The Social Leap

The New Evolutionary Science of Who We Are, Where We Come From, and What Makes Us Happy

By: William von Hippel

Narrated by: Michael David Axtell

In the compelling popular science tradition of Sapiens and Guns, Germs, and Steel, a groundbreaking and eye-opening exploration that applies evolutionary science to provide a new perspective on human psychology, revealing how major challenges from our past have shaped some of the most fundamental aspects of our being.

The most fundamental aspects of our lives—from leadership and innovation to aggression and happiness—were permanently altered by the ""social leap"" our ancestors made from the rainforest to the savannah. Their struggle to survive on the open grasslands required a shift from individualism to a new form of collectivism, which forever altered the way our mind works. It changed the way we fight and our proclivity to make peace, it changed the way we lead and the way we follow, it made us innovative but not inventive, it created a new kind of social intelligence, and it led to new sources of life satisfaction.

In The Social Leap, William von Hippel lays out this revolutionary hypothesis, tracing human development through three critical evolutionary inflection points to explain how events in our distant past shape our lives today. From the mundane, such as why we exaggerate, to the surprising, such as why we believe our own lies and why fame and fortune are as likely to bring misery as happiness, the implications are far reaching and extraordinary.

Blending anthropology, biology, history, and psychology with evolutionary science, The Social Leap is a fresh and provocative look at our species that provides new clues about who we are, what makes us happy, and how to use this knowledge to improve our lives.

Great science reading, but with some hesitations.

Great science, great telling. Obviously the focus of much of this book is on the benefits of being social as a human. I think the only drawback is perhaps a superficial treatment and unfortunate referrals to those who are introverts or perhaps suffer from depression as curmudgeons. He use that word which is unfortunate so I think there could be better treatment to the listener who simply is not an extrovert and without treating that introversion as some type of disorder. I am thinking of the book QUIET as an antidote to this type of thinking.

When did humans start acting like humans?

This book looks to answer that question and follows human behaviors back to their evolutionary first occurrence. then comes full circle to point out how our unique evolution has guided our species over the world. very much in the vein of sapiens

eye opener!

I feel like I know so much more info about the beginning of man than I ever have. it really helped me see things outside of the box I grew up in. loved it!

I Loved This Book

I saw William von Hippel on the Joe Rogan podcast and knew I had to read his book. This is an excellent book with a lot of interesting information that possibly explains the exact reasons that humans are the way that we are.

Interesting. Very well put and easy to understand

Great book. A must read for anybody that is curious about where we come from and why we are the way we are.