By Steppe, Desert, and OceanBarry W. Cunliffe
By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean
3mentions
3recommended by
3HN commenters
2020–2022first – last mentioned
100% recommend
By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean is nothing less than the story of how humans first started building the globalized world we know today. Set on a huge continental stage, from Europe to China, it is a tale covering over 10,000 years, from the origins of farming around 9000 BC to the expansion of the Mongols in the thirteenth century AD. An unashamedly "big history", it charts the development of European, Near Eastern, and Chinese civilizations and the growing links between them by way of the Indian Ocean, the silk Roads, and the great steppe corridor (which crucially allowed horse riders to trav
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
…some really bad examples, some things to avoid? For example, here's what I think is an excellent popular history book, and if I ever wrote something with a historical bent, I'd flip though it first: "By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean: The Birth of Eurasia" by Barry Cunliffe https://www.amazon.com/Steppe-Desert-Ocean-Birth-Eurasia/dp/... The point about Twitter is really this: you have to develop the skill of composing a paragraph…
on “How to write more clearly, think more clearly, and learn complex material [pdf]” ↗I'm part-way through "By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean: The Birth of Eurasia" [0] and it does a fantastic job of illustrating the significance of markets in the ancient world. One tidbit that struck me as particularly interesting was that the appearance of…
on “Scrap for cash: Bronze Age witnessed revolution in small change across Europe” ↗…maybe go out and give some of it a try :) If you care for recommendations: For philosophy, I recommend "What does it all mean" by Thomas Nagel. I don't have a great recommendation for History - I like "By Steppe, Desert and Ocean", but it's incomplete & somewhat eurocentric. True world history in a single book is probably asking a bit much. Same goes for literature, but even more so - it's really a matter of taste. I adore "The…
on “Mozilla Wants Young People to Consider ‘Ethical Issues’ Before Taking Tech Jobs” ↗