The Roots of Progress

The Ascent Of Man

Jacob Bronowski

The book version of the famous television series by the same name. Bronowski looks at the development of human civilization from nomadic tribes to modern science.

I enjoyed this book, but given the grand scope indicated by the title I was hoping for it all to add up to something more. Instead, I found it episodic: a series of stories, only loosely connected. My favorite chapter was the one on Galileo; I learned many new details about his conflict with the Church.

Relevant posts

Nomad life

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Amazon (affiliate link), WorldCat