Book Review

Jared Diamond possesses one of those rare intellects that enables him to
pursue pioneering scientific research in multiple disciplines
simultaneously. A physiologist at the UCLA School of Medicine, Diamond
also studies animal evolution and biogeography. On a field excursion to
the highlands of New Guinea, Diamond faced a question from Yali, a local
politician. To paraphrase, Yali asked unselfconsciously, "Why is it that
you white people developed so much 'cargo' [material wealth] &, but we
black people had little cargo of our own?" This book represents
Diamond's answer to Yali. In it, he ties the fortunes (and misfortunes
and utter tragedies) of various societies to the ecological forces that
led to the development of agriculture and its consequent effects on the
manner in which societies interact. I would cheat Diamond of the
privilege of building and supporting his argument as a drama unfolding
over 10,000 years were I to summarize it in full, and so I will resist
the temptation. In essence, Diamond has succeeded in answering Yali's
question at a global scale without resorting to prejudicial arguments
that rely on differences in the innate abilities of people with
different backgrounds. For Diamond, a society's adoption of agriculture
as a way of feeding itself (versus some form of hunting and gathering)
represented a critical choice that set in motion a cascade of changes
that lead to the development of, among other things: a hierarchical
society, technological advancement, greater land pressures and greater
resistance to many dread diseases. These societal features enabled
agriculturalists to overwhelm their neighbors and, ultimately, those in
far distant lands. Diamond argues that it is little more than an
accident of climate and ecology that agriculture first took root in the
"fertile crescent" of the Middle East and quickly expanded to Europe.

Guns, Germs, and Steel is a comprehensive treatise that brings together
ecology, botany, anthropology, medicine and evolution. Only a broad
thinker such as Diamond could write such a book. Diamond assumes little
about the scientific background of his reader and is methodical as he
articulates his case. Furthermore, Diamond expects his reader to
undertake the intellectual journey with him and not simply glide along
the surface accepting his claims. A committed reader should find
Diamond's Pulitzer Prize winning book thought provoking and original.

Definitely a Cornerstone.

~ Barry Logan, Associate Professor of Biology, Bowdoin College