Maps of time : an introduction to big history
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Maps of time : an introduction to big history
（The California world history library, 2）
University of California Press, 2005, c2004
- : pbk
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Note
Includes bibliographical references (p. 563-594) and index
Description and Table of Contents
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.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations List of Tables Foreword Acknowledgments Introduction: A Modern Creation Myth? PART I. THE INANIMATE UNIVERSE 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 PART II. LIFE ON EARTH 4. The Origins of Life and the Theory of Evolution 5. The Evolution of Life and the Biosphere PART III. EARLY HUMAN HISTORY: MANY WORLDS 6. The Evolution of Humans 7. The Beginnings of Human History PART IV. THE HOLOCENE: FEW WORLDS 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" PART V. THE MODERN ERA: ONE WORLD 11. Approaching Modernity 12. Globalization, Commercialization, and Innovation 13. Birth of the Modern World 14. The Great Acceleration of the Twentieth Century PART VI. PERSPECTIVES ON THE FUTURE 15. Futures Appendix 1. Dating Techniques, Chronologies, and Timelines Appendix 2. Chaos and Order Notes Bibliography Index
by "Nielsen BookData"
