Edward Slingerland

Never been read paperback, perfect condition apart from tiny rip on top of spine edge. 

Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

Massachusetts

How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization

An "entertaining and enlightening" deep dive into the alcohol-soaked origins of civilization--and the evolutionary roots of humanity's appetite for intoxication (Daniel E. Lieberman, author of Exercised). While plenty of entertaining books have been written about the history of alcohol and other intoxicants, none have offered a comprehensive, convincing answer to the basic question of why humans want to get high in the first place. Drunk elegantly cuts through the tangle of urban legends and anecdotal impressions that surround our notions of intoxication to provide the first rigorous, scientifically-grounded explanation for our love of alcohol. Drawing on evidence from archaeology, history, cognitive neuroscience, psychopharmacology, social psychology, literature, and genetics, Drunk shows that our taste for chemical intoxicants is not an evolutionary mistake, as we are so often told. In fact, intoxication helps solve a number of distinctively human challenges: enhancing creativity, alleviating stress, building trust, and pulling off the miracle of getting fiercely tribal primates to cooperate with strangers. Our desire to get drunk, along with the individual and social benefits provided by drunkenness, played a crucial role in sparking the rise of the first large-scale societies. We would not have civilization without intoxication. From marauding Vikings and bacchanalian orgies to sex-starved fruit flies, blind cave fish, and problem-solving crows, Drunk is packed with fascinating case studies and engaging science, as well as practical takeaways for individuals and communities. The result is a captivating and long overdue investigation into humanity's oldest indulgence--one that explains not only why we want to get drunk, but also how it might actually be good for us to tie one on now and then.

Drunk

4549e334-2590-4b9b-9dfb-1f4fb5db24d2-1

Florida

A deep dive into the evolutionary science behind why humans love to get drunk, and how alcohol and other intoxicants catalyzed and shaped civilization. Alcohol is tightly woven into the fabric of our lives. We use it to bond with friends and coworkers, and it's a fixture at weddings, funerals, religious ceremonies, and just about every other social event imaginable. And this is true in spite of the fact that it's really bad for us. Considering alcohol's downsides -- hangovers, reckless behavior, addiction, accidents, death -- our continued enthusiasm for it is surprising. Prevailing scientific theories hold that our taste for intoxication is an evolutionary accident. But a closer look reveals that these accounts can't be right. In Drunk, Edward Slingerland offers an alternative evolutionary history of our relationship with alcohol, arguing that its individual and social benefits have outweighed its costs, that civilization as we know it could never have developed without alcohol, and that intoxication continues to play a crucial role in the modern world. Packed with fascinating case studies, engaging science, and practical takeaways for individuals and communities, Drunk is a captivating and long overdue investigation into humanity's oldest indulgence.

Category - Non Fiction / History

Format - Paperback

Condition - Excellent

Listed - 4 months ago

Views - 10

Wishes - 1

Ships From - Massachusetts

Est. Publication Date - Oct 2022

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Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization

ISBN: 9780316453356

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Category - Non Fiction / History

Format - Paperback

Condition - Excellent

Listed - 4 months ago

Views - 10

Wishes - 1

Ships From - Massachusetts

Est. Publication Date - Oct 2022

Seller Description

Additional Information

Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization

ISBN: 9780316453356

Publisher Description

Tags

Drunk

By:

$5.00 $10.00

Meet the seller

Discover more

Drunk

By: Edward Slingerland

More from this seller

Additional titles by Edward Slingerland

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