Jared Diamond

"Perhaps our greatest distinction as a species is our capacity, unique among animals, to make counter-evolutionary choices."

Jared Diamond is a professor of geography at the University of California, Los Angeles. He began his scientific career in physiology and expanded into evolutionary biology and biogeography. He has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society.

Among Dr. Diamond's many awards are the National Medal of Science, the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, Japan's Cosmos Prize, a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, and the Lewis Thomas Prize honoring the Scientist as Poet, presented by Rockefeller University. He has published more than six hundred articles and several books including the New York Times bestseller Guns, Germs, and Steel, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize

What genres and subjects does Jared Diamond write about?

Diamond writes nonfiction that bridges geography, evolutionary biology, anthropology, history and ecology, focusing on how environmental and biological factors shape human societies.

Which Jared Diamond book is a good place to start?

Guns, Germs, and Steel is a common starting point; it is a wide-ranging synthesis of why societies developed differently and won the Pulitzer Prize. For environmental collapse and lessons from traditional societies, Collapse and The World Until Yesterday are natural follow-ups.

Are his books part of a series or do they need to be read in order?

His books are generally standalone works. They share recurring themes and methods but do not require a specific reading order.

What recurring themes appear across his books?

Recurring themes include the environmental and geographic causes of societal success or failure, human evolution and behavior, interactions between technology, germs and food production, and comparisons between modern and traditional societies.

Has Jared Diamond received major awards or honors for his work?

Yes. He is a professor at UCLA and has been elected to major academies. His honors include the Pulitzer Prize for Guns, Germs, and Steel, the National Medal of Science, the Tyler Prize, Japan's Cosmos Prize, a MacArthur Fellowship, and the Lewis Thomas Prize.