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The Invention of Tomorrow: A Natural History of Foresight
A spellbinding exploration of the human capacity to imagine the future Our ability to think about the future is one of the most powerful tools at our disposal. In The Invention of Tomorrow , cognitive scientists Thomas Suddendorf, Jonathan Redshaw, and Adam Bulley argue that its emergence transformed humans from unremarkable primates to creatures that hold the destiny of the planet in their hands. Drawing on their own cutting-edge research, the authors break down the science of foresight, showing us where it comes from, how it works, and how it made our world. Journeying through biology, psychology, history, and culture, they show that thinking ahead is at the heart of human nature—even if we often get it terribly wrong. Incisive and expansive, The Invention of Tomorrow offers a fresh perspective on the human tale that shows how our species clawed its way to control the future.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published September 30, 2022
28 people are currently reading
564 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
September 18, 2022
Brilliant book! THE INVENTION OF TOMORROW synthesizes research on human evolution, development, cognitive science and neuroscience to explain what foresight is, how it develops and evolved. Expertly written, engaging, and informative. One of my favorite human evo psych books I’ve read.
September 15, 2022
A must read book that has scientific depth, accessible writing and entertaining stories. Intriguing and insightful, a journey into how humans evolved the cognitive capacity to think about the future. This book will change the way you see yourself and where humanity has come from, and where we are going.
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time!
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time!
January 3, 2023
قوة البصيرة
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منذ أكثر من خمسة آلاف عام ، استعد رجل لمواجهة البرد القارس بينما كان يصعد جبلًا في جبال الألب. أصيب بجروح بالغة. تسبب هجوم في الوادي أدناه في طعنة عميقة بين إبهام وسبابة يده اليمنى. الآن كان بعيدًا عن المنزل ، يوم أو يومين على الأقل يمشي عبر الجليد والغابة. لم تكن هذه رحلة لضعاف القلوب - أو لغير المستعدين. كان الرجل يرتدي معطفًا وبنطالًا ضيقًا وقبعة وحذاءًا وحقيبة ظهر وغيرها من الملابس التي تمت خياطتها معًا من جلود العديد من الحيوانات المختلفة. في كيس على حزامه كان يحمل أدوات حجرية للقطع والكشط والحفر ، بالإضافة إلى قطع من البيريت يمكن أن يضربها لإشعال النار. تم ربط كتلتين مضغوطتين من فطر البتولا المضاد للطفيليات على حزام جلدي - وهي مفيدة عندما تكون مصابًا بالديدان السوطية. كان يحمل فأسًا من النحاس وقوسًا وسهامًا وخنجرًا مصنوعًا من الحجر الأسود . تم شحذ الخنجر بشق الأنفس عدة مرات. قد يحتاجه.
تم العثور على جثة الرجل المجمدة المحنطة في عام 1991 محفوظة في جبال الألب الجليدية ، محاطة بمعداته الكبيرة. أصبح يُعرف باسم Ötzi ، نسبة لجبال أوتزتال الألب حيث تم العثور عليه ، أو ببساطة باسم "رجل الجليد". توضح استعدادات Ötzi قوة القدرة العالمية لجنسنا البشري على تذكر ما نجح في الماضي والتفكير مسبقًا فيما قد يكون مطلوبًا غدًا .
العقل البشري هو آلة الزمن الافتراضية. بواسطته يمكننا أن نعيش أحداث الماضي من جديد ونتخيل المواقف المستقبلية ، حتى لو لم نشهد مواقف مماثلة من قبل. يقوم البشر بهذا الأمر باستمرار ، وهم في أحلام اليقظة بشأن الإجازات الصيفية ، والاستمتاع بفكرة مواعيد العشاء القادمة ، والتفكير مليًا في نتائج الاختبار. نظرًا لأن البشر مسافرون عقليًا عبر الزمن ، يمكننا الاستعداد للفرص والتهديدات مقدمًا ، كما فعل أوتزي ، في محاولة لتشكيل المستقبل وفقًا لتصميمنا الخاص. البصيرة ، قدرتنا على توقع الأحداث والتصرف وفقًا لذلك ، ربما تكون أقوى أداة تحت تصرفنا.
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Johnathan Redshaw
The Invention Of Tomorrow
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
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منذ أكثر من خمسة آلاف عام ، استعد رجل لمواجهة البرد القارس بينما كان يصعد جبلًا في جبال الألب. أصيب بجروح بالغة. تسبب هجوم في الوادي أدناه في طعنة عميقة بين إبهام وسبابة يده اليمنى. الآن كان بعيدًا عن المنزل ، يوم أو يومين على الأقل يمشي عبر الجليد والغابة. لم تكن هذه رحلة لضعاف القلوب - أو لغير المستعدين. كان الرجل يرتدي معطفًا وبنطالًا ضيقًا وقبعة وحذاءًا وحقيبة ظهر وغيرها من الملابس التي تمت خياطتها معًا من جلود العديد من الحيوانات المختلفة. في كيس على حزامه كان يحمل أدوات حجرية للقطع والكشط والحفر ، بالإضافة إلى قطع من البيريت يمكن أن يضربها لإشعال النار. تم ربط كتلتين مضغوطتين من فطر البتولا المضاد للطفيليات على حزام جلدي - وهي مفيدة عندما تكون مصابًا بالديدان السوطية. كان يحمل فأسًا من النحاس وقوسًا وسهامًا وخنجرًا مصنوعًا من الحجر الأسود . تم شحذ الخنجر بشق الأنفس عدة مرات. قد يحتاجه.
تم العثور على جثة الرجل المجمدة المحنطة في عام 1991 محفوظة في جبال الألب الجليدية ، محاطة بمعداته الكبيرة. أصبح يُعرف باسم Ötzi ، نسبة لجبال أوتزتال الألب حيث تم العثور عليه ، أو ببساطة باسم "رجل الجليد". توضح استعدادات Ötzi قوة القدرة العالمية لجنسنا البشري على تذكر ما نجح في الماضي والتفكير مسبقًا فيما قد يكون مطلوبًا غدًا .
العقل البشري هو آلة الزمن الافتراضية. بواسطته يمكننا أن نعيش أحداث الماضي من جديد ونتخيل المواقف المستقبلية ، حتى لو لم نشهد مواقف مماثلة من قبل. يقوم البشر بهذا الأمر باستمرار ، وهم في أحلام اليقظة بشأن الإجازات الصيفية ، والاستمتاع بفكرة مواعيد العشاء القادمة ، والتفكير مليًا في نتائج الاختبار. نظرًا لأن البشر مسافرون عقليًا عبر الزمن ، يمكننا الاستعداد للفرص والتهديدات مقدمًا ، كما فعل أوتزي ، في محاولة لتشكيل المستقبل وفقًا لتصميمنا الخاص. البصيرة ، قدرتنا على توقع الأحداث والتصرف وفقًا لذلك ، ربما تكون أقوى أداة تحت تصرفنا.
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Johnathan Redshaw
The Invention Of Tomorrow
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
March 21, 2025
Interesting, not fascinating.
I am bemused by the authors' dismissal of animal intelligence. Sure, "lean" interpretations of what looks like clever problem-solving are often possible, and can be dismissed as 'learned associative behavior.' But then again, humans do the same thing. As the authors point out a couple of chapters later, superstition and "ritual" are human behaviors. And they are not particularly intelligent, you see. Nor are many of the other things we do despite our capacity for intelligent and foresightful behavior, like believing Fake News, falling for the charms of charismatic leaders, dissing the science that is in favor of vaccinations, etc.
I need to find the study about the distribution of biomass on Earth, by Bar-On et al. The numbers quoted here about mammals make little sense to me.
I did learn a lot that I do believe, and I did get a lot to think about. For example I did not know that Prometheus means foresight.
" foresight has clearly accelerated cultural evolution. In turn, cultural evolution leads to improved foresight, creating a potent feedback loop that explains how our ancestors carved out both a cultural and cognitive niche and paved the way to increasing human dominance on the planet."
"A replication study of Ericsson's original work [on 10,000 hours] could only find a much smaller effect of the sheer number of practice hours on skill levels. Send a review of studies on expertise in chess and music found that only about 1/3 of the difference between accomplished people could be explained by variations in how much they practiced."
The use of fire at a site in modern day Israel has been dated to nearly 800,000 years ago.
"People throughout history have introduced the concept of a week, typically to give workers at least one full rest day, and different cultures have used different numbers of days to define what a week means. The Edo in Benin used four days and the Javanese in Indonesia five days. The Akanin West Africa used six days, the ancient Romans 8 days, and ancient Chinese and Egyptians used 10 days."
"The genius of the scientific method is its built-in faculty for auto correction. It forces scientists to look not for ways of proving their theories correct but for ways of ruling out alternative explanations."
" it was only in the 17th century the Newton produced a reasonably reliable mathematical lunar theory of tides." And that was just a theory. Models and charts came much later.
" LaPlace's Demon should be known as Cicero's Demon."
" competing interpretations of quantum theory lead to the exact same predictions."
In Japan and in Wales there are groups that plan for the future by actively considering it from the viewpoint of a future citizen.
"Just as a placebo effect is worth harnessing, it may pay to keep those rose-tinted glasses nearby. With the right balance between humility and confidence, we can tackle the challenges ahead."
I am bemused by the authors' dismissal of animal intelligence. Sure, "lean" interpretations of what looks like clever problem-solving are often possible, and can be dismissed as 'learned associative behavior.' But then again, humans do the same thing. As the authors point out a couple of chapters later, superstition and "ritual" are human behaviors. And they are not particularly intelligent, you see. Nor are many of the other things we do despite our capacity for intelligent and foresightful behavior, like believing Fake News, falling for the charms of charismatic leaders, dissing the science that is in favor of vaccinations, etc.
I need to find the study about the distribution of biomass on Earth, by Bar-On et al. The numbers quoted here about mammals make little sense to me.
I did learn a lot that I do believe, and I did get a lot to think about. For example I did not know that Prometheus means foresight.
" foresight has clearly accelerated cultural evolution. In turn, cultural evolution leads to improved foresight, creating a potent feedback loop that explains how our ancestors carved out both a cultural and cognitive niche and paved the way to increasing human dominance on the planet."
"A replication study of Ericsson's original work [on 10,000 hours] could only find a much smaller effect of the sheer number of practice hours on skill levels. Send a review of studies on expertise in chess and music found that only about 1/3 of the difference between accomplished people could be explained by variations in how much they practiced."
The use of fire at a site in modern day Israel has been dated to nearly 800,000 years ago.
"People throughout history have introduced the concept of a week, typically to give workers at least one full rest day, and different cultures have used different numbers of days to define what a week means. The Edo in Benin used four days and the Javanese in Indonesia five days. The Akanin West Africa used six days, the ancient Romans 8 days, and ancient Chinese and Egyptians used 10 days."
"The genius of the scientific method is its built-in faculty for auto correction. It forces scientists to look not for ways of proving their theories correct but for ways of ruling out alternative explanations."
" it was only in the 17th century the Newton produced a reasonably reliable mathematical lunar theory of tides." And that was just a theory. Models and charts came much later.
" LaPlace's Demon should be known as Cicero's Demon."
" competing interpretations of quantum theory lead to the exact same predictions."
In Japan and in Wales there are groups that plan for the future by actively considering it from the viewpoint of a future citizen.
"Just as a placebo effect is worth harnessing, it may pay to keep those rose-tinted glasses nearby. With the right balance between humility and confidence, we can tackle the challenges ahead."
September 20, 2022
Thought provoking and insightful. It has reframed the way I think about my ‘tomorrow’.
September 27, 2024
The price of foresight is worry.
Innovation depends on foresight to recognize the future utility.
"Books breaks the shackles of time."
Carl Sagan
Vorfreude ist die schönste freude.
L'appel du vide.
Mobile containers are metatools. Tools that can serve as tools for other tools.
4 characteristics essential to modern behavior:
Sophisticated planning, innovativeness, abstract thinking, use of symbols.
Defining future of human language is the capacity for displacement.
Scientific method in three steps: Gather data, hypothesize, test.
Chimpanzees say hello and hug but never say goodbye.
Core knowledge of infants: objects, actions, numbers and space. But not time
Innovation depends on foresight to recognize the future utility.
"Books breaks the shackles of time."
Carl Sagan
Vorfreude ist die schönste freude.
L'appel du vide.
Mobile containers are metatools. Tools that can serve as tools for other tools.
4 characteristics essential to modern behavior:
Sophisticated planning, innovativeness, abstract thinking, use of symbols.
Defining future of human language is the capacity for displacement.
Scientific method in three steps: Gather data, hypothesize, test.
Chimpanzees say hello and hug but never say goodbye.
Core knowledge of infants: objects, actions, numbers and space. But not time
September 16, 2022
Hi everyone, back again with another book review.
Right off the bat - let me say this book was something special. 2021 was a tough year for the book industry - books that would of been great were good and books that would of been good were bad. From Emily Henry's romance "People we meet on vacation" to the anxiety inducing UNFCCCs Annual Report 2021 I just wasn't impressed. I got a year of 2D beat em ups when what I needed was a Skyrim expansion pack.
With a new year comes new optimism and let me tell you - this book had me gripped. From the first chapters artful scene-setting account of the perils faced by our distant relatives to the mind expanding insights into the human experience this book had me enthralled. The author's have done a magnificent job and have truly unravelled the "invention of tomorrow".
10/10 will recommend - can't wait for the sequel.
Right off the bat - let me say this book was something special. 2021 was a tough year for the book industry - books that would of been great were good and books that would of been good were bad. From Emily Henry's romance "People we meet on vacation" to the anxiety inducing UNFCCCs Annual Report 2021 I just wasn't impressed. I got a year of 2D beat em ups when what I needed was a Skyrim expansion pack.
With a new year comes new optimism and let me tell you - this book had me gripped. From the first chapters artful scene-setting account of the perils faced by our distant relatives to the mind expanding insights into the human experience this book had me enthralled. The author's have done a magnificent job and have truly unravelled the "invention of tomorrow".
10/10 will recommend - can't wait for the sequel.
July 29, 2024
I think this may have been a book that suffered from my expectations being too high. Because I've done a lot of reading and research in decision science, I was hoping to read more about the power of predictions, imagined futures, and how this can help us make better decisions today. I think there were parts of this book that tried to explore that idea, but the book felt a little disjointed at times, moving from modern research in child psychology to historial anthropology, from science to speculation. The book focused less on practical ways to build and harness our foresight abilities and more on how foresight might have developed through natural selection. It was an interesting book, and worth reading if the topic appeals to you, but it was not as practical as I'd hoped.
August 9, 2023
The authors provide a seminal work on the evolution of the human brain and its unique gifts. Rich with detail, photographs, and illustrations, the book shows how humans evolved the capacity for foresight, planning, innovation, and abstract thinking. We also possess self-destructive propensities that need correcting, such as addressing climate change. The authors leave us with the hopeful message, "With the right balance between humility and confidence, we can tackle the challenges ahead." We can use our mental time machines to improve and heal our world. Now that's a powerful, positive, hopeful message.
February 9, 2023
Los seres humanos estamos equipados con una máquina del tiempo a la que llamamos cerebro, que constantemente nos está transportando al pasado o a los posibles futuros, ya sea para repasar aquello que salió bien o atormentarnos por lo que ya no será o pudo haber sido, nos ayuda a prever escenarios catastróficos pero a la vez nos mantiene despiertos por las noches por temor a lo que pudiera ser.
February 15, 2023
In this book, the authors explain what the term mental time travel is, which they invented. It was fun while it lasted. In a nutshell it's something that allows human brain to remember past events in order to avoid dangers and choose the best plans of action for the future.
July 11, 2023
A unique way of looking at human evolution that I have not encountered before.
The information is presented in a very much a pop-science sort of way, so do not expect anything too heavy, but it was still very informative and well worth the time investment.
The information is presented in a very much a pop-science sort of way, so do not expect anything too heavy, but it was still very informative and well worth the time investment.
September 17, 2024
A wonderful overview of Homo and why Homo Sapiens Sapiens might actually be better stated as Homo Sapiens Prospectus. Rather than thumbs, or tools, perhaps our foresight is what has given us this tiny slice of dominance over the Earth.
September 15, 2022
I got to read an early copy of this book. What a fascinating journey on the human mind by leading experts in this field. Will appeal to fans of Sapiens and Steven Pinker’s works.
October 9, 2022
It was interesting without being too esoteric.
January 2, 2023
This only interesting parts of this book we’re the exploration of historical societies and even those pieces felt like an underwhelming repeat of Sapiens and Guns Germs and Steels.
March 3, 2023
More of a historical documentation of the phenomenon than an explanation of it, like I was hoping for. It does a good job of doing that though.
March 9, 2023
Interesting, insightful, and clearly written. Wish it was longer.
January 23, 2024
Super interesting read on what sets humans apart from every other animal. The theories in the book were backed up with a lot of scientific evidence and examples from studies. Made me appreciate my gift of foresight.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews