Our big brains…

Three revolutions have happened during the Homo Sapien timeline; the cognitive, the agricultural, and the scientific. These three paradigm shifts redefined what it was to be a homo sapien.  The first, the cognitive revolution, was the time of the birth of myths, religions, and other methods for making sense of the world. (Harari, 26). It was the first attempt for humans to analyze our surroundings for our benefit.  They designed power structures and dictated how to behave in order to be accepted by others. Modern society is constantly inundated by the cognitive actions of others. The existence of permanent societies at all, Harari points out is due in large to the Agricultural Revolution.  It was the revolution that introduced the domestication of plants and animals. The agricultural revolution also solidified the classes of society,those possessing the most land often being the wealthiest and most powerful in society. The ability to grow enough food has dictated where societies thrive throughout time.  

There are three primary variables that Harari identify which gave humans to edge in dominating other species around us; we possess the ability to communicate, to exist in large groups, and that we are incredibly imaginative.   I believe out of those three, our imaginative nature is what truly gave us the edge. Without our constant unquenchable curiosity and drive for innovation we would not have these large societies, making the other two ideas obsolete. It is our ability to communicate that also is key, since we are able to express these ideas, but it is not something we as humans uniquely possess.  Also, our ability to consider the future and the repercussions of our actions has been imperative to our success. Without it, we may have never understood the benefits of following moral guidelines so as to be accepted by others.