#238

Mentioned in 62 episodes

Guns, germs, and steel

The Fates of Human Societies

Book • 1991

(MEI )DAI MENG DE (Diamond J. ) XIE YAN GUANG YI

In this book, Jared Diamond explains why Eurasian and North African civilizations have survived and conquered others.

He argues that differences in societal development arise primarily from geographical causes.

The book details how agricultural societies developed immunities to deadly diseases, advanced in technology, and formed centralized political structures, ultimately leading to the conquest of other societies.

Diamond also discusses the impact of germs, domesticated animals, and environmental factors on human history.

Mentioned by

Yuval Noah Harari

Patrick O'Shaughnessy

Haviv Rettig Gur

Mentioned in 62 episodes

Mentioned by Eric Weinstein as an example of a book that connected existing ideas in a novel way.

#833 - Eric Weinstein - Are We On The Brink Of A Revolution?

Mentioned by

Robert Greene

as an author whose work he finds insightful and well-written.

#35 Robert Greene: Alive Time vs. Dead Time

Mentioned by

Bryan Callen

in the context of a discussion about human behavior and resource scarcity.

#2257 - Bryan Callen

Mentioned by

Rutger Bregman

as a book he loved, referencing the author's work on historical questions.

#412 — Better Things & Better People

Mentioned by

Yuval Noah Harari

and Steve Levitt in relation to its impact on Harari's decision to write Sapiens.

528. Yuval Noah Harari Thinks Life is Meaningless and Amazing

Mentioned by

Noah Smith

when discussing the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs and Incas.

AGI Thought Experiment with Dwarkesh Patel, Noah Smith, and Erik Torenberg | From the a16z Podcast

Mentioned by

Steve Levitt

as a book that inspired Yuval Noah Harari to write Sapiens.

84. Yuval Noah Harari Thinks Life Is Meaningless and Amazing

Mentioned by

Stewart Brand

as an author whose work explores the rise and fall of civilizations.

#281: Stewart Brand - The Polymath of Polymaths

Recommended by Charlie Munger for its insightful approach to problem-solving.

TIP718: Buffett & Munger Unscripted by Alex Morris

Mentioned by Brian Muraresku when discussing the 'great leap forward' in human history.

#211 – Brian Muraresku: The Secret History of Psychedelics

Recommended by

Scott Galloway

as a good starting point to learn about history.

Are Meta Ads a Scam? Marketing Without a Degree, and What Right-Wing Podcasts Get Right

Mentioned by

Tyler Cowen

as an example of a nonfiction book that had a lot of impact.

Kyla Scanlon on Communicating Economic Ideas through Social Media

Mentioned by

Chip Wilson

as a book he enjoyed, providing insights into the development of human societies.

#514: Chip Wilson — Building Lululemon, The Art of Setting Goals, and The 10 Great Decisions of Your Life

Mentioned by

Raoul Pal

in the context of discussing complex adaptive societies and the role of community in tokenization.

Crypto Secrets for Building Wealth in the Bitcoin Era | Raoul Pal (Archived Episode)

Mentioned by

Kara Swisher

as a book she recommends.

Twitter Payments, Financial Illiteracy, and the Out-of-Touch Elite

Mentioned by

Rutger Bregman

as a book he loved, referencing its exploration of historical questions.

#412 - Better Things & Better People

Mentioned by

Taimur Abdaal

as an example of a history book that attempts to answer broad questions about societal development.

Taimur Discovers the Value of History

Mentioned by

Patrick O'Shaughnessy

, who references the author's time with indigenous people in Papua New Guinea.

Masters in Business: OSAM Patrick O’Shaughnessy (Audio)

Mentioned by

Raoul Pal

in the context of complex adaptive societies and the role of money in binding them together.

Survive the Global Recession and Build Massive Wealth | Raoul Pal (Replay)

Mentioned by

Haviv Rettig Gur

when discussing asking questions about societal differences.

Episode 30: How the Middle East broke, a conversation with Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

The AI-powered Podcast Player

Save insights by tapping your headphones, chat with episodes, discover the best highlights - and more!

App store banner

Play store banner