Human Anthropology

Humans – who are we? Physically, we’re unremarkable in the animal world – a hairless ape. But somehow, in combination, our characteristics make us remarkable. How can our ears listen to this audiobook with such precision, differentiating each specific word? How can we understand the...

The Most Human Human is a provocative, exuberant, and profound exploration of the ways in which computers are reshaping our ideas of what it means to be human. Its starting point is the annual Turing Test, which pits artificial intelligence programs against people to determine if computers can...

In this landmark book of popular science, Daniel E. Lieberman—chair of the department of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University and a leader in the field—gives us a lucid and engaging account of how the human body evolved over millions of years, even as it shows how the increasing...

In Designs for the Pluriverse Arturo Escobar presents a new vision of design theory and practice aimed at channeling design's world-making capacity toward ways of being and doing t….

Brought to you by Penguin. A mind-expanding, revolutionary journey across time that shows how our biology has determined human history for the first time. This book will change how you see the world. We’re a wonder of evolution, capable of incredible feats. But we’re also deeply flawed. Our...

Can forests think? Do dogs dream? In this astonishing book, Eduardo Kohn challenges the very foundations of anthropology, calling into question our central assumptions about what it means to be human - and thus distinct from all other life forms. Based on four years of fieldwork among the Runa of Ecuador's Upper Amazon, Kohn draws on his rich ethnography to explore how Amazonians interact with the many creatures that inhabit one of the world's most complex ecosystems.

Brought to you by Penguin. A groundbreaking tour of the overlooked science of human diversity Real diversity isn’t skin deep. Over the past 100,000 years, as humans expanded into every biome on the planet, our bodies have been fine-tuned to our local environments. Our ability to adapt is at...

What kind of creature is a human? If we don't know what we are, how can we know how to act? In Being a Human, Charles Foster sets out to understand what a human is, inhabiting the sensory worlds of humans at three pivotal moments in our history.

Bloomsbury presents Design Beyond the Human, edited by Elio Caccavale and Gordon Hush, read by James Rottger. How can design shine a light on humanity’s relationship with the planet, its ecosystems and inhabitants, now and in the future? Global challenges like climate change and ecosystem...

Tomasello assembles nearly three decades of experimental work with chimpanzees, bonobos, and human children to propose a new framework for psychological growth between birth and seven years of age. Becoming Human places human sociocultural activity within the framework of modern evolutionary theory and shows how biology creates the conditions under which culture does its work.

Bronislaw Malinowski's seminal work, Sex and Repression in Savage Society, delves into the intricate dynamics of sexuality and societal control within primitive cultures. Published in 1927, this ethnographic study challenges prevailing Victorian notions of sexuality and sheds light on the nuanced ways in which indigenous societies navigate and regulate sexual behaviors. Malinowski's immersive fieldwork in the Trobriand Islands enables him to provide a rich anthropological account, exploring the role of rituals, customs, and taboos in shaping sexual practices.

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of How to be Human: The Manual written and read by Ruby Wax with Ash Ranpura and Gelong Thubten. A three way encounter between a Monk, a neuroscientist and Ruby Wax sounds like the set up for a joke. Instead it's produced one of the most fascinating...

A leading neuroscientist offers a history of the evolution of the brain from unicellular organisms to the complexity of animals and human beings today Renowned neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux digs into the natural history of life on earth to provide a new perspective on the similarities between us...

From one of America's most celebrated psychiatrists, the book that has taught generations of healers why healing the sick is about more than just diagnosing their illness. Modern medicine treats sick patients like broken machines -- figure out what is physically wrong, fix it, and send the...

The Mind of the Market will change the way we think about the economics of everyday life. Drawing on research from neuroeconomics, Michael Shermer explores what brain scans reveal about bargaining, snap purchases, and how trust is established in business. Utilizing experiments in behavioral economics, Shermer shows why people hang on to losing stocks and failing companies, why business negotiations often disintegrate into emotional tit-for-tat disputes, and why money does not make us happy.

Audiobook narrated by the author. “A spellbinding tour de force!” —Walter Scheidel, author of What Is Ancient History? “This is non-fiction storytelling at its finest.” —Eric H. Cline, author of 1177 B.C. The creator of the hit podcast Tides of History offers a new look at...

Viruses are the world's most abundant life form, and now, when humanity is in the midst of a close encounter with their immense power, perhaps the most feared. But do we understand viruses? Possibly the most enigmatic of living things, they are sometimes not considered a life form at all...

Brought to you by Penguin. Violence is often regarded as an unavoidable fact of life. The truth is far more hopeful: violence is a disease that can be cured. Drawing on decades spent fighting infectious disease before founding Cure Violence Global, Dr Gary Slutkin shows that violence behaves...

'Safety' for women in India is, more often than not, coded as curtailment of autonomy. To be 'safe', women are told they must allow themselves to be kept under constant surveillance. Their movement is restricted to specific spaces, often homes and hostels. Extreme levels of control are exercised...

Brought to you by Penguin. WINNER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY INSIGHT INVESTMENT SCIENCE BOOK PRIZE 2020 Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of eight, Dr Camilla Pang struggled to understand the world around her. Desperate for a solution, Camilla asked her mother if there was an...