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  • The Social Leap

  • The New Evolutionary Science of Who We Are, Where We Come from, and What Makes Us Happy
  • Written by: William von Hippel
  • Narrated by: Michael David Axtell
  • Length: 8 hrs and 36 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (44 ratings)

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The Social Leap

Written by: William von Hippel
Narrated by: Michael David Axtell
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Publisher's Summary

In the compelling popular science tradition of Sapiens and Guns, Germs, and Steel, a groundbreaking and eye-opening exploration that applies evolutionary science to provide a new perspective on human psychology, revealing how major challenges from our past have shaped some of the most fundamental aspects of our being.

The most fundamental aspects of our lives - from leadership and innovation to aggression and happiness - were permanently altered by the "social leap" our ancestors made from the rain forest to the Savannah. Their struggle to survive on the open grasslands required a shift from individualism to a new form of collectivism, which forever altered the way our mind works. It changed the way we fight and our proclivity to make peace, it changed the way we lead and the way we follow, it made us innovative but not inventive, it created a new kind of social intelligence, and it led to new sources of life satisfaction.

In The Social Leap, William von Hippel lays out this revolutionary hypothesis, tracing human development through three critical evolutionary inflection points to explain how events in our distant past shape our lives today. From the mundane, such as why we exaggerate, to the surprising, such as why we believe our own lies and why fame and fortune are as likely to bring misery as happiness, the implications are far-reaching and extraordinary.

Blending anthropology, biology, history, and psychology with evolutionary science, The Social Leap is a fresh and provocative look at our species that provides new clues about who we are, what makes us happy, and how to use this knowledge to improve our lives.

©2018 William von Hippel (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers

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interesting concepts

Interesting concepts and seeded alot of good ideas in my head about human behavior and our evolution but I thought it would be more about human evolution then about modern humans and why are the way we are. Don't get me wrong, I am very glad to have read this book and if you are interested in the mind and physcolgy you will be too !

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Evolutionary psychology put simply

I love reading about human evolutionary psychology and this is probably my new favourite book on the subject. He explains concepts in a way that I think most people could understand, and the story, that is, our own evolution, is extremely compelling! Awesome read!

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