Settling the Earth
The Archaeology of Deep Human History
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Published:30th Dec '13
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This hardback is available in another edition too:
- Paperback£30.99(9781107601079)
This book explores how humanity became the only species to inhabit the Earth, focusing on the evolution of imagination and social structures.
In Settling the Earth, Clive Gamble delves into the pivotal questions surrounding humanity's unique journey across the globe. He examines how and when our species became the sole inhabitants of various regions, alongside the remarkable development of our large brains. By exploring archaeology, fossil records, and human genetics, Gamble provides a comprehensive understanding of our evolutionary path.
The book emphasizes the critical role of human imagination in our ability to adapt and thrive in diverse environments. Gamble posits that it was our imaginative capacity that enabled us to establish complex societies, allowing people to maintain connections despite geographical distances. This imaginative ability, he argues, was essential in our success as a global species, fostering cooperation and communication among disparate groups.
Gamble synthesizes insights from various disciplines, including psychology, cognitive science, and anthropology, to present a cohesive narrative of human evolution. He discusses the impact of Pleistocene climate change on our ancestors and how these selective forces shaped our development. The culmination of his research reveals not only the deep history of human settlement but also the intricate interplay of imagination and social structures that allowed us to inhabit the Earth as we do today.
'In Settling the Earth, Clive Gamble reconfirms his status as the finest mind working in Palaeolithic studies. He presents a radical reimagining of the global sweep of human history by rejecting the progress-bound divisions of previous summaries in favor of a partitioning based on brain expansion and population dispersal. The result is brilliant.' Thomas Wynn, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs
'Eclectic and authoritative, Gamble's engaging new book provides a fresh take on the evolution of the human brain, navigating the reader through the changing landscapes, minds and societies of our ancestors and revealing the complex physical and cultural dynamics behind our ultimate colonization of the Earth.' Danielle Schreve, Royal Holloway University of London
'… we desperately need books like Settling the Earth and we need researchers like Clive Gamble who can write about the deep human past in a way that integrates archaeological evidence and interpretation so elegantly and with so much enthusiasm. This is a massive contribution to the understanding of the human past. It is impossible to properly assess it in a few words. It is a bold attempt to understand the structures of 10 million years of global human history … it is a book that provides a dazzling wealth of ideas, hypotheses and explanations, which are not presented as solid facts but rather are intended to be tested, revised and reformulated. It is unquestionable that this book is a milestone on our journey to improve our understanding of the human past and present.' Martin Porr, Antiquity
'… an excellent, well-written and deeply erudite book …' Peter Bellwood, Journal of Anthropological Research
ISBN: 9781107013261
Dimensions: 236mm x 156mm x 27mm
Weight: 750g
405 pages