Tamed by Alice Roberts

Tamed

From Wild to Domesticated, the Ten Animals and Plants That Changed Human History

Alice Roberts

The Experiment · Print & ebook · February 25, 2025

Dogs became our companions.

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Who it’s for
Readers interested in how domesticated species shaped human history
Themes
Domestication and human history, Human relationships with nature, Origins of domesticated species
Genres
Physical Anthropology, Evolution, Civilizations

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About this book

Dogs became our companions. Wheat fed booming populations. Cattle gave us meat and milk. Corn fueled the growth of empires. Potatoes brought feast and famine. Chickens inspired new branches of science. Rice promised a golden future. Horses gave us strength and speed. Apples provided harvestable sweetness. Humans tamed them all. For hundreds of thousands of years, our ancestors were just one wild species among many, their survival dependent on the whims of nature.

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Then, gradually, we began to tame the plants and animals all around us—and ourselves. Combining genetics, archaeology, evolutionary biology, and anthropology, Tamed tells the story of the greatest revolution in human history, revealing the fascinating origins of crucial domesticated species and how they, in turn, transformed us. Dogs, our first natural ally, aided Ice Age?era hunters and gatherers. Domesticated horses led to new ideas about hunting and combat in the Eurasian Steppe. The reliability of wheat and corn allowed humans to settle down and build civilizations of unprecedented complexity. As she uncovers the astounding global implications of domestication, Alice Roberts urges us to look again at our relationship with the natural world—and our incredible influence upon it.

Who it’s for

  • Readers interested in how domesticated species shaped human history
  • Readers interested in genetics, archaeology, evolutionary biology, and anthropology

Where it sits

Evolution56%
Physical Anthropology30%
Civilizations24%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Civilizations
  • Evolution
  • Paleontology & Fossils
  • How Cultures Work
Authors
Alice Roberts
Publisher
The Experiment
Published
February 25, 2025
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Domestication and human history · Human relationships with nature · Origins of domesticated species
Reading lane
Civilizations