"This essay of mine won 1st place and $5,000 in Scott Alexander’s anonymous book review contest, which was hosted at Astral Codex Ten.
It attempts to solve the “Sapient Paradox,” which asks: Given that humans have been around for 200,000 years, why did civilization take so long to get started? Why were we stuck in prehistory for so long?"
Here's an excerpt from the intro, for context:
"This essay of mine won 1st place and $5,000 in Scott Alexander’s anonymous book review contest, which was hosted at Astral Codex Ten.
It attempts to solve the “Sapient Paradox,” which asks: Given that humans have been around for 200,000 years, why did civilization take so long to get started? Why were we stuck in prehistory for so long?"