Big History
by David Christian · first published 2008
13mentions
2recommended by
7HN commenters
2014–2024first – last mentioned
29% recommend71% neutral
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
…Karl Polanyi, The Great Transformation. The Industrial Revolution and emergence of the modern technological world. http://www.worldcat.org/title/origins-of-our-time-the-great-... David Christian, Big History. This goes back somewhat before ancient times, to the Big Bang. http://www.worldcat.org/title/big-history/oclc/940282526&ref... Add to that a good overall outline. H.G. Wells, Outline of History is…
on “Ask HN: Which are the best books on history from ancient times to present?” ↗If you'd like a slightly more detailed, but still-manageable version of this, I strongly recommend David Christian's Big History. It's the story of history, from the Big Bang to the present. Wikipedia overview: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_History Book (one of many): https://www.worldcat.org/title/origin-story-a-big-history-of...…
on “Timeline of the Human Condition” ↗Book Titles > Leonardo da Vinci, by Walter Isaacson. > Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I’ve Loved, by Kate Bowler > Lincoln in the Bardo, by George Saunders. > Origin Story: A Big History of Everything, by David Christian. > Factfulness, by Hans Rosling, with Ola Rosling and Anna Rosling Ronnlund. He goes in depth on why he recommends them on the gatesnotes website.
on “Books worth reading this summer” ↗Not offhand, though Nick Lane's books come highly recommended and are on my own rather expansive reading pile.... David Christian's "Big History" looks at the past through large frame, and includes the concepts of which I'm discussing. Otherwise, I've pieced together my understanding from many sourcesl
on “Earliest forest discovered, scientists say” ↗…Christian's history for my own uses, I know little about the quality of his work besides his endorsement by Gates (who is very smart but not an expert in these fields). Before I spend a lot of time on Big History, does anyone know: 1) What is David Christian's professional reputation among his peers? 2) What do professional historians see as the strengths and weaknesses of Big History? 3) Does he really know…
on “Bill Gates Has an Idea for a History Class” ↗…because it's complex. Modern human society on Earth is the most complex thing in the history of the known universe. Complex things, though, tend to be very fragile. (paraphrased from David Christian's "Big History" Great Courses lecture)
on “Is Life Special Just Because It’s Rare?” ↗Such as? Here is David's Christian's ranking of complexity in the Universe: http://padlet.com/dpetersen/c6c8g49ynt19 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_History#Complexity.2C_ener...
on “Is Life Special Just Because It’s Rare?” ↗Your systems-as-a-lingua-franca suggestion seems straight up David Christian's "Big History" concept: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_History "Big History is an emerging academic discipline which examines history from the Big Bang to the present. It examines long time frames using a multidisciplinary…
on “Alan Kay has agreed to do an AMA today” ↗…dismiss the thought. Still, the process is clearly cumulative. You might also like to poke around at the History of Information website: http://www.historyofinformation.com/ Also David Christian's "Big History" concept: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_History
on “The Paradox of the Elephant Brain” ↗…The Odyssey by Homer [great courses] 7. Elizabeth Vandiver: The Aeneid by Virgil [great courses] 8. Robert Greenberg: Great Masters: Liszt - His Life and Music [great courses] 9. David Christian: Big History [great courses] 10. Robert Greenberg: Great Masters: Robert and Clara Schumann - Their Lives and Music [great courses] 11. Steven Novella: Your Deceptive Mind: A Scientific Guide to Critical Thinking…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2015?” ↗I wonder how Origin Story: A Big History of Everything by David Christian compares to A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson. Otherwise, if anyone is looking for other recommendations for summer reading: - Sculpting in Time by…
on “Books worth reading this summer” ↗…historians who apply a scientific perspective, and identify with the soccial, or at times, physical, sciences. Peter Turchin: https://evolution-institute.org/profile/peter-turchin/ David Christian (Big History) and Kyle Harper (U. OK) comee to mind. Economic's and economists' record wwith historical data and theory is an exceptionally poor standard to follow. (There are some exceptions to the rule.)
on “The Case for Applied History” ↗Great adage. It's from David Christian in Origin Story: A Big History of Everything, but really it's just a paraphrasing of Einstein, who compared knowledge to a circle, and referred to the circumference of darkness, rather than the unknown.
on “No-one knows what they are doing” ↗