The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves
by Matt Ridley · 2010
Buy on AmazonOver 10,000 years ago there were fewer than 10 million people on the planet. Today there are more than 6 billion, 99 per cent of whom are better fed, better sheltered, better entertained and better protected against disease than their Stone Age ancestors.The availability of almost everything a person could want or need has been going erratically upwards for 10,000 years and has rapidly accelerated over the last 200 years: calories; vitamins; clean water; machines; privacy; the means to travel faster than we can run, and the ability to communicate over longer distances than we can shout.…
Recommended by
"This book's focus on human innovation and progress aligns with Mark Zuckerberg's interest in technology's role in societal advancement. It's an expected read for someone exploring how systems evolve toward greater prosperity."
A Year of Books (2015) · en.wikipedia.org
"The most brilliant and enlightening book I've read in years."
Naval's Recommended Reading (The Almanack) · navalmanack.com