The driving forces of human history and development

The scientific examination of the past of mankind always raises the fundamental question of whether historical processes happen purely by chance or follow fixed rules. Many observers tend to view history as a chaotic event that eludes accurate prediction by the individual. However, there are scientific approachesThe laws and recurring structures that can be analyzed behind the apparent confusion that can be analyzed. To understand these hidden patterns, specific tools for in-depth study of social development over long periods of time are required. The following explanation presents three essential perspectives that reflect the course of civilization indifferent regions of the world. This approach helps to penetrate the complex interaction of biological nature and cultural design and to better understand it.

The apparent randomness of historical events

A well-known writer once described the story as a mostly false report on unimportant events that criminal rulers are said to have had. This mocking definition is sometimes difficult to contradict if one takes a close look at the diverse and often bloody records of the past. History can be like an eventfulPile of clever minds and fools who fight and influence each other. Tyrants and enthusiasts as well as poets and thieves have shaped the world and left their mark in the archives. Some accomplished something extraordinary for their time, while others represented the peak of human corruption and caused a lot of suffering. In this analysis it is of suchOnly teeming with figures, since they are the main actors on the stage of world history.

Pattern behind the noise of history

They are not faceless masses, but flesh and blood people who live in this world suffer and leave their mark. They die, are creative and have to fight to secure their own survival and that of their families. However, behind all the noise and madness, the story runs according to compelling patterns, which can be seen on closer examination. withThe right instruments will be able to recognize these patterns and make them understandable to others. It is even possible to scientifically explain the underlying processes and make predictions for future developments. In the further course, three of these essential tools are presented in more detail and explained in their tasks.

The biological basis of the human being

On the one hand, this is the biology that tells us what people really are and where they come from. We humans belong to the animal kingdom, which in turn is part of the great world of living and includes many forms. This world includes all life from apes to the smallest amoeba, visible under the microscope. From this obvious fact, three importantdraw conclusions for understanding human nature. First, like all life forms, we withdraw energy from our environment in order to be able to maintain our metabolism. We turn this energy into other specimens of our own way to ensure the survival of the species.

Curiosity and craftsmanship as an advantage

Second, like all intelligent animals, we are curious creatures who actively explore and study their surroundings. We constantly tinker with things and want to know whether they are edible or pose a danger to us. We check if we can play with things or if we can somehow improve them to increase our comfort. We’re just better at tinkering thanOther animals because of our brain, which gives us special skills. We have many turns in the brain to think about things and make complex plans for the future. We have elastic vocal cords for talking and opposable thumbs for processing tools and materials.

Individual differences and group statistical equality

Apart from that, people, just like other animals, are obviously not all the same, but have individual differences. Some extract more energy from the environment than others and thus accumulate more funds for themselves. Some multiply more than others and some are more curious than their direct neighbors and relatives. Some are more creative, smarter or more skillfulas their fellow human beings and thus achieve advantages in daily life. But the third consequence of being animal is the statistical equality of large groups of individuals. Unlike individual individuals, large groups of people are all pretty much the same when viewed on average.

The composition of large populations

If you pick any two people out of a crowd, they may be opposite, as you can imagine. However, if you look at two large groups as a whole, they will generally be very similar and have comparable characteristics. If you compare millions of people, you will be divided into differentsame personality types. They consist of energetic, fertile and curious individuals who form the foundation of society. These groups also include creative, clever, and eloquent people who are responsible for progress. These three observations explain to a large extent the course of history and the direction of human development.

Limits of the biological explanatory power

The observations coincide with common sense and appear immediately plausible and logical to many people. For thousands of years, social development has progressed and improved thanks to our fondness for tinkering around. This generally happened with increasing speed over time as knowledge is accumulated and passed on. goodIdeas produce new good ideas and are not forgotten, but picked up by the next generation. But social development cannot be explained by biology alone, since other factors play a role. Sometimes social development experienced a standstill over long periods of time that cannot be justified biologically.

Sociology as an explanation for social change

Sometimes the development even made backwards instead of progress and lost gained skills and technologies again. Knowing that we are smart animals is not enough for a complete understanding of the historical dynamics. And this is where sociology comes into play as a second instrument that illuminates the social aspects. Sociology explains the causes, but also theconsequences of social changes and their effects on coexistence. It’s one thing when smart animals sit and tinker around without this having any consequences for the group. It is a completely different thing when your ideas set a precedent and change society in the long term.

Motivations for inventive achievements

When ideas change society, a trigger is obviously needed that sets the process in motion. A well-known author once wrote that progress does not come from early risers who want to work hard. He said that comfortable and lazy people are looking for ways to simplify them to reduce their work. Only laziness makes inventive, so it became in a knownsentence formulated and discussed. Later we will see that this sentence is only partially correct and not depicting the whole truth. Laziness is not the only mother of all inventions in the world, but there are other motives.

A separate rule for social change

The word progress often acts only as an optimistic description of what happens without getting better. If we specify the statement, it summarizes the causes of social changes in a nutshell. In the course of this analysis, I will issue and use a less striking version of the statement as a separate rule. Changes are made by rotten, greedyand frightened people who pursue their own interests. They are looking for easier, more profitable and safer ways to do something to improve their situation. They rarely know what they actually do with their actions and what consequences they will have.

The pursuit of balance and security

History teaches us that changes will start when there is pressure and circumstances require it. Every lazy, greedy and frightened person is looking for a balance that is optimal for him personally. He wishes a pleasant life with as little work and security from dangers and uncertainties as possible. This balance is intended to meet his personal needsmost likely to correspond and satisfy him. But that’s not all because the success of reproduction and consumption are a burden and scarcely. The energy consumption of people is burdening the available material supplies and leads to bottlenecks.

The developmental dilemma as an obstacle

Intellectual and social means are inevitably burdened and can be exhausted. Social development produces exactly those forces that hinder and limit their further growth. I call this phenomenon a developmental in this regard in order to make it tangible. Success creates problems and their solution brings new problemsout, which need to be solved again. As the saying goes, life is a vale of mourning for many who suffer from these conditions. The ever-present development problem presents people with difficult decisions that have far-reaching consequences.

Stagnation or breakthrough through innovation

They often fail to meet the requirements of the conflict and cannot find a suitable solution to the problems. Social development is stagnating or making regression in such cases and loses momentum. However, sometimes people are willing to take risks in a combination of laziness and fear. You are willing to take risks and innovationsto trigger, which change the existing structure. These innovations can change the rules of the game of society and open up new possibilities. If only some succeed and most accept the innovations, it will help the community.

The growth and limits of development

In this case, a community can succeed in overcoming and growing the resource bottleneck. Then the growth of social development continues and leads to higher complexity. We humans are confronted with such problems every day and have to find solutions. Our ancestors were also generally able to solve them and survivesecure. Therefore, development has moved up since the last Ice Age and has become more complex. But at some points the problem is a massive ceiling that is not easy to break through.

The collapse of societies

This blanket is only to break through with really fundamental changes that shake the structure. Social development is stuck on these ceilings and is no longer making any progress. A desperate kicking off of the affected societies, which come under pressure, begins. One example after another will show that societies can fail and perish. herfail to solve and manage the problems that stand in their way. They are infested with a whole package of plagues that destroy their structure.

The Five Messengers of Corruption

These plagues include famines and epidemics in the population, which claim many victims. Uncontrolled migratory movements and political instability are also part of this and weaken the state. As a result, the standstill turns into a downward movement and civilization collapses. If another destructive force is added to these problems, it willworse. Climate change, along with the others, can count as the five messengers of doom, making things worse. Then the downward movement can turn into a devastating collapse that lasts for a long time.

The Role of Geography in Historical History

Such an age of darkness can last for centuries and destroy everything that has been built. Biology and sociology together explain to a large extent the course contours of history and their patterns. They explain why, by and large, development has risen and become more complex. They show why it sometimes grows faster and then slower again andchanges. Occasionally, the development is also declining due to these factors and the problems mentioned. But the biological and sociological laws are constant quantities that do not change.

Need for a third tool for analysis

These laws apply to humanity always and everywhere and are universally applicable. They tell us something about humanity as a whole and its basic drives by definition. They do not say why people in one place are so completely different from those elsewhere. To explain this, we need a third tool for investigating regionalDifferences. I will show again and again in the course of execution why this is necessary and how it works. This third tool is geography as a decisive influencing factor for different developments.