Nicholas Christakis Knihy

A piercing and scientifically grounded look at the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic and how it will change the way we live -- "this year's must-must-read." (Daniel Gilbert) Apollo's Arrow offers a riveting account of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic as it swept through American society in 2020, and of how the recovery will unfold in the coming years. Drawing on momentous (yet dimly remembered) historical epidemics, contemporary analyses, and cutting-edge research from a range of scientific disciplines, bestselling author, physician, sociologist, and public health expert Nicholas A. Christakis explores what it means to live in a time of plague -- an experience that is paradoxically uncommon to the vast majority of humans who are alive, yet deeply fundamental to our species. Unleashing new divisions in our society as well as opportunities for cooperation, this 21st-century pandemic has upended our lives in ways that will test, but not vanquish, our already frayed collective culture. Featuring new, provocative arguments and vivid examples ranging across medicine, history, sociology, epidemiology, data science, and genetics, Apollo's Arrow envisions what happens when the great force of a deadly germ meets the enduring reality of our evolved social nature.

For too long, scientists have concentrated on the negative aspects of our biological heritage, such as aggression and self-interest. However, natural selection has also endowed us with beneficial social traits, including love, friendship, cooperation, and learning. Beneath our inventions—tools, farms, machines, cities, and nations—lie innate tendencies that foster a good society. The author introduces the idea that our genes influence not only our bodies and behaviors but also the ways we create societies, which share surprising similarities across cultures. Through vivid examples, including historical and contemporary communities, shipwreck survivors, utopian communes, and online groups, as well as the social structures of elephants and dolphins, it becomes evident that, despite a history of violence, we possess a social blueprint for goodness. In an era marked by political and economic polarization, it’s easy to overlook the positive aspects of our evolutionary past. By integrating insights from social science, evolutionary biology, genetics, neuroscience, and network science, the narrative illustrates how evolution has guided us toward a humane path, emphasizing our shared humanity.

Renowned scientists Christakis and Fowler present compelling evidence for our profound influence on one another's tastes, health, wealth, happiness, beliefs, even weight, as they explain how social networks form and how they operate.