Big History : The Big Bang, Life on Earth, and the

Big History : The Big Bang, Life on Earth, and the by David Christian. paperback edition. ISBN: 9781598034110.

Part 4 of 4. The Great Courses. Lecture Transcript and course Guidebook. Ships from WA- USPS. How is it possible for the disciplines of cosmology, geology, anthropology, biology, and history to fit together? A story stretching from the origins of the universe to the present day and beyond, in which human history is seen as part of the history of our Earth and biosphere, and the Earths history, in turn, is seen as part of the history of the universe. Like traditional creation stories told by the worlds great religions and mythologies, this lecture series provides a map of our place in space and time. But it does so using the insights and knowledge of modern science, as synthesized by a renowned historian. While you may have heard parts of this story before in courses on geology, history, anthropology, biology, cosmology, and other scholarly disciplines, Professor Christian provides more than just a recap of those disciplines. "Because of the scale on which we look at the past, you should not expect to find in it many of the familiar details, names, and personalities that youll find in other types of historical teaching and writing," he explains. "For example, the French Revolution and the Renaissance will barely get a mention. Theyll zoom past in a blur. Youll barely see them. Instead, what were going to see are some less familiar aspects of the past. Well be looking, above all, for the very large patterns, the shape of the past.