The Social Instinct: How Cooperation Shaped the World
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- Author：Nichola Raihani
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Summary
In the tradition of Richard Dawkins's The Selfish Gene， Nichola Raihani's The Social Instinct is a profound and engaging look at the hidden relationships underpinning human evolution， and why cooperation is key to our future survival。
Cooperation is the means by which life arose in the first place。 It’s how we progressed through scale and complexity， from free-floating strands of genetic material， to nation states。 But given what we know about the mechanisms of evolution， cooperation is also something of a puzzle。 How does cooperation begin， when on a Darwinian level， all that the genes in your body care about is being passed on to the next generation？ Why do meerkat colonies care for one another’s children？ Why do babbler birds in the Kalahari form colonies in which only a single pair breeds？ And how come some coral wrasse fish actually punish each other for harming fish from another species？
A biologist by training， Raihani looks at where and how collaborative behavior emerges throughout the animal kingdom， and what problems it solves。 She reveals that the species that exhibit cooperative behavior–teaching， helping， grooming， and self-sacrifice–most similar to our own tend not to be other apes; they are birds， insects， and fish， occupying far more distant branches of the evolutionary tree。 By understanding the problems they face， and how they cooperate to solve them， we can glimpse how human cooperation first evolved。 And we can also understand what it is about the way we cooperate that has made humans so distinctive–and so successful。
Cooperation is the means by which life arose in the first place。 It’s how we progressed through scale and complexity， from free-floating strands of genetic material， to nation states。 But given what we know about the mechanisms of evolution， cooperation is also something of a puzzle。 How does cooperation begin， when on a Darwinian level， all that the genes in your body care about is being passed on to the next generation？ Why do meerkat colonies care for one another’s children？ Why do babbler birds in the Kalahari form colonies in which only a single pair breeds？ And how come some coral wrasse fish actually punish each other for harming fish from another species？
A biologist by training， Raihani looks at where and how collaborative behavior emerges throughout the animal kingdom， and what problems it solves。 She reveals that the species that exhibit cooperative behavior–teaching， helping， grooming， and self-sacrifice–most similar to our own tend not to be other apes; they are birds， insects， and fish， occupying far more distant branches of the evolutionary tree。 By understanding the problems they face， and how they cooperate to solve them， we can glimpse how human cooperation first evolved。 And we can also understand what it is about the way we cooperate that has made humans so distinctive–and so successful。
Reviews
Kristine Mckenna
，
The Social Instinct-How Cooperation Shaped the World is an incredibly complex and important book that breaks down Cooperative Behavior from the smallest~down to cellular DNA and the earliest involving Darwinism and Evolution~to the Largest where Cooperation is spoken about on a Global Scale。 The author is extremely intelligent and is an Evolutionary Biologist with years of experience and practice in this field。 So， some of the material I did find a lot to take in。 I actually took 6 pages of note The Social Instinct-How Cooperation Shaped the World is an incredibly complex and important book that breaks down Cooperative Behavior from the smallest~down to cellular DNA and the earliest involving Darwinism and Evolution~to the Largest where Cooperation is spoken about on a Global Scale。 The author is extremely intelligent and is an Evolutionary Biologist with years of experience and practice in this field。 So， some of the material I did find a lot to take in。 I actually took 6 pages of notes。 I do love to learn new facts and certainly feel I achieved a much broader knowledge of how our individual systems work and large scale systems function。 So， any mistakes made in this review are mine alone。 The book is helpful as it is broken down into 4 individual areas。 1。 The Making of You and Me。， 2。 The Family Way， 3。 Widening the Net， 4。 A Different Kind of Ape。 The Making of You and Me was the most technical and scientific。 I did struggle to keep all these facts straight。 At the core， we are made up of DNA。 Still， most would consider humans to be individual from our DNA， even though it is functions as a collaborative force。 Also， we are not considered a solely functioning Collaborative Species at all times， but as an individual unit。 Ants， on the other hand are thought of as a collaborative species， as they could not function if they did not each have a role in the group。 This is true of bees as well。 So， from the start collaboration between cells also can cause conflict。 Genes will function to provide for the whole unit， but there are selfish gene variants。 These genes want to look after themselves and get the greatest advantage。 The solution becomes cooperation from gene groups that put a stop to this self-serving gene。 The same is true with cancer， as tumors grow because diverse cell groups help each other out。 Cooperation does not always bring a rewarding outcome。 2。 The Family Way。 Social Activity is essential， but varies based on the species。 Many examples were given using Chimps， Yellow-Billed Hambill， and Birds。 Usually， evolution or circumstance makes us behave in ways conducive to having off-spring。 Most species， the Mother is the primary caregiver。 Still， in Australia men were convicts and outnumbered women 16-1。 This made them change their behavior to be very active in looking after the female and then looking after their children。 This remains the Cultural Norm today。 Concept of Cooperative Breeding is discussed。 When extended family and older sibling help out， the outcome is usually better。 It is a relatively new concept that the Mother must be alone with her children。 Many studies have shown that Cooperative Help， such a Day Care and Child Groups are more beneficial to children。 3。 Widening the Net。 We may be the only species capable of Empathy and Wanting to Alleviate the Other’s Pain。 This can be a great force for Cooperation， but we need to understand motive。 Often， the goal as Social Creatures is we learn it is essential to be part of the group。 We can go against the group， but this will bring a high price。 We have learned over time， to survive we must rely on others。 Punishment can be used as a tool， but actually social pressure to conform is a much bigger motivator to success。 We self police ourselves and others to come to on overall better outcome。 4。 A Different Sort of Ape。 Humans tend to do a lot of Social Comparing。 We are eager to measure up against those around us。 So， when we collaborate， we have also evolved to notice Conflict that can come。 As we have expanded， and have our material needs addressed， humans tend to widen the Net to larger groups。 Yet， we do tend to be quite self-serving。 Cooperation among a large group can also have victims of this behavior。 Bribery， Nepotism， and Corruption are examples。 Less well-off groups will be taken advantage of。 When tragic circumstances happen such as Covid-19， humans can be very helpful and altruistic toward those around them， but selfish as well。 They want all the food bought and the rolls of paper towels。 We tend to forget the larger sector at this time。 In light of all this human behavior where Cooperation can bring us together， but easily fall apart， can we ever act truly globally in all our interests to stop massive problems such a Climate Change， Destroying our Habitat， Containing Diseases？ Nichola Raihani says there is hope， as humans have the ability to change the rules。 We can mutually agree to some coercion to make necessary change。 We can do what will save up， but this is up to us。 Thank you NetGalley， Nichola Raihani， and St。 Martin’s Press for a copy of this book。 。。。more
Molly Ringle
，
Good popular science book on the topic of cooperation all throughout the animal kingdom and spanning our whole evolutionary history。 Despite that sweeping topic， it's not a long book。 The broadness of the subject does sometimes make the book's organization feel a bit random， but cooperation is still a subject I think we could all use more of in this divisive world， so I found it helpful to ponder why we do （and don't） cooperate， both on the individual level and the societal。 Might make you rethi Good popular science book on the topic of cooperation all throughout the animal kingdom and spanning our whole evolutionary history。 Despite that sweeping topic， it's not a long book。 The broadness of the subject does sometimes make the book's organization feel a bit random， but cooperation is still a subject I think we could all use more of in this divisive world， so I found it helpful to ponder why we do （and don't） cooperate， both on the individual level and the societal。 Might make you rethink your own motives now and then， and at the very least will give you some fun anecdotes about animal behavior。 Thank you to St。 Martin's Press for offering this book to me for review！ 。。。more
Chris Boutté
，
Whenever I grab a book on a topic that I’ve already read dozens of books on， I’m concerned it’ll be just like all the others with no new information。 Nichola Raihani managed to write a book that provides so much new information， that I couldn’t stop reading it。 Sometimes， I also worry that books about cooperation and human interaction will be all of the benefits and come off too self-helpish without discussing the dark sides of us， but Raihani had a great blend。 The author wrote on so many inter Whenever I grab a book on a topic that I’ve already read dozens of books on， I’m concerned it’ll be just like all the others with no new information。 Nichola Raihani managed to write a book that provides so much new information， that I couldn’t stop reading it。 Sometimes， I also worry that books about cooperation and human interaction will be all of the benefits and come off too self-helpish without discussing the dark sides of us， but Raihani had a great blend。 The author wrote on so many interesting and important topics from how we signal to others， how we fight for status， motives behind our altruism， and so much more。 I also really enjoyed that Nichola and her colleagues have done their own studies that were really unique and had extremely interesting results。 Even when some familiar studies or topics were covered， the author managed to make them feel fresh and offered a unique perspective about what we can learn from them。I’ll be honest， the first section of the book took me a long time to read， and this is no fault of the author。 I learned a ton， but this part had a lot to do with biology， and that’s just a topic that’s very difficult for me to get engaged in。 Once the author started writing about some of the evolutionary psychology of all this， I couldn’t stop reading it。 The book is phenomenal and I really hope with it’s US release that it gets as much attention and praise as it deserves。 。。。more
Cynthia
，
Excellent book！ Based on extraordinarily thorough research by the author， this book examines cooperation among members of numerous species in the animal world。 There is a lot of discussion of cooperation among insects， birds， and fish; I would liked to have focused on humans more。 However， the book was beautifully written， especially for the layperson。 Fascinating topic！
Anne Earney
，
3。5 stars。 I received this book from the publisher for free in exchange for an honest review。 I don't think I would have read it otherwise。 The book looks at cooperation from the minuscule （cells）， through animals and insects， and on to humans。 I found the topic of ant colonies being more like bodies than a society of individuals especially interesting。 The later chapters on human cooperation was less interesting， sociology having never really been my thing， with the exception of the part about 3。5 stars。 I received this book from the publisher for free in exchange for an honest review。 I don't think I would have read it otherwise。 The book looks at cooperation from the minuscule （cells）， through animals and insects， and on to humans。 I found the topic of ant colonies being more like bodies than a society of individuals especially interesting。 The later chapters on human cooperation was less interesting， sociology having never really been my thing， with the exception of the part about evolution and how we evolved to be generous。 Like most nonfiction， if you're interested in the topic， you'll probably like it。 It's well written and easy to follow。 。。。more
Jeannette
，
I was delighted that Martins’s Press offered me the chance to read this new book about cooperative behaviour。 I read it slowly and carefully， enjoying every chapter。 As a biased reviewer （animal behavior was my career choice） I set down here my criteria for giving the book five stars。 The first star is for being a timely book about one of my favorite subjects and one that humans need to understand in more depth。 I give another star for the text being well organized， written， clear， humorous， per I was delighted that Martins’s Press offered me the chance to read this new book about cooperative behaviour。 I read it slowly and carefully， enjoying every chapter。 As a biased reviewer （animal behavior was my career choice） I set down here my criteria for giving the book five stars。 The first star is for being a timely book about one of my favorite subjects and one that humans need to understand in more depth。 I give another star for the text being well organized， written， clear， humorous， personal， and without too much redundancy。 The third star is for being so thorough， extensive， and wide ranging in terms of topics， species， and research （loved the babblers， meerkats， mongooses， and cleaner fish， and that impersonator， the blenny！）。 My fourth star I give to Nichola Raihani for engaging my interest throughout a rather densely packed overview of cooperation/conflict balancing in basic biology as well more complex social behaviour。 The instinct part of her title was a bit misleading and she does tell us how social behavior is decidedly variable and influenced by context and environment。 As I neared the end of this book， I worried that readers would be given some pseudo solution or false hope for solving the global vs personal cooperation/conflict we humans are facing big time。 I was glad the author ended with a sane view about humanity’s uncertain future （e。g。 think globally， act locally）。 The notes， references， and excellent index earned the book another star。 In sum， this is definitely a five star book。 Anyone interested in social behaviour should read it and enjoy。 。。。more
Mary
，
Popular science。 Quite well written。 Thesis is that cooperation， not just competition， is at the heart of evolution。 It thus refutes the dog eat dog perspective。 Of course the cooperation she’s talking about allows each entity or species to have an advantage in terms of survival and population growth。 She begins at the molecular level and works her way through cells， organisms， species and societies up to the beginnings of the Covid19 crisis in 2020。 I learned a lot。 Recommended。 In fact one of Popular science。 Quite well written。 Thesis is that cooperation， not just competition， is at the heart of evolution。 It thus refutes the dog eat dog perspective。 Of course the cooperation she’s talking about allows each entity or species to have an advantage in terms of survival and population growth。 She begins at the molecular level and works her way through cells， organisms， species and societies up to the beginnings of the Covid19 crisis in 2020。 I learned a lot。 Recommended。 In fact one of my book clubs is taking it up。 。。。more
Audrey
，
3。5/5A very readable， if fairly introductory， look into the role of cooperation in evolution。 For those who have studied any evolutionary biology （or even just read Dawkins）， much of the book will feel like a rehash of familiar concepts。 I was more interested by the third and fourth parts， which felt fresher as they took a zoomed-out look at the evolutionary implications of cooperation on a societal scale。 Nevertheless， Raihani's writing was never dense or dull， and the examples of cooperation f 3。5/5A very readable， if fairly introductory， look into the role of cooperation in evolution。 For those who have studied any evolutionary biology （or even just read Dawkins）， much of the book will feel like a rehash of familiar concepts。 I was more interested by the third and fourth parts， which felt fresher as they took a zoomed-out look at the evolutionary implications of cooperation on a societal scale。 Nevertheless， Raihani's writing was never dense or dull， and the examples of cooperation from all over the tree of life kept the first sections from being boring。 This book got me back into Meerkat Manor 。。。more
Sharon
，
A compelling look at the necessity of working together - from early hominids to our current societies。 How we can unite to do good and fight despotic and abusive leaders。I also found out why people hate vegans！ Makes me understand why I am constantly being criticized！
Stephen
，
Why can’t we all just…get along？ But we do。 Our bodies are forged in cooperation， writes Nichola Raihani: we are the creation of cells that banded together， strengthened by outside prokaryotes who we put to work as mitochondria。 Our cells create organs， tissues， and structures， culminating in an individual， who then cooperates with still others to form a massive global society of people sitting and staring at their phones。 Humans are uniquely cooperative， frequently coming together en masse to h Why can’t we all just…get along？ But we do。 Our bodies are forged in cooperation， writes Nichola Raihani: we are the creation of cells that banded together， strengthened by outside prokaryotes who we put to work as mitochondria。 Our cells create organs， tissues， and structures， culminating in an individual， who then cooperates with still others to form a massive global society of people sitting and staring at their phones。 Humans are uniquely cooperative， frequently coming together en masse to help out perfect strangers — behavior unobserved in any other species， where altruistic behavior is limited to one’s immediate family circle。 Nevertheless， we’re still fairly fluid about expanding or reining in the circle of those we care about; a wide-scale disaster can elicit both solidarity （volunteer search efforts， blood banks， etc） and selfishness （supply hoarding）。 I thought her analysis of the role of cooperation in human evolution and society to be a mixed bag; her observation that cooperation and competition are usually conjoined （we cooperate most often to compete against others or a mutual obstacle） was noteworthy， for instance， but understanding menopause as a cooperative action （grandmothers shutting down their own systems to prioritize her children’s child rearing efforts within the same household） was needlessly subtle compared to Jared Diamond’s more straightforward speculation that menopause is a way for the female body to protect itself against increasingly more dangerous pregnancies， and to focus resources on existing children or grandchildren。 Raihani’s own speculation depended on a pervasive mother/daughter-in-law dynamic and potential power struggle。 On the whole， The Social Instinct is full of interest， and I especially appreciated its expansive cell-to-societies survey， but I found some of its claims more dubious than others。 。。。more
Steve
，
I enjoyed this book。 It has everything I expect in good science writing: written in a conversational tone， with the science clearly explained， and topped off by a sense of humor。 The subject matter could have been tedious， but Nichola Raihani’s well-paced writing brings the information to life。 I also enjoyed the author's personal anecdotes。 The footnotes， as well， are worth reading。 Sometimes authors finish their nonfiction books by looking at broader issues and frequently these don’t appeal to I enjoyed this book。 It has everything I expect in good science writing: written in a conversational tone， with the science clearly explained， and topped off by a sense of humor。 The subject matter could have been tedious， but Nichola Raihani’s well-paced writing brings the information to life。 I also enjoyed the author's personal anecdotes。 The footnotes， as well， are worth reading。 Sometimes authors finish their nonfiction books by looking at broader issues and frequently these don’t appeal to me， but this book is an exception in that I found the ending particularly strong。 Overall， this is a great book that is well worth the read。 Thank you to Netgalley and St。 Martin's Press for the advance reader copy。 。。。more
Matsuko Friedland
，
Not really what I expected， but was still very interesting！ Mostly about how cooperation came about evolutionarily and examples of cooperation in non-human animals。
Emily Gray
，
I won this in a give-away as an advance reader copy！ I did quite enjoy reading it， although I did not agree with everything that was said （which can be expected on sine topics）。 It was quite interesting though， brought me back to university when I was studying Zoology and had courses on animal behaviour。 I enjoyed walking down that memory lane and learning some new things。 There is a lot of discussions about different animal species and their ability or lack of ability to cooperate; definitely a I won this in a give-away as an advance reader copy！ I did quite enjoy reading it， although I did not agree with everything that was said （which can be expected on sine topics）。 It was quite interesting though， brought me back to university when I was studying Zoology and had courses on animal behaviour。 I enjoyed walking down that memory lane and learning some new things。 There is a lot of discussions about different animal species and their ability or lack of ability to cooperate; definitely a lot of interesting information that any animal lover will enjoy。 Overall its a great read！ 。。。more
Maria Isburn-Nabokov
，
I picked up this book hoping to get some new insights。 I read Richard Dawkin's book and i also read the classic response to it by Rupert Sheldrake the Science Illusion。 I don't know where to place this book。 The author puts forward many complexities and seems to be sitting on the fence。 There is no clear message in terms of is this a view that supports nurture or nature perspective on evolution。 The fact that everything is connected and that the materialistic view of the world no longer holds， i I picked up this book hoping to get some new insights。 I read Richard Dawkin's book and i also read the classic response to it by Rupert Sheldrake the Science Illusion。 I don't know where to place this book。 The author puts forward many complexities and seems to be sitting on the fence。 There is no clear message in terms of is this a view that supports nurture or nature perspective on evolution。 The fact that everything is connected and that the materialistic view of the world no longer holds， is well-supported by science but how does this book advance our understnadings？ I would think that a more modern view on cooperation would incorporate technology and all the connections we have thanks to internet but was missing some kind of scientific breakthrough。 （the writing style was engaging though so i gave it three stars） 。。。more
Gabriel
，
This is a fantastic book that explains the evolutionary logic of cooperation and how it has shaped life on our planet。 Beginning with how multicellular organisms evolved and going through larger scale examples of cooperation （and conflict）， the book highlights how understanding the evolutionary logic of cooperation can help to explain an incredibly diverse array of behaviours， institutions and norms in both humans and animals。 The book also highlights how behaviours that appear cognitively compl This is a fantastic book that explains the evolutionary logic of cooperation and how it has shaped life on our planet。 Beginning with how multicellular organisms evolved and going through larger scale examples of cooperation （and conflict）， the book highlights how understanding the evolutionary logic of cooperation can help to explain an incredibly diverse array of behaviours， institutions and norms in both humans and animals。 The book also highlights how behaviours that appear cognitively complex and uniquely human （punishment， teaching， reputation management） can often be found in other species as well。 This is what makes the book so enjoyable to read as there are countless fascinating examples of cooperation in other species （most of which Raihani has studied herself！）。 Would highly recommend this book to everyone！ 。。。more
Andrew
，
A well written pop-sci book about the important （and frequently left-out） twin pillar of evolution， namely cooperation， and how it underlies all aspects of our being， from the micro all the way up to the macro。The only disagreement I had with the author was with her refusal to call human groups super-organisms， in the same vein as ants or termites。 She states that it’s only by the near-total suppression of self-interested behaviour that humans can be considered as such。 But this doesn’t take int A well written pop-sci book about the important （and frequently left-out） twin pillar of evolution， namely cooperation， and how it underlies all aspects of our being， from the micro all the way up to the macro。The only disagreement I had with the author was with her refusal to call human groups super-organisms， in the same vein as ants or termites。 She states that it’s only by the near-total suppression of self-interested behaviour that humans can be considered as such。 But this doesn’t take into consideration the fact that humans have the ‘potential’ to be a superorganism and， indeed， history shows that that is the direction that we seem to be heading in。 And I believe our belief in our super-organismic nature has implications for whether or not the potential becomes actual。 。。。more
Dramatika
，
What an amazing book！ I learned so much in such a small volume！ The easy flowing language can be understood even if you don’t remember much from you high school biology course。 Now I view everything through a lense。 Very philosophical book as well， why do we behave a certain way？
Xavier Bonilla
，
This was one of my anticipated books of 2021 and it did not disappoint！ Nichola masterfully details how cooperation has evolved within humans and out to families and fellow humans around the world。 The most powerful aspect of her argument are the examples of cooperation not just in humans but in many other animals in the animal kingdom。 The behavioral ecology along with the evolutionary psychology themes interlaced within this cohesive narrative make this book one of the most important books to This was one of my anticipated books of 2021 and it did not disappoint！ Nichola masterfully details how cooperation has evolved within humans and out to families and fellow humans around the world。 The most powerful aspect of her argument are the examples of cooperation not just in humans but in many other animals in the animal kingdom。 The behavioral ecology along with the evolutionary psychology themes interlaced within this cohesive narrative make this book one of the most important books to read！ 。。。more
Janet
，
Date reviewed/posted: June 15， 2021Publication date: August 5， 2021When life for the entire galaxy and planet has turned on its end， you are continuing to #maskup and #lockdown to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation as the #thirdwave （ #fourthwave #fifthwave？） is upon us， superspeed readers like me can read 300+ pages/hour， so yes， I have read the book … and many more today。 Plus it is hot as all heck and nothing is more appealing than sitting in front of a fan with a kindle。！I requested and receive Date reviewed/posted: June 15， 2021Publication date: August 5， 2021When life for the entire galaxy and planet has turned on its end， you are continuing to #maskup and #lockdown to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation as the #thirdwave （ #fourthwave #fifthwave？） is upon us， superspeed readers like me can read 300+ pages/hour， so yes， I have read the book … and many more today。 Plus it is hot as all heck and nothing is more appealing than sitting in front of a fan with a kindle。！I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley， the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review。 From the publisher， as I do not repeat the contents or story of books in reviews， I let them do it as they do it better than I do 😸。In the tradition of Richard Dawkins's The Selfish Gene， Nichola Raihani's The Social Instinct is a profound and engaging look at the hidden relationships underpinning human evolution， and why cooperation is key to our future survival。Cooperation is the means by which life arose in the first place。 It’s how we progressed through scale and complexity， from free-floating strands of genetic material to nation-states。 But given what we know about the mechanisms of evolution， cooperation is also something of a puzzle。 How does cooperation begin， when on a Darwinian level， all that the genes in your body care about is being passed on to the next generation？ Why do meerkat colonies care for one another’s children？ Why do babbler birds in the Kalahari form colonies in which only a single pair breeds？ And how come some coral wrasse fish actually punish each other for harming fish from another species？A biologist by training， Raihani looks at where and how collaborative behaviour emerges throughout the animal kingdom， and what problems it solves。 She reveals that the species that exhibit cooperative behaviour–teaching， helping， grooming， and self-sacrifice–most similar to our own tend not to be other apes; they are birds， insects， and fish， occupying far more distant branches of the evolutionary tree。 By understanding the problems they face， and cooperating to solve them， we can glimpse how human cooperation first evolved。 And we can also understand what it is about the way we cooperate that has made humans so distinctive–and so successful。SOCIAL INSTINCT？ YES。。。 SOCIAL MEDIA？ NO！！This is a deep and interesting book that will delight readers and book clubs - its research is not dry or dusty and although I have not heard of any of these species， I hope that they can teach humanity how to survive。。。once they get off their phones trying to be an influencer。 There is a lot to read here， so pick up the book and savour it and hope those future generations will not be influencer-millennials as there is no future for us with them in charge as the only people the cooperate with are those who stroke their egos。I will recommend this book to friends， family， patrons， book clubs， and people reading books in the park as we do … I have had some of my best conversations about books down by the Thames！As always， I try to find a reason to not rate with stars as I simply adore emojis （outside of their incessant use by "🙏-ed Social Influencer Millennials/#BachelorNation survivors/Tik-Tok and YouTube Millionaires/snowflakes / literally-like-overusers etc。 " on Instagram and Twitter。。。 Get a real job， people！） so let's give it 📚📚📚📚📚 。。。more
Matthew Jordan
，
Very solid run-of-the-mill popular science book that talks about cooperation from the smallest level （molecules teaming up to form cells） to the highest （people teaming up to form institutions）。 I love books that take one topic and "zoom out" like this—the canonical example I have in my head is Behave by Robert Sapolsky。 I didn't learn much here， though the examples of non-human cooperation were very fun。 I'm happy that when academics make analogies between humans and other animals they no longe Very solid run-of-the-mill popular science book that talks about cooperation from the smallest level （molecules teaming up to form cells） to the highest （people teaming up to form institutions）。 I love books that take one topic and "zoom out" like this—the canonical example I have in my head is Behave by Robert Sapolsky。 I didn't learn much here， though the examples of non-human cooperation were very fun。 I'm happy that when academics make analogies between humans and other animals they no longer get pummelled with rotten vegetables。 （It really happened！ In the '70s people threw tomatoes at E。O。 Wilson for claiming that we can learn things about the human mind by studying ants！） 。。。more
Lou
，
The Social Instinct is a profound and engaging look at the hidden relationships underpinning human evolution， and why cooperation is key to our future survival written in the style of The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins。 Cooperation is the means by which life arose in the first place。 It’s how we progressed through scale and complexity， from free-floating strands of genetic material， to nation states。 But given what we know about the mechanisms of evolution， cooperation is also something of a pu The Social Instinct is a profound and engaging look at the hidden relationships underpinning human evolution， and why cooperation is key to our future survival written in the style of The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins。 Cooperation is the means by which life arose in the first place。 It’s how we progressed through scale and complexity， from free-floating strands of genetic material， to nation states。 But given what we know about the mechanisms of evolution， cooperation is also something of a puzzle。 How does cooperation begin， when on a Darwinian level， all that the genes in your body care about is being passed on to the next generation？ Why do meerkat colonies care for one another’s children？ Why do babbler birds in the Kalahari form colonies in which only a single pair breeds？ And how come some coral wrasse fish actually punish each other for harming fish from another species？A biologist by training， Raihani looks at where and how collaborative behavior emerges throughout the animal kingdom， and what problems it solves。 She reveals that the species that exhibit cooperative behavior–teaching， helping， grooming， and self-sacrifice–most similar to our own tend not to be other apes; they are birds， insects， and fish， occupying far more distant branches of the evolutionary tree。 By understanding the problems they face， and how they cooperate to solve them， we can glimpse how human cooperation first evolved。 And we can also understand what it is about the way we cooperate that has made humans so distinctive–and so successful。 This is a fascinating， accessible and thoughtful read but best of all it's as entertaining as it is informative。 Using colourful and intriguing examples， Raihani shows that cooperation is at the centre of our bodies， societies and ecosystems。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Rory Fox
，