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Out of curiosity, can you explain, or point to some writing about why you think the theories in the book are close to "complete bunk"?
by trextrex 8y ago
Out of curiosity, can you explain, or point to some writing about why you think the theories in the book are close to "complete bunk"?
- simonsarris 8y agohttps://westhunt.wordpress.com/2017/09/04/guns-germs-and-steel-revisited/ https://westhunt.wordpress.com/2017/09/04/guns-germs-and-ste... There are also a ton of good critiques on /r/history, /r/askhistorians, and /r/anthropology. I can't remember which I've read. Ones like this are typical: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/8nr7xd/thoughts_on_guns_germs_and_steel_by_jared_diamond/ https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/8nr7xd/thoug...
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- EdwardDiego 8y agoThat first link entirely ignores that IQ tests have been shown to be culturally dependent. Likewise for the aptitude tests he conflates them with. Pretty sure if you wrote an IQ test where your standard population was a group of people living in a harsh jungle environment, urbanite Westerners would come off thick as pigshit. Or an aptitude test for "How good are you at tracking cassowaries without being disembowelled by them". I've read good dissections of what's wrong with Diamond's work, that link is not one of them.
- squirrelicus 8y agoI remember being struck by his anecdotes of Papua New Guineans seeming just as smart as anyone else as supposed evidence of... What exactly? I don't think Neil Diamond is wrong but it's kind of baby's first reading on the differences between groups in the world. I think CGP Grey does a great job at communicating the actual meat of Guns, Germs, and Steel here https://youtu.be/JEYh5WACqEk https://youtu.be/JEYh5WACqEk