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Summary Evolution of Humankind - UvA

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  • Course
  • Evolution of Humankind (73310005BY)
  • Institution
  • Universiteit Van Amsterdam (UvA)
  • Book
  • Sapiens

The key concepts from the lecture and the book 'Sapiens' by Yuval Noah Harari are explained, and important notes are added. The lecturer of the course is dr. Jeroen P. Bruggeman.

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Document information

  • No
  • The most important parts and arguments are connected to the course.
  • October 31, 2023
  • 28
  • 2022/2023
  • Summary

Subjects

  • evolution
  • genes
  • trade off
  • culture
  • foragers
  • religion
  • brokerage and patronage
  • institutions
  • capitalism
  • imperialism
  • industrialisation
  • harari
  • sapiens
  • polarisation
  • history

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More summaries for

  • Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari - Part 4: The Scientific Revolution
  • Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari - Part 3: The Unification of Humankind
  • Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari - Part 2: The Agricultural Revolution
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  • Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA)
  • Sociologie
  • Evolution of Humankind (73310005BY)
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Key concepts: Evolution of Humankind
 The three C’s (most important social phenomena’s):
o Culture: for most of what we do, we use information given by others.
o Cooperation: most of what we achieve, is with (in)direct help from
others.
o Conflict: most of our problems are due to (in)direct conflicts with others.
 Evolutionary theory:
o Offers a coherent outlook on history, explains the making, diffusion,
use, and demise of culture, integrates it with genetic evolution,
cooperation, and conflict, and with all finding by other (social) sciences.
o Many contemporary problems are incomprehensible without historical
perspective, and evolution makes history coherent.
 The tree of biology:
o The tree of life or universal tree of life is a metaphor, model and
research tool used to explore the evolution of life and describe the
relationships between organisms, both living and extinct, as described
in a famous passage in Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species.
(Google)
o The tree consists of species as elements, not as individual organisms.
 Darwin’s evolution theory:
o Darwin proposed that species can change over time, that new species
come from pre-existing species, and that all species share a common
ancestor. (Google)
o Darwin had no knowledge of genes.
 The evolution of genes:
o (1) New genes due to reproduction of necessary genes with random
and parental combinations that increase genetic variation (also
mutations).  (2) The new individuals enter their environment,
compete, and cooperate for resources, those well adapted individuals
(through genes and learning) are positively selected.  (3) Outflow of
negatively selected and survivor’s offspring change the environment
wherein the next generation reproduces.
 Spencer’s survival of the fittest theory:
o As Spencer viewed human evolution, he postulated that successful
individuals deserve their rewards and unsuccessful individuals deserve
their failures. (Google)
 Tree of culture:
o Cultural evolution as a network: tree-like network with cross-cutting
branches.
o Latest branches in the cultural tree are internet and social media.
 Trade-off:
o Wanting two useful properties/aspects at the same time. For example,
wanting to be a good specialist and a good generalist, one will cost the
other.  The more you specialise, the less time to be generalist. 
This consideration is called a trade-off.

, Culture:
o Those aspects of thought, speech, behaviour, and artifacts which are
learned and transmitted.
o Human cultures became to take shape about 70.000 years ago
(Harari).
o Without cooperation we would have almost no culture, because nobody
would explain anything to us.
 Cultural element:
o Chunks of information learnt through culture.
 Evolution of culture:
o (1a) Combination of cultural elements into new elements (with random
effects).  (1b) Transmitted to others.  (2) Culture users interact,
also with things. They select cultural elements, and some culture then
affects survival.  (3) Elements that are created, kept, discarded or
forgotten change socio-cultural and natural environments.
o Step (1b) and (2) happen simultaneously.
o Cultural adaption much faster than genetic adaption.
 Cultural selection:
o Cultural selection theory explains why certain cultures or cultural
elements spread, possibly at the expense of other cultures or cultural
elements which then disappear. Cultural elements include social
structure, traditions, religion, rituals, art, norms, morals, ideologies,
ideas, inventions, knowledge, technology, etc. This theory is inspired by
Charles Darwin's idea of natural selection, because cultural elements
are seen as analogous to genes in the sense that they may be
reproduced from generation to generation and they may undergo
change. A culture may evolve because certain cultural elements are
more likely to spread and be reproduced than others, analogously to a
species evolving because individuals possessing certain traits are more
fit than others to reproduce and transmit these traits to their offspring.
(Google)
 Gene-culture co-evolution:
o Genes and culture are two complementary information systems that
humans use to survive.
o Genes predispose people to behave receptive to culture, but rarely
determine adult behaviour directly. The effect of culture on behaviour is
much stronger.
o Culture is not completely independent from genes.
 Cultural rules that are more or less align with genes (instincts)
are much easier to maintain.
 Culture also effects hormones, neurotransmitters, and brain
wiring, which affect behaviour.
o New-borns act entirely on instincts: genetically based action programs
in response to environmental/internal stimuli.
 Most instincts are culturally shaped in childhood.
o Cooperation is a driving force of evolution.

,  The Homo Sapiens:
o The oldest humans found so far were in Morocco.
o The Sapiens wandered almost the whole world, to America, until
walking was no longer possible (15.000 years ago).
 The settling of America – across the Siberian peninsula through
Alaska into Canada and the United States down through Mexico
and Central America into the Andes and the Amazon and all the
way to the tip of South America – was one of the most rapid and
incredible invasions by a single species the world has ever seen.
(Harari)
o Harari believes it is unlikely that Homo Sapiens will survive for another
1000 years.
o As far as we know, only Homo Sapiens can talk about things they have
never seen, touched or smelled (religions, myths, legends and
fantasies) (Harari).
o Homo Sapiens are the only animals that conduct trade (Harari).
 The Neanderthals (400.000 – 40.000 BE):
o Neanderthals lived in Africa and Europe; they were no longer in Africa
when the Homo Sapiens entered the scene.
 The Neanderthals in Europe became whiter, due to a lack of
vitamin D (less nutritious food),  which caused more sunburns
(less protection for UV radiation).
o Neanderthals lived in patrilocal groups.
o Neanderthals were culturally same advanced as the Homo Sapiens, but
Neanderthals had larger brains, and there is no evidence that they
could count.
o Possible reasons for the disappearance of the Neanderthals (and other
species):
 The Homo Sapiens outcompeted them.
 They died from infectious diseases that the Homo Sapiens
brought from Africa.
 They were in too small groups, and incest is possible.
 It could be a combination of all these factors.
 Interbreeding Theory (Harari, p. 15)
 Replacement Theory (Harari, p. 16)
 Cultural toolkits:
o Tools used by foragers to adapt to their environments.
 Innovations by foragers:
o Refined stone tools.
o Projectile weapons (bow and arrow).
o Boats? (Humans arrived in Australia).
 Humans travelling across the sea and landing in Australia was
one of the most important expeditions in history. It marked the
moment humans cemented themselves at the top of the food
chain.
 Men killed almost all the large animals on the continent.

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