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Author:   John M. Gowdy (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, New York)
Publisher:   Cambridge University Press
Imprint:   Cambridge University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 16.00cm , Height: 2.00cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.560kg
ISBN:  

9781108838269

ISBN 10:   110883826
Pages:   282
Publication Date:   26 August 2021
Audience:   General/trade ,  College/higher education ,  General ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In stock  
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Table of Contents

Part I. The Evolution of Human Ultrasociality: 1. The Ultrasocial Origin of our Existential Crisis; 2. The Evolution of Ultrasociality in Humans and Social Insects; 3. Our Hunter-Gatherer Heritage and the Evolution of Human Nature; 4. The Agricultural Transition and how it Changed our Species; Part II. The Rise and Consolidation of State/Market Societies: 5. The Rise of State Societies; 6. The Modern State/Market Superorganism; 7. Neoliberalism: The Ideology of the Superorganism; Part III. Back to the Future: 8. Taming the Market: A Minimal Bioeconomic Program; 9. Evolving a Sustainable and Equitable Future: What can we learn from Non-Market Cultures?; 10. Reclaiming Human Nature: The Future will be Better (Eventually); Index.

Reviews

'Building on fresh understandings of evolution, this amazing book revolutionizes our understanding of the past and explores a future in which our humanity may be rekindled on a planet likely to be too hot to sustain conventional agriculture. A tour de force.' Peter G. Brown, McGill University 'The evolutionary economist John Gowdy has written a grand narrative tracing how over thousands of years the global human society has become complex, stratified, and interconnected, turning into a vast self-regulating superorganism. And now this superorganism has fallen prey to the ideological virus of neoliberalism, which subordinates the well-being of individuals to the needs of the global market. Ultimately, Ultrasocial is a scathing indictment of neoliberal ideology and market fundamentalism from the evolutionary point of view.' Peter Turchin, University of Connecticut and author of Ultrasociety: How 10,000 Years of War Made Humans the Greatest Cooperators on Earth 'Gowdy puts forward the provocative case that as we came under the yoke of states, humans became closer to ants and termites. Individually we may still be social primates, but collectively we are now closer to a leafcutter ant colony. A stimulating read that reworks the fabric of history away from a simple narrative of increasing complexity and prosperity, to one in which we have traded autonomy and humanity for power. A book that might just change your mind on what it means to be human.' Luke Kemp, Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, University of Cambridge 'In this highly original, stimulating, and provocative interdisciplinary analysis, John Gowdy bridges the agricultural societies of African mound-building termites and fungus-gardening ants with human nature to generate deep insights into modern economics and sustainability.' James Traniello, Boston University

'Building on fresh understandings of evolution, this amazing book revolutionizes our understanding of the past and explores a future in which our humanity may be rekindled on a planet likely to be too hot to sustain conventional agriculture. A tour de force.' Peter G. Brown, McGill University 'The evolutionary economist John Gowdy has written a grand narrative tracing how over thousands of years the global human society has become complex, stratified, and interconnected, turning into a vast self-regulating superorganism. And now this superorganism has fallen prey to the ideological virus of neoliberalism, which subordinates the well-being of individuals to the needs of the global market. Ultimately, Ultrasocial is a scathing indictment of neoliberal ideology and market fundamentalism from the evolutionary point of view.' Peter Turchin, University of Connecticut and author of Ultrasociety: How 10,000 Years of War Made Humans the Greatest Cooperators on Earth 'Gowdy puts forward the provocative case that as we came under the yoke of states, humans became closer to ants and termites. Individually we may still be social primates, but collectively we are now closer to a leafcutter ant colony. A stimulating read that reworks the fabric of history away from a simple narrative of increasing complexity and prosperity, to one in which we have traded autonomy and humanity for power. A book that might just change your mind on what it means to be human.' Luke Kemp, Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, University of Cambridge 'In this highly original, stimulating, and provocative interdisciplinary analysis, John Gowdy bridges the agricultural societies of African mound-building termites and fungus-gardening ants with human nature to generate deep insights into modern economics and sustainability.' James Traniello, Boston University

Author Information

John Gowdy is Emeritus Professor of Economics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he served as Chair of the Department of Economics and as Graduate Director of the Ecological Economics program. He was previously a Leverhulme Professor at Leeds University and a Fulbright Professor at the Economic University of Vienna.

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