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Blueprint : the evolutionary origins of a good society / Nicholas A. Christakis.

by Christakis, Nicholas A.

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Little, Brown Spark, 2019.

Evolution (Biology) -- Philosophy.

Evolution (Biology) -- Social aspects.

Social evolution.

9780316230032 (hc.)

xxi, 520 p., 8 pages of plates : ill. (some color), map ; 25 cm.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 425-505) and index.

Preface: our common humanity -- The society within us -- Unintentional communities -- Intentional communities -- Artificial communities -- First comes love -- Animal attraction -- Animal friends -- Friends and networks -- One way to be social -- Remote control -- Genes and culture -- Natural and social laws.

"For too long, scientists have focused on the dark side of our biological heritage: our capacity for aggression, cruelty, prejudice, and self-interest. But natural selection has given us a suite of beneficial social features, including our capacity for love, friendship, cooperation, and learning. Beneath all our inventions--our tools, farms, machines, cities, nations--we carry with us innate proclivities to make a good society. In Blueprint, Nicholas A. Christakis introduces the compelling idea that our genes affect not only our bodies and behaviors, but also the ways in which we make societies, ones that are surprisingly similar worldwide. With many vivid examples--including diverse historical and contemporary cultures, communities formed in the wake of shipwrecks, commune dwellers seeking utopia, online groups thrown together by design or involving artificially intelligent bots, and even the tender and complex social arrangements of elephants and dolphins that so resemble our own--Christakis shows that, despite a human history replete with violence, we cannot escape our social blueprint for goodness. In a world of increasing political and economic polarization, it's tempting to ignore the positive role of our evolutionary past. Drawing on advances in social science, evolutionary biology, genetics, neuroscience, and network science, Blueprint shows how and why evolution has placed us on a humane path--and how we are united by our common humanity."--Dust jacket.

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