Jared Diamond
Full Name and Common Aliases
Jared Mason Diamond, often referred to simply as Jared Diamond, is a renowned figure in the fields of geography, history, and anthropology. His work has earned him a place among the most influential thinkers of the modern era.
Birth and Death Dates
Jared Diamond was born on September 10, 1937. As of the latest available information, he is still alive and continues to contribute to his fields of expertise.
Nationality and Profession(s)
Jared Diamond is an American by nationality. He is a polymath, known primarily as a geographer, historian, anthropologist, and author. His interdisciplinary approach has allowed him to explore complex topics that intersect various fields of study.
Early Life and Background
Jared Diamond was born in Boston, Massachusetts, into a family that valued education and intellectual pursuit. His father, a physician, and his mother, a teacher, instilled in him a love for learning from an early age. Diamond's academic journey began at the prestigious Roxbury Latin School, after which he attended Harvard University, earning a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology and history. He later pursued a Ph.D. in physiology at the University of Cambridge. This diverse educational background laid the foundation for his future interdisciplinary work.
Major Accomplishments
Jared Diamond's career is marked by numerous accomplishments that have significantly impacted both academic circles and the general public. He is perhaps best known for his ability to synthesize information from various disciplines to address some of the most pressing questions about human societies. His work has earned him several prestigious awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction for his book "Guns, Germs, and Steel" in 1998. Diamond has also been recognized with the National Medal of Science and has been elected to the American Philosophical Society and the National Academy of Sciences.
Notable Works or Actions
Diamond's most notable work is undoubtedly "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies", published in 1997. This groundbreaking book explores the environmental and geographical factors that have shaped the modern world, challenging traditional views on the development of civilizations. Another significant work is "Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed", which examines the environmental and societal factors that have led to the downfall of past civilizations. His other works, such as "The Third Chimpanzee" and "The World Until Yesterday", further explore themes of human evolution and societal development.
Impact and Legacy
Jared Diamond's impact extends far beyond academia. His ability to communicate complex ideas in an accessible manner has made his work influential among policymakers, educators, and the general public. Diamond's interdisciplinary approach has inspired a new generation of scholars to look beyond traditional academic boundaries and consider the interconnectedness of human history, geography, and environment. His work has sparked debates and discussions on the role of environmental factors in shaping human societies, influencing fields as diverse as history, anthropology, and environmental science.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
Jared Diamond is widely quoted and remembered for his profound insights into the factors that have shaped human history. His ability to distill complex ideas into engaging narratives has made his work accessible to a broad audience. Diamond's exploration of the interplay between environment and society has provided a new lens through which to view historical and contemporary issues. His quotes often encapsulate the essence of his interdisciplinary approach, offering thought-provoking perspectives on the challenges and opportunities facing human societies. As a result, his work continues to resonate with those seeking to understand the past and navigate the future.
Quotes by Jared Diamond
Jared Diamond's insights on:
I've worked very hard in this book to keep the lines of communication open. I don't want to turn someone away from this information for partisan political reasons.
Here, the results of recent molecular biological studies are illuminating in linking germs to the rise of food production, in Eurasia much more than in the Americas.
The shift from hunting-gathering to farming began only about 11,000 years ago; the first metal tools were produced only about 7,000 years ago; and the first state government and the first writing arose only around 5,400 years ago. “Modern” conditions have prevailed, even just locally, for only a tiny fraction of human history; all human societies have been traditional for far longer than any society has been modern.
The table gives major crops, of five crop classes, from early agricultural sites in various parts of the world. Square brackets enclose names of crops first domesticated elsewhere; names not enclosed in brackets refer to local domesticates. Omitted are crops that arrived or became important only later, such as bananas in Africa, corn and beans in the eastern United States, and sweet potato in New Guinea. Cottons are four species of the genus.
Almost all studies of child development emphasize the role of childhood stimulation and activity in promoting mental development, and stress the irreversible mental stunting associated with reduced childhood stimulation.
Our world society is presently on a non-sustainable course, and any of our 12 problems of non-sustainability that we have just summarized would suffice to limit our lifestyle within the next several decades. They are like time bombs with fuses of less than 50 years.
Archaeologists studying the rise of farming have reconstructed for us a stage where we made one of the most crucial decisions in human history. Forced to choose between limiting population growth or trying to increase food production, we opted for the latter and ended up with starvation, warfare, and tyranny. The same choice faces us today, with the difference that we now can learn from the past.
The hunter-gatherer lifestyle worked at least tolerably well for the nearly 100,000-year history of behaviorally modern humans. Everybody in the world was a hunter-gatherer until the local origins of agriculture around 11,000 years ago, and nobody in the world lived under a state government until 5,400 years ago. The lessons from all those experiments in child-rearing that lasted for such a long time are worth considering seriously.
Introspection and preserved writings give us far more insight into the ways of past humans than we have into the ways of past dinosaurs. For that reason, I’m optimistic that we can eventually arrive at convincing explanations for these broadest patterns of human history.
Chauncey Starr expressed it, “We are loath to let others do unto us what we happily do to ourselves.