Tested against archaeological evidence, this pathbreaking and provocative book shows we still inhabit social worlds that originated deep in our evolutionary past. Our virtual contact lists, whether on Facebook or Twitter, are on average about 150 - the so-called'Dunbar's Number'- some three times the size of those of apes and our early ancestors. - When and how did the brains of our hominin ancestors become human minds? - When and why did our capacity for language or art, music and dance evolve? The fruits of over seven years of research,'Thinking Big'suggests that it was the need for early humans to live in ever-larger social groups that drove the enlargement of the human brain and the development of the human mind. The three authors are co-directors of the research project'Lucy to Language'the Archaeology of the Social Brain'.''Thinking Big'is destined to become a classic'- Brian Fagan, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, University of California.

Gamble, Clive, author; Gowlett, John, author; Dunbar, R. I. M. (Robin Ian MacDonald), 1947-, author

Clive Gamble, John Gowlett and Robin Dunbar, 57 illustrations

Clive Gamble; Robin I.M. Dunbar; John Gowlett

Dunbar, Robin, Gamble, Clive, Gowlett, John

Robin Dunbar; Clive Gamble; John Gowlett

London: Thames & Hudson

Hansjorg Mayer

W. W. Norton

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

First published, London, © 2014

London, England, 2014

Illustrated, 2014

3, 20140617

PT, 2014

Includes bibliographical references (pages 205-215) and index.

A closer look at genealogy, incorporating how biological, anthropological, and technical factors can influence human lives We are at a pivotal moment in understanding our remote ancestry and its implications for how we live today. The barriers to what we can know about our distant relatives have been falling as a result of scientific advance, such as decoding the genomes of humans and Neanderthals, and bringing together different perspectives to answer common questions. These collaborations have brought new knowledge and suggested fresh concepts to examine. The results have shaken the old certainties. The results are profound; not just for the study of the past but for appreciating why we conduct our social lives in ways, and at scales, that are familiar to all of us. But such basic familiarity raises a dilemma. When surrounded by the myriad technical and cultural innovations that support our global, urbanized lifestyles we can lose sight of the small social worlds we actually inhabit and that can be traced deep into our ancestry. So why do we need art, religion, music, kinship, myths, and all the other facets of our over-active imaginations if the reality of our effective social worlds is set by a limit of some one hundred and fifty partners (Dunbar’s number) made of family, friends, and useful acquaintances? How could such a social community lead to a city the size of London or a country as large as China? Do we really carry our hominin past into our human present? It is these small worlds, and the link they allow to the study of the past that forms the central point in this book.

When And How Did The Brains Of Our Hominin Ancestors Become Human Minds? When And Why Did Our Capacity For Language Or Art, Music And Dance Evolve? It Is The Contention Of This Pathbreaking And Provocative Book That It Was The Need For Early Humans To Live In Ever-larger Social Groups, And To Maintain Social Relations Over Ever-greater Distances The Ability To Think Big That Drove The Enlargement Of The Human Brain And The Development Of The Human Mind. This Social Brain Hypothesis, Put Forward By Evolutionary Psychologists Such As Robin Dunbar, One Of The Authors Of This Book, Can Be Tested Against Archaeological And Fossil Evidence, As Archaeologists Clive Gamble And John Gowlett Show In The Second Part Of Thinking Big. Along The Way, The Three Authors Touch On Subjects As Diverse And Diverting As The Switch From Finger-tip Grooming To Vocal Grooming Or The Crucial Importance Of Making Fire For The Lengthening Of The Social Day. Ultimately, The Social Worlds We Inhabit Today Can Be Traced Back To Our Stone Age Ancestors. Psychology Meets Archaeology -- What It Means To Be Social -- Ancient Social Lives -- Ancestors With Small Brains -- Building The Human Niche : Three Crucial Skills -- Ancestors With Large Brains -- Living In Big Societies. Clive Gamble, John Gowlett And Robin Dunbar, 57 Illustrations. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 205-215) And Index.

Tested against archaeological evidence, this pathbreaking and provocative book shows we still inhabit social worlds that originated deep in our evolutionary past. Our virtual contact lists, whether on Facebook or Twitter, are on average about 150 - the so-called 'Dunbar's Number' - some three times the size of those of apes and our early ancestors

When and how did the brains of our hominin ancestors become human minds? When and why did our capacity for language or art, music and dance evolve? This book deals with these questions.

224 pages ; 25 cm
Includes bibliographical references and index

2024-07-01