Comments on: Farmers War http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html Overcoming Bias is economist Robin Hanson’s blog, on honesty, signaling, disagreement, forecasting, and the far future. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 21:40:12 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-464311 Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG Wed, 19 Jan 2011 21:20:11 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-464311 [...] “The Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf), Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf), Keith Thomas’ [...] [...] “The Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf), Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf), Keith Thomas’ [...]

]]> By: Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-464036 Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG Sat, 15 Jan 2011 04:01:49 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-464036 [...] Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf) • Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf) • Keith [...] [...] Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf) • Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf) • Keith [...]

]]> By: Overcoming Bias : On Sex & Violence http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-462291 Overcoming Bias : On Sex & Violence Wed, 22 Dec 2010 02:34:15 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-462291 [...] with predictable locations and trade worth taxing, made the first good war targets. (more; see also) SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "On Sex & Violence", url: [...] [...] with predictable locations and trade worth taxing, made the first good war targets. (more; see also) SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "On Sex & Violence", url: [...]

]]> By: Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-455906 Welcome! – GNOLLS.ORG Mon, 04 Oct 2010 06:13:40 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-455906 [...] “The Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf) Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf) Keith Thomas’ [...] [...] “The Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race” (pdf) Robin Hanson’s “Farmers War” and R. Brian Ferguson’s “The Birth Of War” (pdf) Keith Thomas’ [...]

]]> By: PANDORA The Perfect World? NOT REALLY http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-455874 PANDORA The Perfect World? NOT REALLY Mon, 04 Oct 2010 00:15:37 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-455874 [...] becomes a persistent feature of human behavior, almost exclusively practiced among men." Overcoming Bias : Farmers War "We are born and we die. No one cares, no one remembers, and it doesn't matter. This is [...] [...] becomes a persistent feature of human behavior, almost exclusively practiced among men." Overcoming Bias : Farmers War "We are born and we die. No one cares, no one remembers, and it doesn't matter. This is [...]

]]> By: ek552 http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-435904 ek552 Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:23:18 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-435904 Ok, I read the book. Overall, I would say it's decent, and certainly provides a compelling rebuttal of Guns, Germs, and Steel. The latter half of the book is somewhat speculative, although I would guess the author himself would admit that if asked. Anyway, it did change my mind about black africans. It does seem that most of them had gotten beyond hunting/gathering by the 19th century. I imagine they would have evolved European level intelligence given a few few more thousand years. Ok, I read the book. Overall, I would say it’s decent, and certainly provides a compelling rebuttal of Guns, Germs, and Steel. The latter half of the book is somewhat speculative, although I would guess the author himself would admit that if asked.

Anyway, it did change my mind about black africans. It does seem that most of them had gotten beyond hunting/gathering by the 19th century. I imagine they would have evolved European level intelligence given a few few more thousand years.

]]> By: gwern http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-435893 gwern Sat, 14 Nov 2009 14:51:53 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-435893 > but Robin, do you have a justification for the opposite conclusion beyond the simple revealed preference of people not seeming to want to commit suicide? What more could one ask? Someone who doesn't commit suicide is at every moment of their life stating they think life is worth living. What demonstration or reason could be more convincing than that? > but Robin, do you have a justification for the opposite conclusion beyond the simple revealed preference of people not seeming to want to commit suicide?

What more could one ask? Someone who doesn’t commit suicide is at every moment of their life stating they think life is worth living. What demonstration or reason could be more convincing than that?

]]> By: ek552 http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-435739 ek552 Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:07:10 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-435739 Thank you . . . . I will check it out if I get a chance. Thank you . . . . I will check it out if I get a chance.

]]> By: TGGP http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-435733 TGGP Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:19:58 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-435733 Michael H. Hart disagrees with the conventional wisdom (which numbers Jared Diamond among its adherents) that the Sudan and tropical west Africa are sites were farming was independently invented. He thinks it spread from the fertile crescent (where it began ten thousand years ago) to Egypt to the Sudan. He does think the agriculture was practiced in the Sudan seven thousand years ago and in western tropical Africa five thousand years ago. He also thinks they may have independently invented cattle herding six thousand years ago. He does believe that New Guinea highlanders independently invented agriculture (most likely six thousand years ago, but possibly nine thousand). They are related to the Australian aborigenes and have lower IQs (one of Hart's favorite explanatory variables) than sub-Saharan Africans. His account of how Africa became majority Negroe (Diamond just says "black") is the same as that in GG&S: proto-Bantu speakers practiced agriculture & ironworking and hence had an advantage over the hunter-gather Pygmies (the other member of the "Negrid" family) and Sanid (his term for the racial family containing Bushmen/Hottentots aka Khoi-San). The Bantu expansion began a few centuries BC and made them the majority in sub-Saharan Africa by around 1000 AD. Michael H. Hart disagrees with the conventional wisdom (which numbers Jared Diamond among its adherents) that the Sudan and tropical west Africa are sites were farming was independently invented. He thinks it spread from the fertile crescent (where it began ten thousand years ago) to Egypt to the Sudan. He does think the agriculture was practiced in the Sudan seven thousand years ago and in western tropical Africa five thousand years ago. He also thinks they may have independently invented cattle herding six thousand years ago. He does believe that New Guinea highlanders independently invented agriculture (most likely six thousand years ago, but possibly nine thousand). They are related to the Australian aborigenes and have lower IQs (one of Hart’s favorite explanatory variables) than sub-Saharan Africans. His account of how Africa became majority Negroe (Diamond just says “black”) is the same as that in GG&S: proto-Bantu speakers practiced agriculture & ironworking and hence had an advantage over the hunter-gather Pygmies (the other member of the “Negrid” family) and Sanid (his term for the racial family containing Bushmen/Hottentots aka Khoi-San). The Bantu expansion began a few centuries BC and made them the majority in sub-Saharan Africa by around 1000 AD.

]]> By: ek552 http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/10/farmers-war.html#comment-435703 ek552 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 08:59:23 +0000 http://www.overcomingbias.com/?p=20238#comment-435703 Thank you . . . does it address your original point about agrarianism in sub-Saharan Africa? Thank you . . . does it address your original point about agrarianism in sub-Saharan Africa?

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