So Much Stuff - How Humans Discovered Tools, Invented Meaning, and Made More of Everything

Over three million years ago, our ancient ancestors realized that rocks could be broken into sharp-edged objects for slicing meat, making the first knives. This discovery resulted in a good meal, and eventually changed the fate of our species and our planet. With So Much Stuff, archaeologist Chip Colwell sets out to investigate why humankind went from self-sufficient primates to nonstop shoppers, from needing nothing to needing everything. Along the way, he uncovers spectacular and strange points around the world--an Italian cave with the world's first known painted art, a Hong Kong skyscraper where a priestess channels the gods, and a mountain of trash that rivals the Statue of Liberty. Through these examples, Colwell shows how humanity took three leaps that led to stuff becoming inseparable from our lives, inspiring a love affair with things that may lead to our downfall. Now, as landfills brim and oceans drown in trash, Colwell issues a timely call to reevaluate our relationship with the things that both created and threaten to undo our overstuffed planet.

About the author

Chip Colwell is an archaeologist, former museum curator, and editor-in-chief of SAPIENS, a digital magazine about anthropological thinking and discoveries. He is the author and editor of twelve books, including the award-winning Plundered Skulls and Stolen Spirits: Inside the Fight to Reclaim Native America's Culture, also published by the University of Chicago Press.

Product details

• Authors: Chip Colwell
• Publisher: University Presses
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 06.11.2023
• EAN: 9780226801421
• ISBN: 978-0-226-80142-1
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 30 mm
• Weight: 594 g
• Illustrations: 60 halftones
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Pre and early history; Social sciences, law, business > Ethnology > Ethnology; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Archaeology, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography, Archaeology, Social and cultural anthropology