Origins
How Earth's History Shaped Human History
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $28.27
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
John Sackville
-
Written by:
-
Lewis Dartnell
About this listen
A New York Times best-selling author explains how the physical world shaped the history of our species
When we talk about human history, we often focus on great leaders, population forces, and decisive wars. But how has the earth itself determined our destiny? Our planet wobbles, driving changes in climate that forced the transition from nomadism to farming. Mountainous terrain led to the development of democracy in Greece. Atmospheric circulation patterns later on shaped the progression of global exploration, colonization, and trade. Even today, voting behavior in the southeast United States ultimately follows the underlying pattern of 75 million-year-old sediments from an ancient sea. Everywhere is the deep imprint of the planetary on the human.
From the cultivation of the first crops to the founding of modern states, Origins reveals the breathtaking impact of the earth beneath our feet on the shape of our human civilizations.
©2019 Lewis Dartnell (P)2019 Hachette AudioYou may also enjoy...
-
The Rise and Reign of the Mammals
- A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We humans are the inheritors of a dynasty that has reigned over the planet for nearly 66 million years, through fiery cataclysm and ice ages: the mammals. Our lineage includes saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, armadillos the size of a car, cave bears three times the weight of a grizzly, clever scurriers that outlasted Tyrannosaurus rex, and even other types of humans, like Neanderthals.
-
-
Excellent Follow Up That Stands On It’s Own
- By Sebastian on 2022-07-12
Written by: Steve Brusatte
-
The Knowledge
- How to Rebuild Our World from Scratch
- Written by: Lewis Dartnell
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Regarded as one of the brightest young scientists of his generation, Lewis Dartnell proposes that the key to preserving civilization in an apocalyptic scenario is to provide a quickstart guide, adapted to cataclysmic circumstances. The Knowledge describes many of the modern technologies we employ, but first it explains the fundamentals upon which they are built. The Knowledge is a brilliantly original guide to the fundamentals of science and how it built our modern world as well as a thought experiment about the very idea of scientific knowledge itself.
-
-
So many great observations
- By Darcey on 2024-05-14
Written by: Lewis Dartnell
-
Empire
- Written by: Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: Sean Barrett
- Length: 15 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The British Empire was the largest in all history: the nearest thing to global domination ever achieved. The world we know today is in large measure the product of Britain's age of empire. The global spread of capitalism, telecommunications, the English language, and the institutions of representative government - all these can be traced back to the extraordinary expansion of Britain's economy, population, and culture from the 17th century until the mid-20th. On a vast and vividly colored canvas, Empire shows how the British Empire acted as midwife to modernity.
-
-
great education on British colonialism
- By daniel Froese on 2023-02-03
Written by: Niall Ferguson
-
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs
- A New History of a Lost World
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this stunning narrative spanning more than 200 million years, Steve Brusatte, a young American paleontologist who has emerged as one of the foremost stars of the field - discovering 10 new species and leading groundbreaking scientific studies and fieldwork - masterfully tells the complete, surprising, and new history of the dinosaurs, drawing on cutting-edge science to dramatically bring to life their lost world and illuminate their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy.
-
-
Not bad
- By Mark on 2018-06-23
Written by: Steve Brusatte
-
Normandy '44
- D-Day and the Epic 77-Day Battle for France
- Written by: James Holland
- Narrated by: John Sackville
- Length: 24 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
D-Day, June 6, 1944, and the 76 days of bitter fighting in Normandy that followed the Allied landing, have become the defining episode of World War II in the west - the object of books, films, television series, and documentaries. Yet as familiar as it is, as James Holland makes clear in his definitive history, many parts of the OVERLORD campaign, as it was known, are still shrouded in myth and assumed knowledge.
-
-
Excellent
- By Kindle Customer on 2023-08-12
Written by: James Holland
-
A Short History of Humanity
- A New History of Old Europe
- Written by: Johannes Krause, Thomas Trappe, Caroline Waight - translator
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Johannes Krause is the director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and a brilliant pioneer in the field of archaeogenetics - archaeology augmented by DNA sequencing technology - which has allowed scientists to reconstruct human history reaching back hundreds of thousands of years before recorded time. In this surprising account, Krause and journalist Thomas Trappe rewrite a fascinating chapter of this history, the peopling of Europe, that takes us from the Neanderthals and Denisovans to the present.
-
-
archeogenetics changes everything
- By Jesse Bongfeldt on 2022-11-10
Written by: Johannes Krause, and others
-
The Rise and Reign of the Mammals
- A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We humans are the inheritors of a dynasty that has reigned over the planet for nearly 66 million years, through fiery cataclysm and ice ages: the mammals. Our lineage includes saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, armadillos the size of a car, cave bears three times the weight of a grizzly, clever scurriers that outlasted Tyrannosaurus rex, and even other types of humans, like Neanderthals.
-
-
Excellent Follow Up That Stands On It’s Own
- By Sebastian on 2022-07-12
Written by: Steve Brusatte
-
The Knowledge
- How to Rebuild Our World from Scratch
- Written by: Lewis Dartnell
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Regarded as one of the brightest young scientists of his generation, Lewis Dartnell proposes that the key to preserving civilization in an apocalyptic scenario is to provide a quickstart guide, adapted to cataclysmic circumstances. The Knowledge describes many of the modern technologies we employ, but first it explains the fundamentals upon which they are built. The Knowledge is a brilliantly original guide to the fundamentals of science and how it built our modern world as well as a thought experiment about the very idea of scientific knowledge itself.
-
-
So many great observations
- By Darcey on 2024-05-14
Written by: Lewis Dartnell
-
Empire
- Written by: Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: Sean Barrett
- Length: 15 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The British Empire was the largest in all history: the nearest thing to global domination ever achieved. The world we know today is in large measure the product of Britain's age of empire. The global spread of capitalism, telecommunications, the English language, and the institutions of representative government - all these can be traced back to the extraordinary expansion of Britain's economy, population, and culture from the 17th century until the mid-20th. On a vast and vividly colored canvas, Empire shows how the British Empire acted as midwife to modernity.
-
-
great education on British colonialism
- By daniel Froese on 2023-02-03
Written by: Niall Ferguson
-
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs
- A New History of a Lost World
- Written by: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this stunning narrative spanning more than 200 million years, Steve Brusatte, a young American paleontologist who has emerged as one of the foremost stars of the field - discovering 10 new species and leading groundbreaking scientific studies and fieldwork - masterfully tells the complete, surprising, and new history of the dinosaurs, drawing on cutting-edge science to dramatically bring to life their lost world and illuminate their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy.
-
-
Not bad
- By Mark on 2018-06-23
Written by: Steve Brusatte
-
Normandy '44
- D-Day and the Epic 77-Day Battle for France
- Written by: James Holland
- Narrated by: John Sackville
- Length: 24 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
D-Day, June 6, 1944, and the 76 days of bitter fighting in Normandy that followed the Allied landing, have become the defining episode of World War II in the west - the object of books, films, television series, and documentaries. Yet as familiar as it is, as James Holland makes clear in his definitive history, many parts of the OVERLORD campaign, as it was known, are still shrouded in myth and assumed knowledge.
-
-
Excellent
- By Kindle Customer on 2023-08-12
Written by: James Holland
-
A Short History of Humanity
- A New History of Old Europe
- Written by: Johannes Krause, Thomas Trappe, Caroline Waight - translator
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Johannes Krause is the director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and a brilliant pioneer in the field of archaeogenetics - archaeology augmented by DNA sequencing technology - which has allowed scientists to reconstruct human history reaching back hundreds of thousands of years before recorded time. In this surprising account, Krause and journalist Thomas Trappe rewrite a fascinating chapter of this history, the peopling of Europe, that takes us from the Neanderthals and Denisovans to the present.
-
-
archeogenetics changes everything
- By Jesse Bongfeldt on 2022-11-10
Written by: Johannes Krause, and others
What the critics say
"Dartnell's story is beautifully written and organized. His infectious curiosity and enthusiasm tug the reader from page to page, synthesizing geology, oceanography, meteorology, geography, palaeontology, archaeology and political history in a manner that recalls Jared Diamond's classic 1997 book Guns, Germs, and Steel." (Nature)
"The perfect blend of science and history. This is a book that will not only challenge our preconceptions about the past, but should make us think very carefully about humanity's future. Five stars." [Mail on Sunday (UK)]
"An original and timely way of looking at human history through the materials and natural resources that our species has employed to such effect. It should be read by everyone who ponders how long exploitation can continue on a finite planet." (Richard Fortey, author of Earth)
What listeners say about Origins
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jaedy
- 2019-08-10
Requisite to just about every subject!
A book that flows so well that you forget just how much information is being delivered! An essential companion to his book "the knowledge"! Will reread for sure!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Paul Rivard
- 2021-10-23
Life and earth are deeply interconnected
This is a fascinating account of the origins and development of life and civilization and its relation to the deep laws of universe and plate tectonics.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2023-01-17
Very good overview of geography and humanity
Very well researched and well thought out presentation of the origins and development of humanity. Quite entertaining too, you may have to listen to some of it a couple of times to fully understand the concepts.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!