Two types of choices seem to me to have been crucial in tipping the outcomes [of the various societies' histories] towards success or failure: long-term planning and willingness to reconsider core values. On reflection we can also recognize the crucial role of these same two choices for the outcomes of our individual lives.
Jared DiamondTake air quality in the United States today: It's about 30 percent better than it was 25 years ago, even though there are now more people driving more cars.
Jared DiamondHistory as well as life itself is complicated -- neither life nor history is an enterprise for those who seek simplicity and consistency.
Jared DiamondThe single most important problem is our misguided focus on identifying the single most important problem!
Jared DiamondTo science we owe dramatic changes in our smug self-image. Astronomy taught us that our Earth is not the center of the universe, but merely one of nine planets circling one of billions of stars. From biology we learned that humans were not specially created by God but evolved along with tens of millions of other species.
Jared Diamond