The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves
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- Author：Matt Ridley
- ISBN：0007267126
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Summary
In 'The Rational Optimist' Ridley offers a counterblast to the prevailing pessimism of our age， and proves， however much we like to think to the contrary， that things are getting better。
Reviews
Will Chou
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 You can tell fairly quickly that the author has a very deep and knowledgeable understanding of the complexities of economics， civilization development， and even natural selection and human evolution。 He points out ideas and Intricacies of these topics in ways you never considered。 You learn a lot about agriculture， free market， and getting a lot of optimistic， grateful perspectives about how much our technology， society， and cost of living has grown。 You also discover a lot of cool theories abou You can tell fairly quickly that the author has a very deep and knowledgeable understanding of the complexities of economics， civilization development， and even natural selection and human evolution。 He points out ideas and Intricacies of these topics in ways you never considered。 You learn a lot about agriculture， free market， and getting a lot of optimistic， grateful perspectives about how much our technology， society， and cost of living has grown。 You also discover a lot of cool theories about how and why humans came to be the way they are。 I started realizing later in the book that he started to pose a lot of strong， iconoclast， contrary and opinions such as his whole idea that climate changes nothing much to be worried about。 To be fair， he points to a lot of history and numbers， demonstrating how wrong the media and extreme pessimist were about climate change in the last few decades and what actually happen with certain things around resources like gas， oil， pollution， and so forth。With such crazy opinions， I had to see what Bill Gates had to say， and I found that of course he read the book and posted a review on his blog。 The review was fairly scathing， strongly disagreed with a lot of his points， but also acknowledging a lot of things discussed as topics that people need to talk about much more。 Bill Gates ‘s Review definitely also on earth some blindsides that the author has。 It just goes to show you that no matter how much of an expert you are， there’s always stuff that you may still get wrong。 Plus， this is economics， so even the author admits in his book that he will often be very often his predictions just because of how unpredictable and amazing innovation can be。One of the points that bill made as a counter argument that we seem strong。 He disagrees with Matt about The thesis dad free market exchange is the sole and biggest contributor to the progression of human civilization。 Bill argues that a lot of other contributors were overlooked or under emphasize， mainly around innovation， such as the innovation that comes from new and established companies。Frankly， I think that I’ve heard so many of these opinions from people who posit that to feel that they study or love the most is their true and only contributor to human growth and evolution and self consciousness。 With another one being mentioned in this book， I’m starting to develop more skepticism towards Any of these claims because of the obvious bias。 For example， in another book I read recently born to run， a book about ultra marathon runners， the author was clearly obsessed with running and made the point that humans developed into what we are now because running long distances helped us obtain the protein necessary to develop our brains。 He said one or two scientific studies， but clearly I wasn’t sold。Any of these claims have an obvious bias。 For example， in another book I read recently born to run， a book about ultra marathon runners， the author was clearly obsessed with running and made the point that humans developed into what we are now because running long distances helped us obtain the protein necessary to develop our brains。 He said one or two scientific studies， but clearly I wasn’t sold。Regardless of the negative Reviews， I think it’s a good book that gets you thinking deeper and more positively and with a more informed， thoughtful， thorough perspective of history and economics。 The whole passage about all the things we take for granted now that even the richest people a few decades ago couldn’t afford was one of the most detailed and insightful passages I’ve read in a while。 Obviously， take it with a grain of salt because not everything he says is 100% right， but I feel like most people already know that and are ready to dispute or disagree。 Reviews， I think it’s a good book that gets you thinking deeper and more positively and with a more informed， thoughtful， thorough perspective of history and economics。 The whole passage about all the things we take for granted now that even the richest people a few decades ago couldn’t afford was one of the most detailed and insightful passages I’ve read in a while。 Obviously， take it with a grain of salt because not everything he says is 100% right， but I feel like most people already know that and are ready to dispute or disagree。Ultimately， it’s a good thing you’re booking maybe you’ll get your thinking on a higher philosophical level。 Will you have any direct attributable benefits to you？ Likely not unless you’re in a columnist who makes money off these thought-provokinggUltimately， it’s a good thing you’re booking maybe you’ll get your thinking on a higher philosophical level。 Will you have any direct attributable benefits to you？ Likely not unless you’re in a columnist who makes money off these thought-provokin Principles。 I’ll just get you thinking deeper and more thoughtfully and maybe feeling a little happier about your situation in the world。 I actually went into the book thinking it would be more directly applicable based on the title。 I guess I falsely assumed that it was a book on psychology principal is applied to the individual or at least a history of economics and humans that can help you see the world in a more positive， grateful they giving its development。 Well it does some of that， that’s only reserved for a small portion of the book。Take any advice from his box with a grain of salt。 The output of this book makes me skeptical of previous books I’ve read from him， specifically the red queen， which many people 。2 has indisputable signs backed dating advice， which really isn’t the case the more I think about it。 。。。more
Fer Hernandez
，
Es un libro con demasiada información， no sé si es porque lo leí con intención de analizarlo para una clase o porque verdaderamente es una lectura pesada。 Tiene argumentos muy interesantes y me hizo cuestionar muchas de las cosas que ya sé， sobretodo acerca del medio ambiente y del cambio climático。 Siento que igualmente es un libro medio repetitivo y no logro decidir si me gustó o no。
Joshua Hillman
，
While I do share Ridley's optimism that the world can and probably will become an economically rich place （providing relief to most of the impoverished of the world）， I also understand that in the long run， becoming rich leads to what the famous psychologist John B Calhoun described as a behavioral sink。Suspended from the many forces of nature and tribalism to which our species evolved， we will begin to unravel culturally and perhaps genetically as well。 Just as the bones and muscles of astronau While I do share Ridley's optimism that the world can and probably will become an economically rich place （providing relief to most of the impoverished of the world）， I also understand that in the long run， becoming rich leads to what the famous psychologist John B Calhoun described as a behavioral sink。Suspended from the many forces of nature and tribalism to which our species evolved， we will begin to unravel culturally and perhaps genetically as well。 Just as the bones and muscles of astronauts atrophy during their missions to space， and just as the character of a prince is corrupted by unchecked power and pleasure， so too will the fundamental character of a society degenerate when reputation is replaced with anonymity， reciprocity replaced with money， and retribution replaced by the state， and all ultimately replaced with indifference。In his earlier work （On the Origins of Virtue）， Ridley argues that the evolution of social intelligence is built upon the need to track reciprocity across time such as in vampire bats in their sharing of food， and then baboons， chimps， and dolphins in cooperative mating strategies requiring reciprocity。If the ecology of modern industrial civilization does not require reciprocity， are we not at risk of degenerating culturally？The behavioral sink of Calhoun's mouse Utopia did not end with just social unraveling， it ended with the entire population of mice dying off， even though they had their every need met。If one were to try to break an adversary's bones in battle， one might use a club or an axe。 Who could have guessed that they could unravel simply by removing the force of gravity。In a similar way， higher civilization with its rule of law， property rights and general prosperity removes who knows how many identified and unidentified forces from acting upon mankind at both the individual and group level。Ibn Khaldun， whom Ridley references in this book， identifies one of the forces of tribal man and calls it Asabiyyah。 Men with it tend to naturally generate at the frontiers of civilization and end up conquering the completely degenerated empires to which they are adjacent。Cities are beasts which require many inputs; the labor of man being near the top of the list。 Therefore man is a food， so to speak， of big cities。 In ancient times， cities would hunt for their food by capturing and enslaving nearby tribal populations。 In modern times， the cities have found a new strategy for acquiring their food。 They have become more like a Venus flytrap enticing human populations with the very real possibility of nectar and then slowly digesting the labor once the populations have entered into her。 As Ridley mentioned in this book， populations do not do a lot of breeding in the commercial cities; these cities are a net consumer of people。 Perhaps the Amish have learned how to resist this nectar more or less？The less that man is able to depend on Capital to meet their wants and needs， the more they must depend on cooperation by other means。 Such populations will always be at a vast material disadvantage to their commercial counterparts， yet they will be at a biological and spiritual advantage。 The forces that have shaped our species for hundreds of thousands of years will act upon those who are unable to use capital to facilitate cooperation and keep those populations from atrophy both at the individual and group level。There seems to be a negative correlation between economic and technological success on the one hand and biological and spiritual success on the other。As we rightly celebrate the accomplishments of capital and it's successful advances against poverty， let us stop to consider that the Amish， the Afghans and the Africans still have something important to teach us。 。。。more
Lisa
，
ven though I call myself a realist， I am known in the family as a pessimist。 What I really am is cautiously optimistic because I am afraid to be disappointed。 This spoke to me on that level， intrigued me with its history， and made me wonder what Mr。 Ridley would add to the book given the current pandemic。
Bart Wagener
，
Many thanks to Naval for recommending this book and having Matt on the podcast。 Really enjoyed this fresh and well researched perspective。 Things are going great， ignore the noise of the loud crowd。 Look for the signal。 This book is pure signal。 No noise。Onwards to the Red Queen！
Niccy
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Very in lightened read and a nice perspective on human collective efforts。
Tim Gayton
，
This book was a pleasant outlook on life。 A reminder of what the good and wonderful things societies have achieved， and will continue to achieve。 I consider myself a fairly optimistic person and I absorb news， but I tend to not get overwhelmed by it all。 The author has left constant reminders and examples throughout the book of how much the news attempts to skew societies optimism and success， or deploy the pessimistic agendas。The author covers various outlets where pessimistic agendas try and d This book was a pleasant outlook on life。 A reminder of what the good and wonderful things societies have achieved， and will continue to achieve。 I consider myself a fairly optimistic person and I absorb news， but I tend to not get overwhelmed by it all。 The author has left constant reminders and examples throughout the book of how much the news attempts to skew societies optimism and success， or deploy the pessimistic agendas。The author covers various outlets where pessimistic agendas try and distract societies outlook and prosperity， which again were adequate and therefore enjoyable reminders throughout the novel。 Essentially， I think this book is healthy， some social policies such as climate change， renewables， farming， and trade are discussed and the argument is delivered quite well。 The author envisions a healthy， prosperous world， and he has some adequate details of how that can be achieved， which goes against the status quo， but by being a balanced argument， therefore creates a perspective which is necessary in the current state of affairs。 Community also resonates throughout many of the chapters， with great examples such as Ebay and Wikipedia， of a reminder of the easily forgotten communities who fundamentally work on trust， which attribute to prosperity。 These themes add to healthiness that this book provides。The book is an easy listen， I've documented some great snippets， and overall for mental clarity alone， its beneficial to encourage an optimist outlook， which this book provides， and subsequently appreciate some fine achievements of our previous and current generations。Some of my favourite highlights: 'Routine kindness does not make the news because it is so commonplace。''The rule of law is better than the rule of receptacle revenge， though it makes less good theatre。''Food processing with preservatives ， much Despised by green shiek folk， has greatly reduced the amount of food that goes to waste， even the confinement of chicken， pig and cattle to indoor barns and factories， though it troubles the consciouses， mine included， of those you care for animal welfare， undoubtedly results in more meat， from less feed， with less pollution and less disease。''Yes of course trade is disruptive， cheap imports can destroy jobs at home， though in doing so always create far more both at home and abroad by freeing consumers cash to buy other goods and services。' 'Traffic and obesity are products of plenty，' 。。。more
Jacob Hudgins
，
This book is dense and rich in the way that the best British nonfiction writing can be。 Ridley is a unique polymath who has determined to find room for optimism in his confidence in human adaptability and ingenuity， fueled by free markets and limited government interference。 Frankly， libertarianism has never seemed so fun or coherent。I especially appreciated his calling out of the needless pessimism of modern thinking。 It seems that we are no longer able to motivate people to change behavior unl This book is dense and rich in the way that the best British nonfiction writing can be。 Ridley is a unique polymath who has determined to find room for optimism in his confidence in human adaptability and ingenuity， fueled by free markets and limited government interference。 Frankly， libertarianism has never seemed so fun or coherent。I especially appreciated his calling out of the needless pessimism of modern thinking。 It seems that we are no longer able to motivate people to change behavior unless we work to deeply frighten them—about the coming of environmental， population， or economic disasters。 Ridley shows how this is an old tactic with a miserable track record。 Often the same naysayers revise their predictions decades later， saying nay for entirely different reasons without acknowledging past errors。 The future may be better or worse， but why have we so often rewarded and lionized the prophets of doom？As a Christian， I have optimism for different reasons， but I still found Ridley’s analysis and reasoning impressive。 。。。more
Isabella
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Provides a solid basis for how humankind and trade developed。 Takes into pieces many modern times end-of-the-world scenarios by providing thorough background and putting the issues into a wider context。 It appears that things are not as bad as we are served daily。 A must-read to beginners in world economy and politics。
Philipp Schleusner
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This book challenged many of my beliefs。 Love it。
Bruno Betancourt
，
En el estilo característico de Matt Ridley， The Rational Optimist desafía el Estatus Quo con hechos prometedores。 El mundo esta lejos de ser perfecto， pero estamos en buen camino。 "It is precisely because there is so much poverty， hunger and illness that the world must be careful not to get in the way of the things that have bettered so many lives - tools of trade， technology and trust， of specialization and exchange。" En el estilo característico de Matt Ridley， The Rational Optimist desafía el Estatus Quo con hechos prometedores。 El mundo esta lejos de ser perfecto， pero estamos en buen camino。 "It is precisely because there is so much poverty， hunger and illness that the world must be careful not to get in the way of the things that have bettered so many lives - tools of trade， technology and trust， of specialization and exchange。" 。。。more
Tim
，
The book title is seriously off。 I honestly thought it was a book about why we should rationally be optimistic in our daily lives。The book is about how we owe most of our prosperity， social/moral development， and other societal progress to capitalism， free trade， and specialization。 Although I agree with this premise， I was not interested in reading a book about this。 The first half of the book（as far as I got） is basically a long economics 101 lesson， nothing insightful。
Justin Sasia
，
This book features unique combination of biology， economics， and history。 Ridley gives insight to how specialization， trade， and innovation have fueled humanity to modern prosperity。 By challenging fashionable pessimistic views he shows that our future will be even better than our past。
Derek
，
This was an interesting read， a mix of economics， history， sociology and psychology。 I enjoyed the "no apologies" approach to the opinion in the book and the data and patterns identified。 I had placed the author as a humanist and suspended the environmental argument of the book but over the course of the book he does address environmental challenges of human progress directly。 Looking holistically at the position I can't disagree with the arguments and the definitely challenged some of my defaul This was an interesting read， a mix of economics， history， sociology and psychology。 I enjoyed the "no apologies" approach to the opinion in the book and the data and patterns identified。 I had placed the author as a humanist and suspended the environmental argument of the book but over the course of the book he does address environmental challenges of human progress directly。 Looking holistically at the position I can't disagree with the arguments and the definitely challenged some of my default thinking。 If you liked books that offer you insight into why humanity/society has ended up the way it has， you'll enjoy this book。 。。。more
Dim_anis
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Some reasonable ideas here， but these countless examples are just so tiresome to read。
Ulio
，
A great book on how evolution and history have led us to this point。 Main focus is on prosperity， historical comparisons of it。 It's a bit of a love letter to free market capitalism， bottoms up economies。 His thoughts on how the economy should be run reminds me a lot of someone like Thomas Sowell who is very anti government intervention。 Matt Ridley tries to answer many of the questions such as why is pessimism so pervading and why has nostalgia always been a factor especially for economists or A great book on how evolution and history have led us to this point。 Main focus is on prosperity， historical comparisons of it。 It's a bit of a love letter to free market capitalism， bottoms up economies。 His thoughts on how the economy should be run reminds me a lot of someone like Thomas Sowell who is very anti government intervention。 Matt Ridley tries to answer many of the questions such as why is pessimism so pervading and why has nostalgia always been a factor especially for economists or sociologists when they do their predictions of the future。 I do think pessimism even if it is unfounded can lead to innovation if the pessimism doesn't become some sort of consensus fear that debilitates whatever industry or event it's trying to stop。I read some of the reviews here and lots of people still dismiss this book as blindly optimistic， biologically we have a predisposition to be pessimist than optimist just because playing it safe for our ancestors was literally a matter of life or death， this barely applies to modern humans。 I think in most cases having the outlook of Ridley is a lot better than the people here reviewing saying negative stuff because he dismissed a few possible life changing catalysts such as global warming。 I know lots of people thought Ridley's tone is arrogant or too dismissive of certain issues。 I do not think that is a problem since most of his refutes are true backed by centuries of data in most cases。 In my opinion the book is a bit too long even though the basic gist is be optimistic about the future， support the elements that have lead us to our current prosperity which is free trade， capitalism， social exchange of ideas。 I know there might be lots of scary problems we are facing but underestimate human innovation， don't underestimate this species which has so far solved every problem given enough time。 。。。more
Andreic
，
This books reminds me of Sapiens by Harari， even if its written， if I don't mistake， before it。Good structure， it begins with a short history of the human race， describing what made us superior from other species。Human being manages to make some tools necessary for daily activites， now he discovers fire， now more tools， now begins the exchange between people， division of labour， specialisation， increase of the exchange and the rest is history :）I found interesting the statistics regarding the GM This books reminds me of Sapiens by Harari， even if its written， if I don't mistake， before it。Good structure， it begins with a short history of the human race， describing what made us superior from other species。Human being manages to make some tools necessary for daily activites， now he discovers fire， now more tools， now begins the exchange between people， division of labour， specialisation， increase of the exchange and the rest is history :）I found interesting the statistics regarding the GMO crops of wheat， thus GMO is marked as a 'bad' thing， the author exposes some positive aspects of it - it made possible evolution， sustaining the necessary calories for a growing population。Overall a good book， a basic for one who wants to know how we managed to get here where we are today and also wants to see the half-full part of the glass。 。。。more
Matt Grimes
，
This book started out kind of annoying to me but finished it off with a high rating。 I have been on the right wing economically （austrian school not Republican） since 2013 so I’d heard most of his early arguments before about “capitalism good， government bad”。Lately I’ve actually been trying to find more critiques and downsides of capitalism， so hearing stale （to me） arguments， particularly stated with such conviction and certainly of a classical liberal modernist （which I stopped being around 2 This book started out kind of annoying to me but finished it off with a high rating。 I have been on the right wing economically （austrian school not Republican） since 2013 so I’d heard most of his early arguments before about “capitalism good， government bad”。Lately I’ve actually been trying to find more critiques and downsides of capitalism， so hearing stale （to me） arguments， particularly stated with such conviction and certainly of a classical liberal modernist （which I stopped being around 2017） was a bit of a chore， and i can see why lefty reviews would find it annoying。 However the optimistic case for the ingenuity and creativity of the human race—amidst the torrential downpour of incessant pessimism that drowns the modern intellectual discourse—was a breathe of fresh air leading to my overall enjoyment of the book。 This book functionally presupposes you are a pessimistic libertarian。 So if that’s you this book is a great read and will likely turn you into an optimistic one。If however you are lefty in any sense of the word （at least one who is such by education or temperament rather than by cultural indoctrination）， the a priori assumption of “capitalism good” will annoy you too much to probably get anything out of it。 。。。more
Tim
，
A great historical breakdown of how far we've come and where we're going。 In times as dark as the ones we are living in now I needed this book。 Great read for anyone who wants to stop being so cynical and pessimistic about life as a whole。 A great historical breakdown of how far we've come and where we're going。 In times as dark as the ones we are living in now I needed this book。 Great read for anyone who wants to stop being so cynical and pessimistic about life as a whole。 。。。more
Eduardo Costa
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vai se fude bom pra caramba
Woliver
，
Un libro que envejeció muy rápido y muy mal。Dejemos algo en claro， estoy de acuerdo con la premisa externa de este libro， que dice que la humanidad ha progresado （no de manera parabólica， sino subiendo y bajando） durante los últimos siglos gracias al intercambio de ideas。Pero arrastrando de esta premia Matt Ridley nos quiere vender la idea de que la industria del carbón no tiene porqué ser desmontada， de que el estado actual del capitalismo ya no requiere cambios y que toda protesta es fútil y c Un libro que envejeció muy rápido y muy mal。Dejemos algo en claro， estoy de acuerdo con la premisa externa de este libro， que dice que la humanidad ha progresado （no de manera parabólica， sino subiendo y bajando） durante los últimos siglos gracias al intercambio de ideas。Pero arrastrando de esta premia Matt Ridley nos quiere vender la idea de que la industria del carbón no tiene porqué ser desmontada， de que el estado actual del capitalismo ya no requiere cambios y que toda protesta es fútil y caprichosa。Qué casualidad que un hombre que habla tanto de innovación， libertad mercantil y la destrucción creativa de pronto se vuelva tan proteccionista con una industria que claramente corre a la obsolescencia。Y es que ha envejecido muy mal porque el estado actual de las fluctuaciones climáticas ha aumentado y no ha disminuido （que es algo que clama este libro）， en 2021 ya hay consenso científico y datos bastante claros que indican que podemos hablar de una crisis ecosistémica provocada por el aumento de dióxido de carbono en la atmósfera。 Es irracional negarlo。Hay un discurso patético y necio envuelto en todos los capítulos del libro， que si las energías renovables contaminan más y matan más animales， en especial águilas calvas （ojo con el hueso patriótico que les ha tirado a los nacionalistas ahí） e incluso sólo menciona a la energía nuclear en poco más de dos párrafos （así de necia y cerrada su lucha en favor de la industria del carbón）。 Qué ha ocurrido con el progreso humano， que ha avanzado en TODO menos en las tecnologías que representan un peligro para la industria energética， esas tecnologías sí que fallan mucho y matan muchos animales。Claramente no es así， este señor cierra su entendimiento a los datos que no sostienen su discurso。Otros Libros de Matt Riley como "Genoma" y "Qué nos hace humanos" qué explican temas de Biología me parecen geniales， grandes ejemplos de la divulgación científica y la explicación sencilla de temas complejos; Por esto mismo me sorprende que en El optimista racional pase de largo del análisis profundo， y en cada capítulo hay un desdén aguerrido contra todo conocimiento sociológicoQue me disculpe el optimista racional， pero es una creencia irracional pensar que "todo hombre con sensatez puede tener un trabajo y una vida digna" Lo es cuando diversas ramas científicas arrojan datos que demuestran que depende mucho qué tipo de persona seas para acceder o no a ciertas oportunidades。 Hay muchos sesgos tan obvios y profundos para un libro que se hace llamar racional。Me preocupa mucho como ya es una tendencia generalizad entre los divulgadores de la ciencia， que ignoren por completo a las ciencias sociales， ¿cómo puedes ser un divulgador de la ciencia y tener actitudes anticientíficas tan recalcitrantes？ la forma actual del capitalismo nos han vendido cientos de ideas irracionales， y pienso que está en la cabeza de mucha gente algo como "trabaja duro y llegarás lejos" （que cala perfectamente entre divulgadores）。 Y estas ideas sí que hacen mucho daño y son anticientíficas， desdeñan el conocimiento sociológico y sólo refuerzan viejos prejuicios。Tal vez lo único que pasa aquí es que Matt Ridley es un gran divulgador de la biología pero un desastre fuera de esa area。 Al entrar a su twitter es inquietante cómo en todos estos años no ha cambiado de ideas y se desgasta en la defensa de políticas conservadoras， mucha innovación， mucho progreso， pero no cambien el estado actual de las cosas por favor。 。。。more
Matthew Mechtly
，
An engaging defense of why it's more reasonable to believe things will get better in the long term future than worse。 An engaging defense of why it's more reasonable to believe things will get better in the long term future than worse。 。。。more
Mike Dial
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I wish this book were read in every high school; it would inoculate kids who are making plans for their future against the pessimistic complacency that is so commonplace。 I kept a dictionary handy， so I not only learned a lot of history and many new ways to see opportunities for good in the world， but I also learned a lot of new vocabulary。
David Lowenthal
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This is a fantastic explanation as to why we are all more pessimistic than we should be。
Stacy
，
What was said over the course of the ~350 pages could have been said in about half the space。 I found this book repetitive and unnecessarily long。 The use of more pages does not make the argument any stronger。 I enjoyed that the book challenges assumptions and laid out some thoughts in new ways but what it struggled to do well was to address the criticisms and identify all the criticisms that would inevitably come its way。 There were half hearted attempts at this throughout the book but overall What was said over the course of the ~350 pages could have been said in about half the space。 I found this book repetitive and unnecessarily long。 The use of more pages does not make the argument any stronger。 I enjoyed that the book challenges assumptions and laid out some thoughts in new ways but what it struggled to do well was to address the criticisms and identify all the criticisms that would inevitably come its way。 There were half hearted attempts at this throughout the book but overall I thought it fell short。 The book felt like a mind meld of all the similar thinkers and would have benefitted from some dissenting thinkers in the feedback loop。 。。。more
Ana
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I appreciated the different perspective， as I'm a bit more of a pessimist。 I am on board with a lot of his points after listening to the book， but there are a few things that struck me as a conservative/capitalist bias， which I still don't agree with。 Good to read a different perspective though！ I appreciated the different perspective， as I'm a bit more of a pessimist。 I am on board with a lot of his points after listening to the book， but there are a few things that struck me as a conservative/capitalist bias， which I still don't agree with。 Good to read a different perspective though！ 。。。more
Hitesh Vaghani
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I liked it。 Optimistic view toward world and its event。 Idea of inventions， specialization， division of labour。
Daniil Saiko
，
Started of ok， thinking it was mediocre read。 But really came together for me by the end of the book。A good book to read in the midst of all the negative press and fearmongering in the news。 Calls out how negativity is rewarded with no repercussions for wrong calls about yet another "end of the world" claim。 The pandemic portion does not read as strong as it could due to pandemic， but even this chapter has a strong foundation which carriers it through。 Started of ok， thinking it was mediocre read。 But really came together for me by the end of the book。A good book to read in the midst of all the negative press and fearmongering in the news。 Calls out how negativity is rewarded with no repercussions for wrong calls about yet another "end of the world" claim。 The pandemic portion does not read as strong as it could due to pandemic， but even this chapter has a strong foundation which carriers it through。 。。。more
Jason
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Advances in humanity have been the effect of trade and specialization within intra-community as well as inter-community。 One person can make 10 fish hooks and sell them while another focuses solely on food instead of each person being self-sufficient。 Overall the book is pro-humanity， Ridley constantly rattles against doomsayers of all ages， how we have continually outlived predictions; food shortages， rises in temperature， population excess， whatever it may be - invention （leading to division o Advances in humanity have been the effect of trade and specialization within intra-community as well as inter-community。 One person can make 10 fish hooks and sell them while another focuses solely on food instead of each person being self-sufficient。 Overall the book is pro-humanity， Ridley constantly rattles against doomsayers of all ages， how we have continually outlived predictions; food shortages， rises in temperature， population excess， whatever it may be - invention （leading to division of labor and division of time） has led to continual success of our race。 Especially so in the internet age when our collective knowledge is overflowing and we are connecting ideas around the world。 Terrific perspective on the human race， he made many good points for free markets， it's just one of those books I will have forever and hope it finds a nice resting place in my subconscious。Fantastic book。 "It is precisely because so much human betterment has shown to be possible in recent centuries that the continuing imperfection of the world places a moral duty on humanity to allow economic evolution to continue。 To prevent change， innovation， and growth is to stand in the way of protentional compassion。""the pessimists are right when they say that， if the world continues as it is， it will end in disaster for all humanity。 If all transport depends on oil， and oil runs out， then transport will cease。。。But notice the conditional: if。 The world will not continue as it is。 That is the whole point of human progress， the whole message of cultural evolution， the whole import of dynamic change - the whole thrust of this book。 The real danger comes from slowing down the change。" p。 281 （great page）"Yet most anti-corporate activists have faith in the good will of the leviathans that can force you to do business with them [govt]， but are suspicious of the behemoths that have to beg for your business。 I find that odd。" p。 111Research doesn't equal innovation but in many cases it is only the explanation， "It happens on the shop floor among apprentices and mechanics， or in the workplace。。。and only rarely as a result of the application and transfer of knowledge from ivory towers of the intelligentsia。。。Aspirin was curing headaches for more than a century before anybody had the faintest idea how。。。Food was being preserved by canning long before anybody had any germ theory to explain why it helped。"p。258Fascinating section on Africa as well in the global warming part。 Through exchange/trade， trusted laws of personal property， and specialization the nations of Africa can thrive。 Foreign aid is not the answer and leads to nothing btw"As Paul Romer puts it: 'Every generation has perceived the limits to growth that finite resources and undesirable side effects would pose if no new recipes or ideas were discovered。 And never generation has underestimated the potential for finding new recipes and ideas。 We consistently fail to grasp how many ideas remain to be discovered。'" p。354 。。。more
Azar Widadsyah
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