Guns, Germs, and Steel: Jared Diamond - 2005

Guns, Germs, and Steel’ is the scientific and historical Pulitzer Prize-winning book written by Jared Diamond- Professor of Geography at UCLA.

Diamond writes an international description of the evolution and civilization from the fascinating areas of race and human development. Since the Stone Age, people were limited to being hunters and gatherers until around 11,000 B.C. Following this time certain parts of Eurasia, Africa, and America discovered farming which quickly became the new method of survival. Diamond unashamedly uncovers that ancient people who gained this head start in farming went on to collide with other cultures through subjugation, dislocation, and extermination to shape the world we live in today.

“Much of human history has consisted of unequal conflicts between the haves and the have-nots.”

His account presents an interesting perspective of cultural materialism – essentially arguing that much of people’s culture evolved from their availability of materials at the time, and uses this to explain much of history and the current world states. He presents the challenges faced to reach scarce food centers which were halted by climate and geography and argues that the reason some societies developed in certain ways is purely down to the fact that they happened to develop at different geographical backgrounds.

“History followed different courses for different peoples because of differences among peoples' environments, not because of biological differences among peoples themselves”

A fascinating read encompassing all aspects of human evolution, from agriculture, technology, religion, to society and civilization. Especially recommended to scientists and anthropologist with a passion for evolution.