SSC
Book Review: Against The Grain
Scott Alexander reviews 'Against The Grain', which argues that early grain agriculture and state formation were detrimental to human welfare and mainly benefited emerging state powers.
21 min read 3,212 words
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hunter-gatherer societies
Essays tagged “hunter-gatherer societies”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Essays on hunter-gatherer societies
2 essaysLW
Guilt: Another Gift Nobody Wants
Scott proposes that guilt evolved as a costly signal to prove trustworthiness to potential cooperation partners, explaining why guilt involves public self-punishment and can even occur when someone hasn't done anything wrong.
15 min read 2,285 words