Cumulative culture -- the accumulation of technological modifications and improvements over generations -- allowed humans to adapt to a diversity of environments and challenges. But, it is unclear ...

Stephen has degrees in science (Physics major) and arts (English Literature and the History and Philosophy of Science), as well as a Graduate Diploma in Science Communication. Stephen has degrees in ...

Of the 8.7 million species on Earth, why are human beings the only one that paints self-portraits, walks on the Moon and worships gods? For decades, many scholars have argued that the difference stems ...

Human beings are animals, evolved from ancestral great apes. We are part of nature and yet unique in many ways. It was once thought that humans were the only animals with culture: the learned rather ...

Two chimpanzees meeting with each other apparently have a discussion using hand gestures, one of the human-like characteristics of other mammals. (Getty Images) Of the 8.7 million species on Earth, ...

What led humans on the unique path of cultural development? And can we do anything useful with newly reconstructed histories of this process? Culture is central to defining humanity. Throughout ...

Eli Elster does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their ...

When my friend Jim Rainey took over as CEO of a huge agribusiness operation, the organization was hemorrhaging tens of millions of dollars each year. Within 18 months, it was on solid financial ...

Each of us individually is the accumulated product of thousands of generations that have come before us in an unbroken line. Our culture and technology today are also the result of thousands of years ...