Big History
- Beschrijving
- 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
door Philip Morrison
646 leden
9 besprekingen
½ 4.3
Score 4
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 10:34 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of the universe.
2
door Gerard 't Hooft
29 leden
1 bespreking
5
Score 3.36
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 10:37 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of time.
3
door Bill Bryson
23,474 leden
401 besprekingen
4.2
Score 3.04
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:10 PM
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- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Should be a good overview.
4
door Larry Gonick
1,356 leden
17 besprekingen
4.2
Score 2.83
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:11 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
5
door Larry Gonick
881 leden
5 besprekingen
½ 4.3
Score 2.68
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:12 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
6
door Larry Gonick
637 leden
3 besprekingen
½ 4.3
Score 2.56
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:12 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
7
door David Christian
598 leden
16 besprekingen
3.9
Score 2.46
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:11 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Brian Greene
5,435 leden
40 besprekingen
4.1
Score 2.38
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 08:54 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Just what is spacetime, anyway?
9
door Eric J. Chaisson
86 leden
1 bespreking
4.1
Score 2.31
Toegevoegd 2022-01-22, 01:38 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
10
door Jan Zalasiewicz
112 leden
5 besprekingen
3.8
Score 2.25
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:26 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Not 100% sure this belongs, but understanding the Earth is necessary for understanding history.
11
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: A textbook but supposedly very well-written. On here for the same reason as the previous book.
12
door Robert M. Hazen
353 leden
12 besprekingen
3.8
Score 2.15
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:59 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: The evolution of earth itself from rock to living planet.
13
door Addy Pross
124 leden
7 besprekingen
3.8
Score 2.11
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:31 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: The origin of life is one of the big phase transitions in history.
14
door Nick Lane
670 leden
15 besprekingen
4.2
Score 2.07
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door J. William Schopf
99 leden
2 besprekingen
4.1
Score 2.03
Toegevoegd 2022-02-05, 11:17 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
16
door Siddhartha Mukherjee
2,652 leden
75 besprekingen
4.2
Score 2
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:52 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Not sure this belongs on the list yet.
18
door Lynn Margulis
313 leden
3 besprekingen
3.8
Score 1.94
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:52 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Gotta understand microbes before we understand more complex organisms.
19
door David Beerling
219 leden
3 besprekingen
4
Score 1.92
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Stephen L. Brusatte
1,981 leden
59 besprekingen
4
Score 1.89
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:17 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Yuval Noah Harari
12,808 leden
386 besprekingen
4.2
Score 1.87
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:11 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Not surprising that this is on here. I hope it lives up to the hype.
22
door David Reich
781 leden
21 besprekingen
4
Score 1.85
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 08:42 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Joseph LeDoux
664 leden
4 besprekingen
4
Score 1.83
Toegevoegd 2021-12-31, 11:29 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
24
door Michael S. Gazzaniga
146 leden
2 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.81
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:23 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door David Lewis-Williams
366 leden
2 besprekingen
4
Score 1.79
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 08:42 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: I wanted something about cave art. That this also delves into consciousness is helpful.
26
door James George Frazer
4,822 leden
32 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.77
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 10:30 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Carl Sagan
3,702 leden
33 besprekingen
4.1
Score 1.76
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:33 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door James Gleick
3,366 leden
115 besprekingen
4
Score 1.74
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:29 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Lewis Dartnell
384 leden
14 besprekingen
3.8
Score 1.72
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 09:03 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: I think this is probably the best book going about how geography drives history.
30
door David Graeber
2,227 leden
44 besprekingen
4.2
Score 1.71
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:18 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Andrew Shryock
77 leden
4 besprekingen
½ 3.7
Score 1.7
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:20 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door Edward O. Wilson
167 leden
4 besprekingen
3.8
Score 1.68
Toegevoegd 2022-01-02, 08:59 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Societies among other animals, displaying altruism etc, probably show how our own societies began.
33
door Allen W. Johnson
84 leden
4.1
Score 1.67
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:54 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: So humans have evolved...how do they band together?
34
door Bert Hölldobler
334 leden
3 besprekingen
4.2
Score 1.66
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 06:47 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door James C. Scott
715 leden
19 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.65
Toegevoegd 2022-01-02, 02:44 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
36
door Ruth Benedict
1,116 leden
4 besprekingen
½ 3.6
Score 1.63
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 10:30 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: A classic in anthropology. Hoping the patterns will be sweeping enough to make this book belong.
37
door Lynn Margulis
102 leden
½ 3.3
Score 1.62
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:59 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Something about the history of sexuality seemed apropos for this list.
38
door Robin Fox
147 leden
3
Score 1.61
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 08:51 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: Another anthro classic about basic human relations. Not sure if it belongs though. We'll see.
39
door Isabel Wilkerson
4,412 leden
169 besprekingen
½ 4.4
Score 1.6
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 10:33 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: May be a little modern in coverage, but I think social stratification is an important topic in history.
40
door David Graeber
2,865 leden
72 besprekingen
4.2
Score 1.59
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:18 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: First of the economic history books on here.
41
door Karen Armstrong
2,050 leden
35 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.58
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Hoping this will give some insight into comparative religion without getting bogged down by details.
43
door Rebecca Stein
104 leden
1 bespreking
3.9
Score 1.56
Toegevoegd 2022-01-02, 05:30 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
44
door DK
529 leden
2 besprekingen
4.2
Score 1.55
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 09:05 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Should be a good overview of world history in cartographic form. Helps to see where things are taking place.
45
door Ben Wilson
314 leden
4 besprekingen
4
Score 1.54
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:17 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Urbanism was another big turning point in human history, and understanding it seems important.
46
door Spiro Kostof
368 leden
4 besprekingen
3.8
Score 1.54
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 06:39 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: For understanding how cities evolve to meet the needs of citizens.
47
door John Haywood
328 leden
1 bespreking
4.1
Score 1.53
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:34 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Overview of ancient civilizations.
48
door Andrew Jotischky
268 leden
2 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.52
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 06:46 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Overview of medieval civilizations.
49
door Norman Cantor
1,406 leden
10 besprekingen
3.8
Score 1.51
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 06:44 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- 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
door William J. Bernstein
791 leden
22 besprekingen
4
Score 1.5
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:20 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Second economic history book. I know little of it other than it seems to have good reviews.
52
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Seems useful to have historical trade illustrated in map form.
53
door Tom Standage
978 leden
44 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.48
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:39 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Jared Diamond
25,230 leden
377 besprekingen
4.1
Score 1.48
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Stephen L Sass
121 leden
2 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.47
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 11:00 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Materials science in history
56
door Daniel Boorstin
4,426 leden
42 besprekingen
4.1
Score 1.46
Toegevoegd 2022-01-02, 09:00 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: The scientific impulse
57
door Daniel R. Headrick
75 leden
4.2
Score 1.46
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:23 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door John Keegan
2,505 leden
21 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.45
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:07 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Technology and warfare are tightly connected, so I put this in conversation with the previous book.
59
door Dorothy H. Crawford
162 leden
3 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.44
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Fernand Braudel
924 leden
9 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.44
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:24 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: A French view of the major civilizations of today.
61
door Richard Haass
256 leden
7 besprekingen
½ 3.5
Score 1.43
Toegevoegd 2021-12-28, 06:34 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
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- michelleqcy: An overview of world history from the Treaty of Westphalia until now. Hope it's good.
62
door Jane Burbank
174 leden
1 bespreking
3.8
Score 1.43
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:09 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: The empires of history and how they brought together different peoples are an important topic.
63
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Michael Howard
96 leden
1 bespreking
4
Score 1.41
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:17 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Short book on the lessons of war from history. Not entirely sure it belongs here, I'll decide after reading.
65
door Will Durant
1,801 leden
35 besprekingen
3.9
Score 1.41
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 06:40 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Geoffrey West
568 leden
11 besprekingen
4.1
Score 1.4
Toegevoegd 2021-12-30, 11:30 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Not about history per se but the recurring laws that we see at all levels of organism and superorganism.
67
door Paul A. Colinvaux
37 leden
1 bespreking
½ 4.3
Score 1.4
Toegevoegd 2022-01-22, 11:05 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
68
door Peter Turchin
102 leden
1 bespreking
4.1
Score 1.39
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 09:21 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Should be an interesting read about the broad patterns behind history.
69
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Ian Morris
1,185 leden
21 besprekingen
4
Score 1.38
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:26 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: Hoping this will be a good read about the potential future of international dynamics.
71
door David Wallace-Wells
1,548 leden
60 besprekingen
4
Score 1.38
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- 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
door Katie Mack
636 leden
25 besprekingen
4.1
Score 1.37
Toegevoegd 2021-12-29, 07:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Verklaringen
- michelleqcy: History will come to an end when the universe does.
