Maps of Time
An Introduction to Big History
2nd Edition
Published on 3. October 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
672 pages
978-0-520-27144-9 (ISBN)
Description
An introduction to a new way of looking at history, from a perspective that stretches from the beginning of time to the present day, "Maps of Time" is world history on an unprecedented scale. Beginning with the Big Bang, David Christian views the interaction of the natural world with the more recent arrivals in flora and fauna, including human beings. Cosmology, geology, archeology, and population and environmental studies - all figure in David Christian's account, which is an ambitious overview of the emerging field of 'Big History.' "Maps of Time" opens with the origins of the universe, the stars and the galaxies, the sun and the solar system, including the earth, and conducts readers through the evolution of the planet before human habitation. It surveys the development of human society from the Paleolithic era through the transition to agriculture, the emergence of cities and states, and the birth of the modern, industrial period right up to intimations of possible futures.
Sweeping in scope, finely focused in its minute detail, this riveting account of the known world, from the inception of space-time to the prospects of global warming, lays the groundwork for world history - and 'Big History' - true as never before to its name.
Sweeping in scope, finely focused in its minute detail, this riveting account of the known world, from the inception of space-time to the prospects of global warming, lays the groundwork for world history - and 'Big History' - true as never before to its name.
Reviews / Votes
"Christian's clarity of style and modesty add grace and subtlety to an ambitious effort." * Journal of Interdisciplinary History * "Christian has hit a home run. . . . This book should be required reading for any extraterrestrials visiting the earth for the first time." * College & Research Libraries News * "A fascinating read." * San Francisco Chronicle * "[Christian's] book is remarkably successful. It has the essential effect of first stimulating and then retaining the reader's interest." * New Scientist * "A remarkable work of synthesis and scholarship. . . . Christian's Olympian perspective on the story of time is exhilarating." * The Guardian * "An ambitious and clearly-written account." * Future Survey * "Forges bold and ingenious connections between the physical and social sciences." * The Age * "David Christian has given us a state-of-the-art instance of Big History, a work of breathtaking synthesis." * Books & Culture: A Christian Review * "No brief can possible do even minimal justice to an author and his summa cum laude opus." * Journal of World History * "No work in this genre [macro-history] is better than David Christian's Maps of Time: An Introduction to Big History. . . . [I]t is a brilliantly executed act of provocation." * The Times * "A good read, a fascinating prospectus for a new kind of history." * American Scientist *More details
Series
Edition
2nd edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Berkerley
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
8 b-w illustrations, 39 line illustrations, 9 maps, 32 tables
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 43 mm
Weight
953 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-520-27144-9 (9780520271449)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
10/2011
1st Edition
Naval Institute Press
€20.49
Available for download
Persons
David Christian is Professor in the Department of History at San Diego State University. He is the author of Living Water: Vodka and Russian Society on the Eve of Emancipation (1990), Imperial and Soviet Russia: Power, Privilege and the Challenge of Modernity (1997), and A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia: Volume 1: Inner Eurasia from Prehistory to the Mongol Empire (1998).
Content
Introduction: A Modern Creation Myth? 1. The First 300,000 Years: Origins of the Universe, Time, and Space 2. Origins of the Galaxies and Stars: The Beginnings of Complexity 3. Origins and History of the Earth 4. The Origins of Life and the Theory of Evolution 5. The Evolution of Life and the Biosphere 6. The Evolution of Humans 7. The Beginnings of Human History 8. Intensification and the Origins of Agriculture 9. From Power over Nature to Power over People: Cities, States, and Civilizations 10. Long Trends in the Era of Agrarian Civilizations 11. Approaching Modernity 12. Globalization, Commercialization, and Innovation 13. Birth of the Modern World 14. The Great Acceleration of the Twentieth Century 15. Futures