
3.8
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: The empires of history and how they brought together different peoples are an important topic.
63
1 utente
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Actually a series of four volumes covering a large swathe of human history and how power dynamics played a part in their rise and fall. I know little about this series otherwise. May be removed.
64
95 utenti
1 recensione
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Short book on the lessons of war from history. Not entirely sure it belongs here, I'll decide after reading.
65
1,742 utenti
31 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: A more general "Lessons of History" which looks quite insightful. The Durants wrote a series of books about the history of civilization but they look a bit West-centric.
66
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Not about history per se but the recurring laws that we see at all levels of organism and superorganism.
67
36 utenti
1 recensione
½ 4.3
68
94 utenti
1 recensione
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Should be an interesting read about the broad patterns behind history.
69
83 utenti
1 recensione
½ 4.3
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Another book by Turchin about cycles in human history. Not sure if this or War and Peace and War (or both) belong better here.
70
1,157 utenti
19 recensioni
4
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Hoping this will be a good read about the potential future of international dynamics.
71
1,481 utenti
57 recensioni
3.9
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: Unless of course climate change ends us first. The first of forward-looking books about where history will take us if we're not careful...or even if we are.
72
600 utenti
23 recensioni
4.1
Member
michelleqcy
Spiegazioni
michelleqcy: History will come to an end when the universe does.