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I haven't read Behave by Robert Sapolsky, but I did read 'A Primate's Memoir' a while back and it was fantastic. A memoir of his time in Africa studying baboons
by b_emery 9y ago
I haven't read Behave by Robert Sapolsky, but I did read 'A Primate's Memoir' a while back and it was fantastic. A memoir of his time in Africa studying baboons, well written and entertaining. One of those books that I was sad to finish. You can learn a lot about human behavior and society by studying baboons.
Two books I've read this summer that would fit on this list are This will make you smarter from edge.org, and Waking Up by Sam Harris. The first is a collection of the essays from edge.org about what everyone should have in their cognitive toolkit [1]. Consider it a list of a) the many ways one can go wrong when trying to think scientifically, and b) some of the many concepts to consider when trying to solve a problem or understand something. Waking Up was good from the point of view of understanding the science behind 'the self' and meditation. I've started meditating because of this book, and it's a useful guide for avoiding the, shall I say, less rational aspects that are out there.
[1] https://www.edge.org/responses/what-scientific-concept-would-improve-everybodys-cognitive-toolkit https://www.edge.org/responses/what-scientific-concept-would...
- wuch 9y agoI do recommend Behave. Robert Sapolsky is terrific writer. Though, I found it quite funny how in each chapter Sapolsky starts by describing usually story, criticising how it is wrong and too simplistic, elaborating on complexities involved, but at the end of chapter can't resist giving one sentence blurb summary himself - which is of course almost equally simplistic.