Category: History

Book Review of 1491: NEW REVELATIONS OF THE AMERICAS BEFORE COLUMBUS by Charles C. Mann (2005)

1491 is a summary of recent changes in (scholarly) understanding of the peoples in the Americas immediately before Columbus. Part I argues that there were many more people here than you think. Part II argues that they got here much earlier than you think. Part III argues that they had a much larger impact on the environment than you think. The new understanding of the Americas is really cool. I just wish that the book had been written by one of the scientists, instead of a professional popular science writer. It is obvious to me, from reading it, that the author is not and never has been a scientist.

Book Review of CAPITAL IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY by Thomas Piketty (2012)

Piketty has written a data-driven book on economic history, which is accessible to a broad audience. The book is full of graphs (even more so than this review) and involves calculations and equations in its arguments. In my opinion, this makes it a better work of scholarship than most other books about history. As with most (all?) books on economics, there is a political bias. What bias? Well, this is a book with the word ‘Capital’ written in big red letters across the cover. It has been politically influential. Piketty convinced Elizabeth Warren to advocate for a wealth tax. The power of capital, relative to income, fell dramatically during the World Wars and Great Depression. Since then, capital has been making a comeback. Piketty expects this trend to continue. The growth of capital is inherently faster than the growth of income in a capitalist society, except during major crises like World Wars. To counteract this, Piketty proposes a global tax on wealth.

Book Review of THE HORSE, THE WHEEL, AND LANGUAGE by David W. Anthony (2007)

Indo-European is by far the most successful language family. Of the 15 most commonly spoken languages, 10 are Indo-European. This is not just a result of European colonialism: through most of history, including today, the largest Indo-European state has been centered in either India or Persia. Who were the original Indo-Europeans? How did they come to such dominance?

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