Foragers, farmers, and fossil fuels

Ian Morris argues that fundamental long-term changes in human values are driven by the most basic force of all: energy.

He explains how different energy sources—foraging, farming, and fossil fuels—have set strict limits on what kinds of societies can succeed and which values are rewarded.

The book includes responses from various scholars, including Margaret Atwood, Christine Korsgaard, Richard Seaford, and Jonathan Spence, and it has far-reaching implications for understanding the past and the future of human values.