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Darian Onaciu's Reviews > Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
by
by
Drop whatever you have on your reading queue and
READ THIS BOOK NOW!
The author
Whenever I read a non-fiction book I always look up the author: who he is, what achievements he has and which are the tools he uses to understand and explain bits of reality. I think it is important to do this in order to have a better grasp on the accuracy of his claims.
" is an American neuroendocrinologist and author. He is currently a professor of biology, and professor of neurology and neurological sciences and, by courtesy, neurosurgery, at Stanford University."
The book
This is the best book on behavior, so on humans in general, and the overall best book I have *read so far.
Make no mistake - this is a tough read but by no means because of the author's fault or its length.
The endeavor he embarked on - explaining human behavior from every conceivable facet - is one of such magnitude that its sheer complexity demands you understand the underlying workings of neuroscience and endocrinology.
Fear not however, as he takes you step by step with detailed explanations through all of these and more, laying the building blocks towards a better understanding of yourself and others.
I am a long time admirer of science because it is the only tool that helps us better understand ourselves and the environment, facilitating a better comprehension of reality and the Universe we live in.
Sapolsky uses the latest research interwoven with great examples, so that you can better grasp the complexity, all told through his strikingly objective thinking sprinkled with great humor.
He tackles mind-numbingly complex subjects such as social hierarchies, morality, killing, war, peace, religion and free will, all while taking into account the environment, early stage fetal development, human evolution and so many other factors that your head might start to hurt, looking at behavior through each of these lenses.
It is difficult for me to express in this measly review just how amazing his effort is.
More amazing however is that he pulls it off, making this the most awesome endeavor about understanding humans that I am aware of.
Sapolsky is a FUCKING LEGEND!
Just as Morgan Blackledge, a GoodReads reviewer (sorry I can't seem to tag you here) says:
"You're not fully sentient until you have watched all 20+ hours of his lectures from the course (at least once) which are freely available on YouTube."
If you don't like to read - although I highly doubt you're here if that's the case -
Better yet, read the damned book AND watch his videos - you can thank me later!
All these taken into consideration, I am convinced that
EVERYONE
should read this book.
Notes
*I listened to the book - so used an audiobook format - and I absolutely do not recommend you do this unless you are familiar with the intricacies of neuroscience or, as I will do, you will purchase a written copy to go again through the content.
**There are people who celebrate the lack of science behind their actions and you should be weary of them.
One such example I've recently seen is a man who claims he is a certified psychotherapist, which I don't necessarily doubt, but openly acknowledged, when I asked, that there is no science behind his therapy. I expected the workshop participants to raise and leave the room, however they only applauded onward as he charismatically spinned the story to his liking.
Please educate yourself, use critical thinking and always be skeptical in order not to be fooled and robbed by the likes of them - science is not perfect, however it is undoubtedly better than falling into the traps of cheap generalizations, confirmation biases and short term placebo effects.
Reality is very complex so we should acknowledge this and act accordingly.
***
If you'd like recommendations on books I consider to be good in this area, feel free to ask or just take a look at my 'read' list.
****
I'm starting to seriously think there should be modern means to teach people how to think and the emergence of Mixed Reality might be a good medium for that. If you're interested in a chat about this or have a concrete proposition just drop me a message.
Thanks for surviving my ramblings.
Now go and read the book!
READ THIS BOOK NOW!
The author
Whenever I read a non-fiction book I always look up the author: who he is, what achievements he has and which are the tools he uses to understand and explain bits of reality. I think it is important to do this in order to have a better grasp on the accuracy of his claims.
" is an American neuroendocrinologist and author. He is currently a professor of biology, and professor of neurology and neurological sciences and, by courtesy, neurosurgery, at Stanford University."
The book
This is the best book on behavior, so on humans in general, and the overall best book I have *read so far.
Make no mistake - this is a tough read but by no means because of the author's fault or its length.
The endeavor he embarked on - explaining human behavior from every conceivable facet - is one of such magnitude that its sheer complexity demands you understand the underlying workings of neuroscience and endocrinology.
Fear not however, as he takes you step by step with detailed explanations through all of these and more, laying the building blocks towards a better understanding of yourself and others.
I am a long time admirer of science because it is the only tool that helps us better understand ourselves and the environment, facilitating a better comprehension of reality and the Universe we live in.
Sapolsky uses the latest research interwoven with great examples, so that you can better grasp the complexity, all told through his strikingly objective thinking sprinkled with great humor.
He tackles mind-numbingly complex subjects such as social hierarchies, morality, killing, war, peace, religion and free will, all while taking into account the environment, early stage fetal development, human evolution and so many other factors that your head might start to hurt, looking at behavior through each of these lenses.
It is difficult for me to express in this measly review just how amazing his effort is.
More amazing however is that he pulls it off, making this the most awesome endeavor about understanding humans that I am aware of.
Sapolsky is a FUCKING LEGEND!
Just as Morgan Blackledge, a GoodReads reviewer (sorry I can't seem to tag you here) says:
"You're not fully sentient until you have watched all 20+ hours of his lectures from the course (at least once) which are freely available on YouTube."
If you don't like to read - although I highly doubt you're here if that's the case -
Better yet, read the damned book AND watch his videos - you can thank me later!
All these taken into consideration, I am convinced that
EVERYONE
should read this book.
Notes
*I listened to the book - so used an audiobook format - and I absolutely do not recommend you do this unless you are familiar with the intricacies of neuroscience or, as I will do, you will purchase a written copy to go again through the content.
**There are people who celebrate the lack of science behind their actions and you should be weary of them.
One such example I've recently seen is a man who claims he is a certified psychotherapist, which I don't necessarily doubt, but openly acknowledged, when I asked, that there is no science behind his therapy. I expected the workshop participants to raise and leave the room, however they only applauded onward as he charismatically spinned the story to his liking.
Please educate yourself, use critical thinking and always be skeptical in order not to be fooled and robbed by the likes of them - science is not perfect, however it is undoubtedly better than falling into the traps of cheap generalizations, confirmation biases and short term placebo effects.
Reality is very complex so we should acknowledge this and act accordingly.
***
If you'd like recommendations on books I consider to be good in this area, feel free to ask or just take a look at my 'read' list.
****
I'm starting to seriously think there should be modern means to teach people how to think and the emergence of Mixed Reality might be a good medium for that. If you're interested in a chat about this or have a concrete proposition just drop me a message.
Thanks for surviving my ramblings.
Now go and read the book!
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Behave.
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Reading Progress
November 1, 2017
– Shelved as:
to-read
November 1, 2017
– Shelved
December 29, 2017
–
Started Reading
February 22, 2018
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-8 of 8 (8 new)
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message 1:
by
Todd
(new)
-
rated it 5 stars
Feb 24, 2018 11:52AM
Just saw your recommendation. I’m reading this now but haven’t added it to my list yet. It is very good so far. I have two teenagers, so it’s super interesting to read about things like how increased testosterone affects the brain. I also think that they operate from a limbic state a lot of the time and as a parent I need to help them downregulate out of it. This will help a lot with this. I’m looking forward to the cultural analysis later in the book.
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Todd, I'm glad you're currently reading it and can't wait to to take a look over your review once you write it - I enjoy them a lot.I'm sure you will find many interesting things as you read on - I will also purchase it physically and go again through the content just to better assimilate it and be able to explain it more thoroughly in discussions.
I'm also thinking of proposing this book as a grand challenge in the Book Club from the company I work at. Not sure if that's a good idea though as it can be a difficult read.
Anyways, please share bits and pieces you find interesting from the book, maybe even things you can apply and also feel free to recommend me books you think I'd like.
I will definitely read this book but please tell this more sciency than Sapiens. Because for me that book fell into the traps you mentioned in your review here: cheap generalizations and confirmation biases. i saw you loved it but if the tone is similar I might skip this one as well. Thanks for the lectures link. i think i will watch one or two videos to decide if I like the guy.
Adina, Sapolsky is a hardcore scientist and his book gets very technical at several points, diving deep into complicated phenomena and mechanisms. Although he explains every concept he operates with, it is definitely not an easy read for most people but it's undoubtedly worth it.
Harari is a historian so it's natural that his discourse uses higher level abstractions. His books flow easily and the insight comes from him making interesting interpretations and observations of mostly known facts.
Sapolsky only uses science and has the most objective outlook I've seen thus far. For example at one point he both praises and criticizes Steven Pinker, another great scientist, for the way he evaluates the most severe conflicts in history.
Thus the two books share some similarities but are also very different.
If you're into hardcore science it's definitely worth the read.
I'd suspect that if you manage to get past the technical bits you'll love it and it will also help you.
Your ramblings in this beautiful review has given me motivation to pick up this beast . Hopefully I will maintain it till the last page . thnaks .
Magusky wrote: "Your ramblings in this beautiful review has given me motivation to pick up this beast . Hopefully I will maintain it till the last page . thnaks ."You're very welcome, Magusky!
I' hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
Am ascultat cateva filme pe youtube, si mi se pare grozavAm citit apoi monkylove, acum merg sa cumpar cartea asta si pe cea cu zebrele!
Virginia, ma bucur ca-ti place Sapolsky.Inca e cartea mea preferata din ce-am reusit sa citesc pana acum si o recomand cu drag tuturor.
Cred ca sunt foarte putini ca el care folosesc atatea lentile prin care privesc mediul inconjurator si oamenii, insa mai mult decat oricand e nevoie sa intelegem ca realitatea e complexa si necesita foarte mult efort si rabdare pentru a intelege macar o parte mica din ea.
Sunt curios de recenzia ta.
