How We Came in Be, In Twelve Images

“Quarks to Culture is a must-read. It weaves the myriad patterns of universe, life, and consciousness into a wonderful new tapestry. Volk combines scientific rigor and love for the humanities into a gentle, no-nonsense, full-of-facts, passionately well-written, fundamental new guide to help us better see ourselves in this ever-changing world.” — Francesco Tubiello, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization

This week, our featured book is Quarks to Culture: How We Came to Be, by Tyler Volk. Today, we have a selection of images from the book that depict the twelve major transitions that Volk identifies as making up the Grand Sequence — the progression from simple systems to complex ones — that led to us.

Beginning with fundamental quanta and moving up through atoms, molecules, cells, animals, animal groups, and agrovillages (to name a few), Volk identifies the key mechanism behind each transition: the combination of simple elements into qualitatively new systems with new relations.

Click on the first image below to begin your tour through the fundamental levels of physical, biological, and cultural evolution that Tyler Volk explores in Quarks to Culture!

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