INDEX
The page numbers in this index refer to the printed version of this book. The link provided will take you to the beginning of that print page. You may need to scroll forward from that location to find the corresponding reference on your e-reader.
NOTE: Page numbers in italics indicate a graph or table.
abortion, 74, 224, 363, 387, 439, 449
Abrahms, Max, 196–7
abstract thinking, 26–7. See also Flynn effect
academia
left-wing tilt of, 372–4, 388, 484n61
right-wing dismissal of, 374
See also university and college education
accidental deaths, 167–8, 176–90, 177, 179–80, 182, 187–9, 192, 468–9nn50,63
acts of God, 185, 187, 189, 190
Adams, Franklin Pierce, 48
Adnane, Souad, 442
adversarial collaboration, 379
Aeschylus, 23
affective tipping point, 377
Afghanistan
democratization and, 206
environment of, 130
happiness ranking of, 475n30
literacy rate in, 236, 239, 240, 473n27
polio in, 65
Soviet invasion of, 439
Taliban control of, 240, 473n27
terrorist vs. war deaths in, 192, 193
U.S.-led invasion of, 197, 206, 473n27
Africa (sub-Saharan)
calories available per person in, 70
carbon emissions of, 144
colonial governments of, 78
Communist governments in, 200, 201
conservation movement and, 123
economic inequality in, 98
emancipative values in, 227, 227
environment of, 130
female genital mutilation in, 222
fertility rates and, 436
GDP of, 95
homicide rates and concentrations in, 172
homophobia in, 223
Human Development Index score for, 473n45
life expectancy in, 53–5, 54, 59
multiethnic neighbors, peacefulness of, 405
per capita income in, 86–7
and personal violence, deaths from, 167
postcolonial governments of, 78, 200, 201
religiosity and, 436
undernourishment in, 72
women’s rights and, 222
See also individual countries
African Americans
education and, 239
hate crimes against, 215, 219, 220, 471n18
life expectancy of, 219
literacy rates of, 219
police killings of, 215–16, 471n6
poverty rate among, 219
and Tuskegee syphilis study, 401
See also racism
age (life cycle) effects, 225
happiness, 272–3
political orientation, 341–2, 342
religious belief, 437–8
voting preferences, 342
See also cohort effects; period (zeitgeist) effects
agriculture
Agricultural Revolution, 75, 83
density of, 234
genetically modified crops, 77–8, 331
government policies disrupting, 78
Green Revolution, 75–8
industrialization and abandonment of, 92–3
invention of, 23
land devoted to, 76
life expectancy and, 53–4
mechanization of, 74–5
prices, 75
reforestation of land and, 130, 134
rice cultivation, 69, 93, 123, 331
transportation and, 75, 77, 78
yield increases, 74–5
See also food and food security
AI. See artificial intelligence (AI)
Akbar I (Mughal emperor), 442
Akyol, Mustafa, 442
Alaska, universal basic income and, 119
Alcott, Louisa May, 284
Alexander, Amy, 440
Ali, Ayaan Hirsi, 443
Allen, Paul, 477n20
Althusser, Louis, 447
alt-right movement, 341, 419, 448, 482n44
Amazon River and rainforest, 130, 141
American Heritage Dictionary, 260
anarchist movements, 198
anarchy, death toll from, 199, 206
Angell, Norman, 481n16
Angola, 160
animals
cruelty-to-animals laws, 417
humanism and, 410
predator/prey, 19
returns vs. extinctions of, 130, 133, 463n32
anocracies, 470n15
anti-Semitism, 219, 220. See also Holocaust
Anton, Michael (“Publius Decius Mus”), 448, 449
anxiety, 283
adulthood and, 288–9
“collapse anxiety,” 292
depression as comorbid with, 283
and institutions, loss of faith in, 286
media practices of encouraging, 287
as motivation to solve problems, 287
postwar increase in, 284
prevalence of depression and, 282–3, 476n74
sex differences in, 285
strategems for coping with, 287
women’s gains in autonomy and, 285
Appiah, Kwame Anthony, 443
Aquino, Corazon, 91
Arab countries
classical Arab civilization, 439, 442
clerical meddling in education, 234
slavery/racism and, 397
See also Muslim countries
Arab Spring (2011), 203, 228, 370
archaeology, 407
Ariely, Dan, 353
Aristotle, eudaemonia, 267
Arkhipov, Vasili, 479n93
Armenia, 158
artificial intelligence (AI)
“Artificial General Intelligence” (AGI), 297, 298
and Enlightenment thinkers, 386
as existential threat, putative, 296–300, 477n20
Value Alignment Problem, 299–300
arts and culture
availability of, 260–61
and consilience with science, 407–9
depicting traditionalism vs. modernity, 284
ideological innumeracy and, 48
Nietzsche as influence on, 445, 446–7
Aryans, romantic heroism and, 33, 398, 444
Asafu-Adjaye, John, 122
Asia
authoritarian regimes, rise of, 200
carbon emissions of, 144
globalization and, 111, 112, 117
IQ gains in, 241
life expectancy in, 53–4, 54, 55
military governments of, 200
postcolonial governments of, 78
undernourishment in, 72
See also individual countries and subregions
Asians, hate crimes against, 219, 220
Asiri, Abdullah al-, 303
Assad, Bashar al-, 159
Astell, Mary, 252
atheism and atheists
charitable acts by, 432
dangers of self-labeling as, 435
definition of, 430
moral realism of, 429
“New Atheism,” 430
numbers of, 435, 436, 437–8, 489n68, 490n65
rising Intelligence Quotient test scores and, 438
wars by, 429–30
Athens (ancient), 212
Atkins, Peter, 17
Australia
education in, 237
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
and escape from poverty, 85
happiness ranking of, 475n30
social spending in, 108
traffic death rates in, 178
Ausubel, Jesse, 76, 122, 127, 135, 142, 144
authoritarian governments
capitalist, China as, 90, 201, 203–4, 343
claiming the people unready for democracy, 204
democracies backsliding into, 201, 335
educated populace and resistance to, 235
execution of dissidents by, outrage at, 195
intellectual fans of, 445, 446–7, 491n118
patronal/kleptocratic, 205
and poverty, 90–91
See also populism
Authoritarian High Modernism, 11–12, 400
authoritarian populism. See populism
authority, deference to, 5
autocracy vs. democracy, 202–3, 202, 470n15
Availability heuristic, 41–2
critical thinking courses and, 378
doomsday prophecies and, 293, 302
superforecasters and awareness of, 369
Azerbaijan, 158
Baby Boomers, 225
and crime boom of the 1960s, 173–4
depression and, 280–81
emancipative values and, 226
happiness underachievement of, 273, 283–9, 288
opioid overdoses and, 184–5
secularization and, 437
suicide and, 279–80
Babylon, 253–4
Bacon, Francis, 383
Bailey, Ronald, 464n45
Ball, Lucille, 186
Balmford, Andrew, 122
Banaji, Mahzarin, xix
Bangladesh
democratization and, 442
environment of, 130
escape from poverty of, 85, 86
famine and stunting in, 71, 71, 72
fertility as decreasing in, 126
industrialization and women in the workforce, 94
War of Independence (1971), 160, 161
Bannon, Stephen, 430, 448, 449, 455n1
Banting, Frederick, 63
Baron, Jonathan, 369
Barrett, Clark, 17
Basque ETA movement, 195
Batbie, Anselme, 341
Baudelaire, Charles, 30
Bauer, Peter, 79
Bauman, Zygmunt, 397
Bayesian reasoning, 369–70, 380, 381, 393
Bazile, Leon, 376
beauty
counter-entropic patterns as, 18
evolutionary psychology of, 18, 407, 408, 426
intrinsic value of, 18, 35, 248, 414, 433–4
in religion, 432
from science, 34, 260, 386, 407–8, 433–4
Beccaria, Cesare, 12, 174, 417
BECCS (bioenergy with carbon capture and storage), 151
Beckett, Samuel, 456n10
Bell, Daniel, 390
Benjamin, Walter, 39–40
Benny, Jack, 333
Bergman, Ingmar, 280
Berlin, Isaiah, 344
Berlin Wall, 163, 200–201, 203
Berry, Ken, 316
Best, Charles, 63
Better Angels of Our Nature, The (Pinker), 45–6
battle deaths (1946–2016), 159–60, 159
democracy vs. autocracy, 202
genocide deaths, 161
hate crimes, 220
homicide rates, 171
homosexuality, decriminalization of, 223
most recent year of data, 156, 466n1
objections to reliance on data in, 43–7
racist, sexist, and homophobic opinions, 216
rape and domestic violence, 221
terrorism deaths, 194
trends of, generally, 156
victimization of children, 229
war between great powers, 157–8, 157
Betteridge’s Law of Headlines, 282, 404
Bettmann, Otto, 178–9, 185, 186
Bible
antihumanistic content of, 440
crucifixion in, 208
despotism in, 199
in fabric of human knowledge, 433
famine in, 68
life expectancy in, 58
literal truth of, belief in, 489n53, 490n84
maternal pain and suffering in, 57
morality as relative in, 429
on the poor, 89
suicide in, 278
See also God
Bierce, Ambrose, 428
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 66
bin Laden, Osama, 443
biochar, 150
bioethics, research and committees for, 402
bioterrorism, 300–302, 305, 306–7
Birdzell, L. E., 79
black swans. See power-law distribution; rare events
Blake, William, 92
Blank Slate, The: The Modern Denial of Human Nature (Pinker), 45, 373, 484n61
Bloom, Paul, 101–2
Blue Collar (film), 113
blue lies, 358–9
Bogotá, Colombia, 172
Bohr, Niels, 308
Boltzmann, Ludwig, 15
Bonaparte, Napoleon, 84–5
Bornstein, David, 50
Bosch, Carl, 75
Boston, Massachusetts, 130, 172, 183
Boyd, Richard, 429
Boyer, Paul, 311
brain
consciousness and, 426
hearing and, 20–21
human investment in bigger, 22–3
as metabolically greedy organ, 242
pleasure and pain and, 414
See also cognitive biases; intelligence; reason
Brand, Stewart, 77, 122, 123, 133, 149, 301–2, 463n32, 465n76
Brandt, Willy, 200
Branwen, Gwern, 303
Brazil, 90, 109, 172, 178, 200
Brezhnev, Leonid, 203
Briand, Aristide, 164
Briggs, John, 463n32
Brink, David, 429
Brin, Sergey, 100
Brockman, John, 390
Brontë, Charlotte, 284
Bronze Age, life expectancy and, 54
Brooklyn Dodgers, 179
Brooks, Rodney, 477n20
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett, 230
Bruno, Giordano, 442
Bryce, Robert, 146
Buffet, Warren, 117
bullying, 49
Burckhardt, Jacob, 165
Burkina Faso, 203
Burma. See Myanmar
Burroughs, William S., 456n10
Burtless, Gary, 115
Bush, George W.
African AIDS relief policy of, 67
among know-nothings, 374–5
disdain for science and, 60, 387, 389
prescription drug benefit of, 109
wealth creation malaprop, 81
Buturovic, Zeljka, 362
Cameroon, 162
Campbell, David, 432
Campbell, Joseph, 456n1
Camus, Albert, 446
Canada
child mortality and, 56
depression and, 282
economic freedom in, 365, 483n39
education in, 237
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
and escape from poverty, 85
happiness and well-being, 438–9, 475n30
homicide rates in, 171
populism and, 341
secularization and, 436, 437, 438–9
social spending in, 108, 109, 365, 483n39
capitalism
authoritarian, China and, 90, 201, 203–4, 343
as coexisting with regulations, 364, 365
as coexisting with social spending, 364, 365, 483nn39,42
and cultures, 85
and Great Escape from poverty, 90–91, 364
unbridled/unregulated/untrammeled, 364
See also commerce; economic inequality; economics
capital punishment
cognitive bias study referencing, 359–60
homosexual behavior criminalized, 223
Capp, Al, 297
Caracas, Venezuela, 172
Carey, John, 247
Caribbean countries, 89, 175, 201, 203
Carlson, Robert, 307
Carroll, Sean, 385
Carter Center, 65
Carter, Jimmy, 67
Carter, Richard, 63–4
Castro, Fidel, 376–7, 447, 484n79
Catholic Church, education and, 234
Catholic countries, emancipative values in, 227, 227
Central African Republic, 95, 162, 236
Central Asia, democratization and, 206
Chalk, Frank, 160–61
Chalmers, David, 425–6
Chamberlain, Houston Stewart, 398
Chaplin, Charlie, 186
charitable giving
Effective Altruism, 381
as factor in happiness, 271
Charlie Hebdo massacre, 370
Chase, Chevy, 266
Chaucer, Geoffrey, 181
Chenoweth, Erica, 405
Chernobyl disaster (1986), 146
child mortality, 55–7, 56, 58, 66–7, 66, 125
children, 228–30
abuse of, 229
bullying at school, 229
child marriage ban, 222
childrearing in emancipative values, 224
corporal punishment of, 229–30
negative media coverage of, 229
stunting due to undernourishment, 70–71, 71
trafficking in, 232
See also child mortality; education; teenagers
Chile
child mortality and, 56
earthquake (2010), 188
education and literacy in, 236, 238
GDP of, 85
military government of, 200
poverty in, 91
China
An Lushan Rebellion, 484n77
authoritarian capitalism of, 90, 201, 203–4, 343
Axial Age and, 23
calories available per person in, 70, 70
capital punishment in, 209–210
carbon emissions of, 143, 143, 144
Chinese Civil War, 49, 158, 160, 199
Cultural Revolution (1966–75), 91, 161, 208
democratization and, 206
escape from poverty of, 85, 86, 90
GDP of, 85
globalization and, 111
Great Leap Forward (1958–61), 78, 91
Great Recession and, 112
mass killings (genocide deaths) in, 161
nuclear weapons and, 313, 317, 318, 320
per capita income of, 86
perception of the world as getting better, 457n8
population-control program of, 74
quality of life and, 247
secularization and, 436
social spending in, 109
Tiananmen Square protests, 208
traffic death rates in, 178
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
China Syndrome, The (film), 147–8
chlorofluorocarbons ban (1987), 134
Christian militias, 162
Christians and Christianity
humanist denominations, 412
killings by ISIS, 162
Nietzsche’s rejection of, 444
religiosity of nation-states in world wars, 429–30
theoconservatism, 448–9
wars of religion, 8, 10, 364, 450, 488n46
See also Bible; Evangelical Christians
Cicero, 397
Cipolla, Carlo, 79–80
cities. See cosmopolitanism; urbanization
civic associations, 235, 432, 447, 472n12
Civilizing Process, 43
cost of, 91
decline of, after Cold War, 91, 158–60, 164
famine and, 78
terrorist deaths primarily taking place in, 193
uptick in the mid-2010s, 158–60
Claremont Institute, 448, 491n118
classical Greece and Rome
Aryan/Romantic hero theory and, 33, 398, 444
Axial Age and, 23
execution of Socrates, 58, 212
racism and slavery in, 397
suicide and, 278
theistic morality and, 428, 431
See also Plato
classical liberalism. See Enlightenment, the
Clemenceau, Georges, 341
climate change, 136–54
carbon capture and storage, 150–51
climate justice movement, 138–9, 141–2
cognitive impediments to understanding, 140
decarbonization, 142–6, 143–4, 150–52
depoliticizing the discourse of, 382
geoengineering solutions, 150–51, 152–4, 382–3
nuclear power and, 144–5, 146–50, 465n76
Paris agreement, 134, 152, 335, 449
religious Cornwall Declaration on, 287
scientific literacy on, 356–7
spokespeople for, 382
Trump and, 335
Clinton, Hillary, presidential campaign of
analysis of voting patterns, 339, 438
conspiracy theories and, 358, 449
popular vote won by, 214, 334, 338
theoconservatives and, 449
Clockwork Orange, A (film), 175
clothing
globalization and, 118, 462n63
coal
carbon-to-hydrogen ratio of, 143, 144, 465n67
cooking with, 183
gasification conversion to liquid fuel, 151
as replacing nuclear power plants, 147
See also climate change; energy; petroleum
Coal Miner’s Daughter (film), 113
Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire (1942), 183
cognition
combinatorial/recursive power of, 27
evolution of, not adapted to modernity, 25
language and, 27
See also abstract thinking; cognitive biases; Flynn effect; identity-protective cognition; intelligence
cognitive behavioral therapy, 175, 282
cognitive biases, 25–6, 353, 354–5, 403–4
adulthood mistaken for harsher world, 48
autobiographical memory and, 48, 281
bias bias of researchers, 361–3, 374
biased evaluation, 359
cognitive dissonance reduction, 377
critical thinking courses, 377–8
debiasing programs, 378–9
decline in self mistaken for decline in times, 48
historical lag in recognizing, 383
Illusion of Explanatory Depth, 379–80
information sought to reinforce identity, 360
intuition outperformed by formulas, 403–4
My-Side bias, 359
Optimism Gap, 40, 115, 225–6, 268
Rationality Community avoiding, 381
science as helping to overcome, 403
thinking in scale and in orders of change, 140
See also Availability heuristic; identity-protective cognition
cognitive psychology
and human irrationality, 351, 353
and literary scholarship, 407
Cohen, Leonard, 183
Cohen, Roger, 420
cohort (generational) effects
depression, 280–81, 282, 283, 476n74
emancipative values, 225–8, 226, 227
happiness, 273–4
liberalism, 216–17
religious belief, 437–8
social support, 275
suicide, 279–80
voting patterns, 342
See also age (life cycle) effects; Baby Boomers; Generation X; GI Generation; Millennials; period (zeitgeist) effects; Silent Generation
Cold War
autocratic governments propped up during, 91
civil wars during, 91, 158–60, 164
Colombian peace agreement and end of, 158
end of, and alleviation of poverty, 91
famine and, 78
New Peace following, 43
terrorism declining in period following, 195
See also nuclear war
Collier, Paul, 91
colonial governments
and conquest, 163–4
famine exacerbated by, 78, 459n35
See also imperialism; postcolonial governments
commerce, 12–13
bourgeois virtue, development of, 84–5
cronyism, 83
institutions facilitating, 83–4
sectarian hatreds ameliorated by, 84
See also trade
—GENTLE COMMERCE, 13, 84, 162, 198–9, 228
American founders and, 13
and violent crime, historical reduction of, 168–9
communality, as scientific virtue, xvii–xviii
communism
collapse of, and escape from poverty, 90–91
democratic second wave pushed back by, 200
as failing to promote human flourishing, 364
famine exacerbated by, 78, 459n36
opposition to religion, 430, 436, 438
“primitive,” 102–3
romantic heroism and, 31, 165, 445
“scientific racism” and, 398
See also Marxism; Marxist guerrillas and terrorists
Compstat program, 380
computation
and consciousness, 426
and knowledge, 21
computers, delayed productivity growth from, 330. See also Artificial Intelligence; Internet
conatus (effort or striving), 19, 453
Condorcet, Nicolas de, 10
Congo, poverty in, 89
Connor, Steven, 48
consciousness, 22, 407, 423, 425–8, 488n43
consequentialism, 416. See also utilitarianism
conservation areas, 123, 132–3, 133
conservation successes, 130, 133, 463n32
conspiracy theories
AIDS/HIV and, 401
as expression of tribal loyalty, 358–9
Trumpism and, 336, 358, 375, 376
consumerism, 33, 47, 165, 247–8, 251, 263, 431
consumer products
consumer price index, 81–2
and consumer surplus, 82, 117, 332
consumption over time, 116–18, 116
declining prices of, 82, 251, 254–5, 254
household appliances, 251–2, 252
improvement over time of, 82, 117, 332
consumer surplus. See paradox of value
Coolidge, Calvin, Jr., 63
Coontz, Stephanie, 113
cooperation
evolution of capacity for, 23, 415, 453
Humanist Manifesto III on, 411
Kant’s “unsocial sociability,” 482n6
well-being and, 31
Cornwall Declaration on Stewardship, 287
corporal punishment, 12, 43, 229–30
corruption, as factor in happiness, 271
Cosmides, Leda, 17
cosmopolitanism, 11
and civilizations, development of, 450–51
declared a failure, 420
and diversification of diet, 259–60
multiethnic communities, 405, 448, 450
and sympathy, circle of, 221
virtues of science as, 409
counter-Enlightenments
disdain for science, 33–4
nationalism, 30–31
rise of, 29–30
romantic militarism and, 165–6
See also fascism; intellectuals; nationalism; populism; religion; romantic heroism; Romanticism; science, disdain for
Counts, George, 234
Crawford, Jarret, 373
creationism, 19, 22, 356, 387, 398
Crick, Francis, 386
Crimea, annexation by Russia (2014), 164, 335
criminal punishment, 11, 12, 174, 439. See also capital punishment; violent crime
CRISPR-CAS9 gene-editing, 306–7
Critical Theory (Frankfurt School), 396–7, 406, 446
critical thinking instruction, 377–8
Croatia, 203
Cronin, Audrey, 196–7
Cronon, William, 123
Cruz, Ted, 336
Cuba, 206, 247, 376–7, 447, 484n79
Cuban Missile Crisis, 309, 312, 479n93
cultures, human development of, 23
cybernetics, 21–2
d’Alembert, Jean-Baptiste, 10
Dante, 63
Darfur, 162
Darwin, Charles
Argument from Design refuted by, 421
death of children of, 56
falsely tied to scientific racism, 398, 400, 486n32
falsely tied to Social Darwinism, 398–9, 400
on humans as single species, 398
and replicating systems and evolution, 18–19
See also evolution; natural selection
dataphobic mindset, 48, 49, 404–5
literary scholarship and science of, 408
most recent date for graphs in book, 156, 466n1
objections to use of, 44–7
sources of, 52
See also objective measurement; prediction
Davies’s Corollary. See Stein’s Law
Dawkins, Richard, 430, 455n6, 488n7
Deaton, Angus, 54, 56, 62, 67, 89, 92, 103–4, 269, 272, 459n16
Declaration of Independence, 12, 413
declinism, 32–3, 165. See also intellectuals; pessimism
Deconstructionism, 352, 446. See also Derrida, Jacques; Foucault, Michel; postmodernism
deep decarbonization, 145–6, 150
“deepity,” 433
Deepwater Horizon accident, 132
and climate change, 136
reforestation, 76, 130, 134, 150, 459n25
Dehaene, Stanislas, 426
deism and deists, 8
Enlightenment thinkers as, 18, 22
Hitler as, 430
and morality, 422
dementia/Alzheimer’s disease, 59, 327
democracy, 199–213
civics-class ideal of, 204, 206
contributor to flourishing, 199–200, 470n4
criteria for measuring, 201–2, 470n15
education of populace and, 235
fall of Berlin Wall and, 163, 200–201, 203
and Fukuyama’s “end of history,” 201
negative freedom and, 265
three waves of, 200–201, 202–3, 202
Trump and disdain for, 335–6, 337, 374
voter ignorance in, 204
voting and elections in, 204–5, 381
war reduced by, 162–3
See also freedom of speech; human rights
Democratic Party
and climate change, 357
increased partisanship of, 371–2
innumeracy of, on polarized topics, 361
journalists in, 484n54
See also political ideologies of left and right
demographic transition, 125, 135–6, 436. See also population
demonetization, 332–3
Deng Xiaoping, 90
Denmark, 438–9, 451, 475n30, 483n39
Dennett, Daniel, 427, 430, 433
Denney, Reuel, 274
deontological ethics, 416–18
depression, 280–83, 284, 476n74
Descartes, René, Cogito ergo sum, 352
DeScioli, Peter, 415
Deutsch, David, ix, 7, 46, 295–6, 392, 410
developed countries/world, 96
life expectancy inequalities, 54–5, 95–6
lower middle classes affected by globalization, 112, 113, 118–19, 339, 340
maternal mortality changes in, 57–8, 57
natural disaster resilience of, 187–9, 188
Secularization Thesis and, 435–6, 438
social spending as universal to, 110, 115
developing countries/world, 96
calorie availability in, 70, 70
child labor and, 232
digital technology adoption by, 244
and environmental problems, awareness of, 124
escape from poverty of, 85–6, 85
Green Revolution in, 75–8
infectious disease improvements in, 67
life expectancy inequalities in, 54–5, 59, 95–6
maternal mortality changes in, 57–8, 57
natural disaster vulnerability of, 188–9
safe drinking water and, 130–31, 463n28
social spending in, 109–110
undernourishment and stunting in, 70–72, 71–2
Devereux, Stephen, 72–3, 459nn35–36
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), 281, 282
Diamandis, Peter, 330
Diamond, Jared, 450–51, 465n76
diarrhea, childhood deaths from, 66
Didion, Joan, 456n1
digital manufacturing, 330–31
disaster sociology, 305
disease. See health; infectious disease; medicine
dishwashers, 252
Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee, 284
DNA
discovery of, 386
information accumulation and evolution of, 20
testing of, and wrongful capital punishment, 212
Doctorow, E. L., 456n1
Dominican Republic, 188
Doobie Brothers, 147
Douglas, Michael, 147–8
drugs, illegal
overdose deaths from, 182, 183, 184–5
violence produced by, 175–6
drugs, pharmaceutical
and infectious disease improvements, 67
“miracle drugs” no better than placebo, 61
for “orphan diseases,” 333
overdose deaths from, 182, 183, 184–5
side effects worse than the disease, 61
See also medicine
drunk driving, 178
Dryden, John, 407–8
D’Souza, Dinesh, 427
Duarte, José, 373
Du Bois, W. E. B., 447
Dylan, Bob, 341
East Africa, famine in, 73
East Asia
emancipative values in, 227, 227
interstate combat reduced in, 158
secularization and, 436, 489n68
undernourishment in, 72
Easterbrook, Gregg, 292, 457n29
Easterlin paradox, 263, 268–9, 270–71
Easterlin, Richard, 263, 268–9
Eastern Europe, 90, 200, 201, 236–7, 237, 271
Ebola, 307
ecomodernism, 32, 122–4, 134–6, 154–5
economic inequality, 97–120
absolute vs. relative inequality, 103, 114
anonymous vs. longitudinal data, 112–13, 114–15
conflation with poverty, 98–9
conflation with unfairness, 101–2
destructive events reducing, 106–7
economic stagnation and, 328–9
Gini, 98, 103, 109, 115, 118, 461n4, 467n12
Gini indexes for consumption, 117–18
global and international, 103–5, 104–5
government role in ameliorating, 119
graduated income tax and, 107
happiness stagnation of U.S. and, 272
homicide rates and, 170–71, 467n12
and individual psychology, 99–102
Kuznets curve, inequality vs. time, 103–6, 110, 111
lower classes not worse off, 114–18, 116
lower middle classes and, 112, 113, 118–19, 339, 340
as political issue, 97
rise of, beginning about 1980, 110–113, 111
social spending and, 107–110, 115–16, 116
Spirit Level theory of effects of, 100–101
theoretical basis for, 102–3
and theory of social comparison, 99–100
Trump and, 335
zero-sum thinking about, 99
economics
comparative advantage, 92
demonetization, 332–3
and infectious disease improvements, 67
information tech confounding measures, 332–3
populist elections not determined by, 339, 340
See also capitalism; commerce; consumer products; economic inequality; economic stagnation; GDP; globalization; Great Recession; Gross World Product; Kuznets curve; paradox of value; poverty; productivity; social spending; wealth
economic stagnation, 328–33
Eddington, Arthur, 16–17
Edison, Thomas, 252
education
basic educational attainment, 236–8, 237
and child labor, end of, 230–31
cost of, 118
critical thinking and debiasing instruction, 377–9
democracy and peace dividend from, 235
Enlightenment values and, 234, 235–6
and escape from poverty, 234
formal schools, development of, 233–4
future of, 331
of girls and women, 235, 239–40, 239, 473n27
and global well-being, 245–6, 246, 473n45
as human right, 234
and IQ scores, global rise in, 242, 245
modern economies and requirements of, 118
population peak and, 238
preschool programs, 239
religions meddling in, 234
school readiness, improvements in, 239
secularization and, 435–6, 438
substandard, 118
utilitarianism and, 417
See also literacy; university and college education
Effective Altruism, 119, 381, 403, 462n69
Egalitarian Revolution, 107
Ehrlich, Paul, 64, 74, 366, 465n76
Eisenhower, Dwight D., 280
Eldering, Grace, 64
electricity, 141, 146–50, 251, 252, 330
Elias, Norbert, 168–9
Elion, Gertrude, 64
emancipative values, 224–8
age vs. period vs. cohort effects and, 224–5, 226–7, 227–8, 341–2
environmental protection and, 124
GDP as predictor of, 228
and hierarchy of needs, 224
Knowledge Index as predictor of, 228, 472n45
secularization and, 438
emotions, evaluations of well-being and, 267. See also happiness; well–being, subjective
Encyclopédistes, 353
Enders, John, 64
energy
battery storage of, 146, 150, 330
deaths caused by various sources of, 146–7
fossil fuels as 86 percent of world’s total, 137
natural gas, 136, 143, 147, 183
new technologies, 330
nuclear, 144–5, 146–50, 330, 465n76
as resisting entropy, 23–4, 32
smart grids, 330
See also coal; food and food security; petroleum
Engels, Friedrich, 103
England
air pollution and, 130
calories available per person, 70, 70
child labor force in, 230, 231, 231
and commerce, embrace of, 84–5
cost of artificial light in, 253, 253, 254
homicide rates in, 169, 170, 171, 171
and literacy, female, 239, 239
poverty workhouses, 79
rights, statement of, 411
romantic militarism of, 165–6
transition, patronage to open economy, 83–4
water pollution and, 130
See also United Kingdom
Enlightenment, the, 7–14
capital punishment and, 210
and consilience, unity of knowledge, 390
criticized as Western, 29–30, 419
defense needed, 4–6, 29, 34–5, 349–50, 451–3
definition of (Kant), 7–8, 289
Islamic Enlightenment, movement for, 442–3
Emanuel Macron’s victory speech defending, 339
media pronouncements of failure, 338, 420, 451
non-Western, 29–30, 419, 439, 442–3, 456n2
Obama’s farewell speech crediting, 338, 481n30
opposition to. See counter-Enlightenments
populism not a referendum on, 338–9, 481nn30,32
spirit of commerce, 84
spirit of science, 409
and sympathy, 415
theoconservatism and rejection of, 449
war denunciation and alternatives, 162–3
wealth as created vs. finite, 12–13, 80
Enslow, Linn, 64
entropy, 13–19
energy capture as resisting, 23–4, 32
immortality unlikely due to, 61
indifference of the universe and, 24
living things as locally anti-entropic, 18–19, 20
See also Entropy, Law of; order
and creationist arguments against evolution, 19
and death, ease of, 25, 414–15
everyday sayings illustrating, 16
harms more potent than benefits, 28
importance of, 16–17
meaning of life as fighting back against, 17, 344
progress and, 344
See also Second Law of Thermodynamics
environmentalism, humanistic. See ecomodernism
environmental movement (traditional), 32, 121–2
opposition to genetically modified crops, 77
population bomb, fear of, 56, 73–4, 125–6, 125
resource shortages, fear of, 126–7
successes of, 121, 134, 463n35
technological solutions, hostility to, 124–5, 151
See also environmental protection
Environmental Performance Index, 130
environmental protection, 121–2, 134–6
acid rain treaties, 134
anxiety produced by, 286–7
dematerialization and, 135
densification and, 134–5
developing countries addressing, 130–31
drinking water, 63, 130–31, 463n28
emission reductions, 129–30
government regulation and, 133–4, 136
hierarchy of needs and, 124
Kuznets curve for, 124, 463n9, 463n35
landfills and garbage, 287
nuclear weapons test ban treaty, 133–4
ozone layer, 134
Peak Stuff and, 135–6
as right-wing movement in former days, 382
species returns vs. extinctions, 130, 133, 463n32
Trump and, 335
utilitarian motives for, 417
waterway improvements, 130
See also climate change
—POLLUTION
agriculture and, 123
as cost of gifts of industrialization, 123–4
energy and growth and, 129–30, 129
Law of Entropy and, 123
Episcopalians (liberal), 412
equal rights, 214–28
denial of advances in, 215
education of populace and, 235
global progress in, 222–3, 223
humanism and, 417
moral arc of, 223–4
popularity of, 216–19, 216, 218, 471n13
populist backlash against, 219, 221, 225, 333, 340
and racial gap, closing of, 219
religious expression, 222
Trump’s hostility to, 336
and women’s status, 220
See also emancipative values; hate crimes; homosexuality and homophobia; racism; sexism; women: rights of
Erdogan, Recep, 201
Erwin, Douglas, 463n32
Estonia, 306
ethics. See morality
Ethiopia
child mortality and, 56
civil war (1974–91), 160
escape from poverty of, 85, 86
life expectancy at birth, 59
maternal mortality in, 57
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
eudaemonia (“good spirit”), 267
Europe
accidents and accidental deaths in, 180–81
calories available per person in, 70, 70
capital punishment abolition in, 208–9, 210
Civilizing Process of, 168–9
emancipative values, rise in, 225–7, 226, 227
famine in, 68–9
fertility rates falling in, 125
happiness rising with GDP, 270–71
IQ gains in, 241
life expectancy in, 53–4, 54, 55
populism in, 334, 338–9, 341–2, 342, 438, 451, 481n32
poverty in, 79–80
rule of law established in, 43
social spending in, 107
suicide rates and, 278–80, 279
wars. See peace; World War I; World War II
See also Middle Ages; individual countries and subregions
Evangelical Christians
environmentalists seeking common cause, 432
religiosity of, 440
as Trump voters, 432–3
voter turnout of, 438
Evans, Dylan, 477n20
Evans, Gareth, 313
Evans, Mariah, 101
evolution, 18–19
belief in, ideology vs. scientific literacy, 356
competition and malevolence and, 25
genetic individuality and, 25
idea unknown to Enlightenment thinkers, 14, 386
immortality made unlikely due to, 61
indifference of the universe and, 24–5
information accumulation in genome and, 20, 21
life and living things as anti-entropic, 18–19, 20
moral sentiments selected by, 415
plant selection and, 76
unselfish behavior and, 25
See also natural selection
evolutionary psychology, 22–4, 25–7, 353–5
consciousness and, 426
group vs. gene as beneficiary of adaptation, 448
and literary scholarship, 407–8
and nationalism, 450
reason and, 353
of religion, 431
sympathy and, 415
Existentialism, 33, 40, 446, 447
existential threats, 290–321
artificial intelligence as, 296–300, 477n20
Availability and Negativity biases and, 293
civilizations, destruction of, 295–6
dangers of overemphasizing, 291–2
gravitas market and, 49, 293, 452
hackers/evil geniuses, 300–307
human species extinction, 294–5
hypothetical vs. real, 291–2
natural disasters, 294–6
resilience of humans in face of, 305–6
risk estimation of highly imaginable, 292, 305
risk estimation of highly improbable, 292–3
technology as averting, 295–6
technology as causing, 293, 294
See also nuclear war
expressive rationality. See identity-protective cognition
extinction
of human species, 294–5
mass extinctions, 133
rebound of species, 130, 133, 463n32
extraterrestrial life, 166, 308
and existential questions, 433
Islamic antihumanism, apologists for, 441–2
negative vs. positive effects of religion, 431–3
religion as human need, 430–31
religious doctrine as allegory, 431, 489n53
and science, disdain for, 430
spirituality and, 433–5
See also intellectuals; theism and theistic morality
Falkland Islands, 315
falls, deaths from, 181–2, 182, 468n50
Falwell, Jerry, 294
family life, time for, 255–6, 256
famine. See under food and food security
FARC guerrillas, 158
Fariss, Christopher, 207
fascism
and decline of democratic governments, 200
Nietzsche as inspiring, 445, 448
See also Nazi Germany
fatalism
about accidents, 185
from consuming negative news, 42
from environmentalism, 121
from the Negativity bias, 47
from warnings of existential threats, 292
fate
denial of among successful forecasters, 370
as refuted by scientific revolution, 24, 394
“spirituality” as belief in, 434
See also fatalism; purpose, absence of in nature
female genital mutilation, 222
Fermi Paradox, 308
Feshbach, Herman, 308
Feynman, Richard, 390
Finkelhor, David, 229
Finland, 115, 457n8, 475n30, 489n68
fire and smoke deaths, 182–3, 182
Fischer, Claude, 274–5, 475n46
fisheries, 325
Flanders & Swann, 15
Flannery, Tim, 465n76
Flaubert, Gustave, 284
Fleming, Alexander, 63
flood control, 188
Florey, Howard, 64
atheism and, 438
Fogel, Robert, 68–9
Follett, Chelsea, 93
Fonda, Jane, 147–8
Fontane, Theodor, 284
food and food security, 19, 68–78, 70–73
achievement of, as energy capture, 23–4
nutritional quality and IQ rise, 241–2
See also agriculture
—DIET
diversification of, 259–60
of hunter-gatherers, 23
toxic, danger of (omnivore’s dilemma), 167
and fear of population explosion, 73–4
governments exacerbating, 78, 459nn35–36
nuclear winter as producing, 308
in twentieth century, 72–3, 78, 459n36
Ford, Gerald, 275
forecasting tournaments, 368–71, 380, 393, 404
foreign aid, 95
Forster, E. M., 257
Förster-Nietzsche, Elisabeth, 445
Fortna, Virginia Page, 196–7, 404
fossil fuels. See coal; energy; petroleum
Foucault, Michel, 39–40, 397, 406, 446, 447
fracking, 143
France
calories available per person, 70, 70
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
famine in, 69
nuclear weapons and, 317, 318, 320
poverty and, 79
rights, declaration of, 411
Second French War of Religion, 484n77
suicide and, 278
terrorism and, 219
Francis, Pope, 97, 122, 129, 142
Frankfurt, Harry, 98–9
Franklin, Benjamin, 359
Frank, Robert, 124
freedom
anxiety and, 285
happiness in relation to, 265–6, 271
hierarchy of needs and, 224
of modernity, 284–5
negative vs. positive, 265
to screw up your life, 344
See also democracy; emancipative values
freedom of religion, 417
freedom of speech
bioethics violating, 402
education and appreciation for, 235
as emancipative value, 224
populism and devaluing of, 333
as remedy for cognitive biases, 28, 202, 353, 390
utilitarianism and, 417
wealth of countries and, 96
freedom of the press, 336
Friedman, Milton, 119
Friends of the Earth, 465n76
Fukushima accident (2011), 146
Furman, Jason, 117
Gaddafi, Muammar, 447
Galbraith, John Kenneth, 206
Galileo, 24
Galton, Francis, 399
Galtung, John, 41
See also Hobbesian trap (security dilemma); pacifist’s dilemma; Tragedy of the Commons
Gandhi, Indira, 131
Gandhi, Mohandas, 405, 418. See also nonviolent resistance
Gapminder (Web site), xviii, 52
Gates, Bill, 66, 67, 330, 481n16
gay rights. See homosexuality and homophobia
GDP (Gross Domestic Product), 85, 95–6, 461n7
carbon emissions per dollar of, 143, 143
emancipative values as correlated with, 228
Flynn effect as increasing, 242, 244–5
and global well-being, 245–6, 246, 473n45
happiness as increasing with, 269–71, 269, 272
information technology invisible in, 332–3
misleading, potentially. See paradox of value
quality of life and, 95
social spending as percentage of, 107–8, 108, 110, 483n39
Gelman, Andrew, 342
gender. See sex differences
General Social Survey, 273, 288
generational effects. See cohort effects
Generation X, 225
depression and, 476n74
digital technology and, 244
happiness and, 273
suicide and, 280
genetically modified organisms, 77–8, 331
genetics
behavioral genetics, and literary scholarship, 407
individuality of, 25
medical and behavioral, vs. eugenics, 399–400
genocide, 160–62, 161, 397, 466–7nn14,16
gentle commerce. See under commerce
Georgia (country), 86, 203, 335
Georgia (state), capital punishment in, 211
Germany
and authoritarian charismatic regimes, 343
Berlin Wall, 163, 200–201, 203
and escape from poverty, 85
literacy in, 236
nuclear power and, 147
populism and, 341
romantic militarism/nationalism of, 165–6, 398
secularization and, 489n68
Trump and, 336
woman as leader of, 214
Get Smart (TV), 300
Ghitza, Yair, 342
Gide, André, 446
GI Generation, 225
depression and, 280–81
secularization and, 437
suicide and, 280
Glazer, Nathan, 274
Gleditsch, Nils Petter, 455n19, 466n6, 470n4, 490n91
Global Burden of Disease project, 59, 467n13
Global Index of Religiosity and Atheism, 435, 489n65
globalization, 120
consumption and, 117
and economic inequality, 103–4, 111
and Great Escape from poverty, 92
and income distribution, global, 111–13, 111
lower middle classes of the rich world as losing out in, 112, 113, 118–19, 339, 340
Trump’s power limited via realities of, 337–8
women in workforce and, 93–4
and working conditions, 92–3, 94
Global Terrorism Database, 192, 193
goal-directed behaviors, 21–2. See also purpose, absence of in nature
Gobineau, Arthur de, 398
God
anthropomorphic, reason and rejection of, 8
arguments for the existence of, refuted, 421
as testable hypothesis, 422, 423, 428
See also religion; theism and theistic morality
Golden Rule, 412
Goldman, Emma, 400
Goldstein, Rebecca Newberger, xix, 421, 429, 455nn4,7, 456n17, 474n7, 485n104, 487nn3,5, 488nnn32,42,45, 489n54
Goodman, Paul, 456n1
Google searches, prejudice revealed through, 217–19, 218, 339–40, 471n13
Gopnik, Adam, 408
Gorbachev, Mikhail, 316
Gordon, Robert, 329
Gore, Al, 122, 145–6, 255, 382, 465n76
Goths, 398
Gottschall, Jonathan, 408
Gould, Stephen Jay, 394, 486n32
government
climate change response, role in, 141, 145–6, 148, 149–50, 152
economic inequality amelioration by, 119
Enlightenment ideal of, 12
environmental protection, role in, 133–4, 136
evidence-based policy (behavioral insights), 381
famine exacerbated by, 78, 459nn35–36
nurturing role of, 108
regulations compatible with markets, 364, 365
terrorism, overreactions to, 197
theocracy, 201
utilitarian principles for, 416–17, 418
vehicle safety regulations, 177–8
violent crime rates and legitimacy of, 174
voice in, and emancipative values, 224
workplace safety regulations, 186, 187
See also authoritarian governments; colonial governments; communism; democracy; fascism; freedom; human rights; imperialism; postcolonial governments
Graduated Reciprocation in Tension-Reduction (GRIT), 318, 320, 383
Grass, Günter, 447
Gray, John, 191
Grayling, A. C., 455n4, 484n56, 487n1
Great Britain. See England; United Kingdom
Great Convergence, 85, 90–96, 364, 459n16
Great Escape, 54
becoming Great Convergence, 85, 459n16
energy capture and, 24
See also poverty; wealth
Great Leveling/Great Compression, 106, 118
great powers, definition of, 157
Great Recession (financial crisis of 2008)
and disposable incomes/poverty rates, 115, 116
economic inequality and, 97, 112
homicide rate falling during, 170–71
suicide rate rise since, 280
Greece, ancient. See classical Greece and Rome
Greene, Brian, 425
Greene, Graham, 447
Greene, Joshua, 417
Greenpeace, 465n76
Green Revolution, 75–8
Gross World Product, 80–81, 81, 329, 481n13
carbon emissions plateau despite increasing, 144
economic stagnation and, 328, 480n7
as underestimate of prosperity, 81–2
Grüntzig, Andreas, 64
Guatemala, leftist guerrillas in, 158
guinea worm, 65
gun legislation, 176
Guyana, suicide and, 278
Hadza people (Tanzania), 23, 53–4, 58, 457n4
Hafer, R. W., 244
Haider, Sarah, 442
Haidt, Jonathan, 373
Hamid, Shadi, 442
Hamilton, Alexander, 13
Hammel, Andrew, 210
Hammond, Samuel, 418
Hampton, Keith, 275–6
happiness, 262–89
biological function of, 267–8
changes across age, period, and cohort, 272–4, 275
cohorts and, 273–4
distinguished from objective well-being, freedom, and meaningfulness, 264–8
evaluative/cognitive aspect, 266
and excitement about life, 288, 288
experiential/emotional aspect, 266
freedom in relation to, 265–6, 271
health and, 271
infinite increase of, as impossible, 268
objective measurement of, 266
Optimism Gap and, 268
“quiet desperation” pronouncements, 262–4, 268
richer people and countries happier, 268–71, 269
and rose-tinted memory, 48, 271
social scientists’ measurement of, 264
social support and, 271
United States’ underachievement of, 271–4, 283–9, 288, 292, 439, 475nn30–31, 483n42
See also anxiety; depression; Easterlin paradox; quality of life; suicide; well-being
Hardy, Thomas, 294
Harrington, Michael, 113, 456n1
Harrison, Benjamin, 185
Harrison, William Henry, 62–3
Harvard University, 141, 379, 400
Hastorf, Al, 359
hate crimes
categorized as terrorism, 192
downward trend of, 219–20, 220
motives of killers, 196
surge under Trump, putative, 219–20
upticks following Islamist terror attacks, 219
Hathaway, Oona, 163–4
health, 62–7
dementia/Alzheimer’s, 59
and Flynn effect, 241–2
happiness of nations with good, 271
and life expectancy, 59
See also food and food security; infectious disease; life expectancy; mental health
health care
research on, vs. consumer product R&D, 333
social spending on, 109
See also infectious disease; medicine
hedonic treadmill, theory of, 263
Hegel, Friedrich, 165
Heidegger, Martin, 39–40, 406, 446, 447
height, increases in, 242
Heilbroner, Robert, 456n1
Hellman, Lillian, 447
hepatitis B, 382
heredity and environment, 241–2
Herman, Arthur, 32, 33, 39–40, 166
Heyns, Christopher, 209
Hidalgo, Cesar, 455nn1,8, 456n11
Hilleman, Maurice, 64
Hiroshima bombing, resilience and, 305
Hirschman, Albert, 457n29, 482n55
Historical Index of Human Development, 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
Hitchens, Christopher, 430
Hitler, Adolf, 161, 314, 398, 430, 445
Hittites, 398
Hobbesian trap (security dilemma), 164, 173, 315
Hobbes, Thomas, 8–9, 22, 49, 173, 412, 414
Ho Chi Minh, 447
Hoffman, Peter, 61
Hofstadter, Richard, 486n36
Holan, Angie, 375–6
Holdren, John, 465n76
Hollander, Paul, 447
Holodomor (Ukraine famine), 78
homelessness, 116
homeostasis, 22
homicide, 168–76
hate crimes as correlated with, 219, 471n19
“justice” as motive for, 26
rates of, 43, 169–72, 170, 171, 467nn12–13
rule of law reducing, 43, 168–70
vs. terrorist deaths, 192–3, 192
See also hate crimes; rampage shootings; terrorism and terrorists; violent crime
homosexuality and homophobia, 214–15
Cubans sent to labor camps, 376–7, 484n79
decriminalization of, 223, 223, 417–18
Internet searches, study of, 217–19, 218
Muslim societies and, 223, 439
Nazi mass murder of homosexuals, 399
public opinion in the U.S., 216–17, 216
Honduras, 172
Hoodbhoy, Pervez, 442
Horkheimer, Max, 396–7
horse-drawn era, road fatalities and, 178–9
Howard, Rhea, 140
Howells, William Dean, 260
HPV (human papillomavirus), 382
Hugo, Victor, 341
Human Development Index, 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
human flourishing, 51, 245–6, 247–8, 264–8, 412–15
communism as failing to promote, 364
democracy as contributor to, 199–200, 470n4
in free markets with social spending and regulation, 365, 483n42
as morality for cosmopolitan world, 418, 419
progress, general factor, 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
See also humanism; living standards; quality of life; well-being, subjective
animals and, 410
as maximizing human flourishing, 395, 410
religions as clashing with, 30, 432–3
religions compatible with, 412, 418, 431–2, 441
See also Humanist Manifesto III; Humanist movement; religion; theism and theistic morality; Universal Declaration of Human Rights
humanistic environmentalism. See ecomodernism
Humanist Manifesto III (2003), 410–411
Humanist movement, 410–412, 487nn1–3
Humanitarian Revolution, 11, 43
humanities
digital humanities, 408
disdain for science not typical of, 389–90
downsizing of programs of, 405–6
Second Culture policing of, 408–9
unity of knowledge (consilience with science) and, 390, 406–9, 486n13
See also academia; pessimism: cultural; postmodernism; science, disdain for; scientism; university and college education
human nature, universal
Enlightenment thinkers and embrace of, 10
and humanism, 10–11
See also evolutionary psychology
HumanProgress (Web site), xviii, 52
human rights
vs. capital punishment, 210
democracies as better with, 207
education as, 234
humanism and, 417
monitoring of violations of, 207
nationalism downplayed in favor of, 451
negative freedom and, 265
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 207, 209, 411–12, 418–19
Hume, David, 8–9, 10, 353, 392, 421
Humphrey, John, 419
Hungary, populism and, 201, 334, 341
hunger. See food and food security; poverty
hunter-gatherer peoples
child mortality in, 55
diet of, 23
and egalitarianism vs. inequality, 102–3
life expectancy of, 53–4, 58, 457n4
persistence hunting, 353–4
reason and, 353–4
scientific skepticism among, 354
See also Hadza people; San people
Huntington, Samuel, 200
Hussein, Leyla, 442–3
Hussein, Saddam, 199, 291, 366, 447
Hutu people, 161
Huxley, Aldous, 418
Ibsen, Henrik, 284
ideas
democracy as, 206
as historical forces, 347, 349–50, 405, 443, 448
and infectious disease improvement, 67
language and communication of, 27
as patterns in matter, 22
identity politics, 31, 342, 375
identity-protective cognition
blue lies and, 358–9
cognitive dissonance and, 377
institutions of reason as mitigating, 27–8, 376–7
media and intellectuals and, 366–7
and politics as predicting scientific belief, 356–8
rationalization vs. reason and, 359
scientific literacy as no cure for, 403
and Tragedy of the Belief Commons, 358
See also cognitive biases
Illusion of Explanatory Depth, 379–80
immigrants and immigration
cuisines introduced by, 259–60
literature written by, 284
social spending and, 110
immortality, 60–61
imperialism
blamed on science, 34, 388, 399
Muslim countries and, 439
See also colonial governments
and class distribution, 114–15
disposable (after taxes and transfers) vs. market, 115–16, 116, 118, 254–5, 254
global distribution of, 111
after Great Recession, 115
happiness as increasing with, 268–71, 269
universal basic income, 119
India
agriculture in, 76
Axial Age and, 23
calories available per person in, 70, 70
carbon emissions of, 143, 143–4
civil wars in, 160
colonial government of, 78
education in, 238
equal rights, moderate support for, 222
escape from poverty of, 85, 86, 90
GDP of, 85
globalization and, 111
industrialization and women in the workforce, 94
liberalization of economy, 90
liberal Muslim rule of 16th century, 442
nuclear power and, 150
nuclear weapons and, 307–8, 317, 318
per capita income of, 86
as permit bureaucracy (“license raj”), 90
population-control program of, 74
poverty in, 89
refugees and displaced persons, 160
secularization and, 436
social spending in, 109
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
women’s rights and, 222
indigenous peoples, 123, 199. See also hunter–gatherer peoples
Indochina wars (1946–54), 160
Indonesia
anti-Communist purge (1965–66), 161, 484n77
democratization and, 200, 203, 442
military government of, 200
nuclear power and, 150
poverty in, 89
social spending in, 109
industrialization
of the developing world, 92–4
ecomodernist appreciation for, 123–4
See also globalization; Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
agriculture and, 74–5
CO2 concentration, before and after, 136
energy capture and release and, 24
Gross World Product and, 81
working conditions, harsh, 94, 185–6, 230
inequality. See economic inequality; equal rights
and bioterrorism, difficulty with, 306–7
eradication and control of, 63–7, 66, 307
and life expectancy setbacks, 55
pandemics, falsely predicted, 307
preindustrial poverty and, 80
See also health; health care; life expectancy; medicine; vaccines; specific diseases
information, 19–21
accumulated in genome during evolution, 20, 21
accumulated in neural activity, 20–21
as basic constituent of the universe, 20
economic measures difficult to apply to, 332–3
as reduction in entropy, 19–20
science as depending on, 391–2
second machine age and, 330–32
unknown to Enlightenment thinkers, 14, 386
Inglehart, Ronald, 124, 224, 340, 491n106
Inhofe, James, 387
innumeracy
as human nature, 26
and political ideologies, 360–61
Inquisition, 442
institutions, human, 28
declining trust in, 29, 438, 456n1
development of, and creation of wealth, 83–4
and hope for progress, 12
humanist ideals inspiring, 411–12
integrity of, and emancipative values, 228
loss of faith in, anxiety and, 286
populism and disdain for, 333–4
populist power limited via, 337–8
See also commerce; government; trade; university and college education
insurance, social spending as, 110
intellectuals
and consumerism, double standard about, 247–8
dictator fanship of (tyrannophilia), 445, 446–7
Enlightenment, ambivalence toward, 29–30, 249
and equal rights, denial of advancements in, 215
ideological innumeracy and, 48, 191
and industrial work, rejection of, 92–3
IQ tests rejected by, 243
leftist tilt of, 372–3
Negativity bias and, 48–9
Nietzsche as influence on, 445, 446–7, 452
perception of social isolation and loneliness, 274
pessimism equated with moral seriousness, 49
romance with Marxism, 363, 372
and romantic militarism, 165–6
as Second Culture, 33–4, 389–90, 456n12
and skepticism regarding progress, 39–40, 456n1
standard of living, disdain for, 34
Trumpism inadvertently encouraged by, 343, 447–50, 491n118
See also academia; declinism; faitheism; pessimism; romantic heroism; Romanticism; science, disdain for
intelligence
and the cognitive niche, 22–3
Fermi Paradox, 308
general intelligence factor (g), 242
misperception about, causing fear of AI, 296–8
networks of neurons and, 21
subtypes of, 242
See also Flynn effect; knowledge; reason
Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, 367–8
Intelligence Quotient (IQ), rise in. See Flynn effect
international community
advantages of, 450–51
foreign aid, 95
nuclear war and importance of, 312, 315
outlawry of war requiring, 163–4
populism and rejection of, 334–8, 448, 449–51
international dollar, 80
International Labour Organization, 232
international trade agreements, Trump and, 334–5
Internet
access to, 257
cyberattacks, 300–302, 304–6, 335
education online, 238, 260, 331
and entertainment, diversification of, 260–61
searches on, prejudice revealed through, 217–19, 218, 339–40, 471n13
See also social media
intuition, actuarial formulas outperforming, 403–4
Iran
capital punishment in, 209–210
civil war in, 160
compromise of nuclear centrifuges of, 304
democratization and, 206
fertility decreasing in, 126
war with U.S. or Israel, discussion of, 313
Iran-Iraq War, 160
Iraq
democratization and, 206
Kuwait conquest (1990–91), 163
terrorist deaths in, 193
U.S.-led invasion of (2003), 158, 197, 206, 291, 313, 376, 439
U.S. military fatalities in, 192
Irish Republican Army, 195
irrationality
Enlightenment recognition of, 8–9, 353, 482n6
and politicized issues, 381–4
reason and, 8–9, 351, 353, 358, 375, 407
See also cognitive biases; identity-protective cognition
Irwin, Douglas, 462n63
ISIS (Islamic State), 5, 42, 162, 198, 216, 404, 420
Islam, 439–43
antihumanistic doctrines in, 440–42
and civilization, classical Arab, 439, 442
intellectual apologists for antihumanism, 441–2
See also Arab countries; Muslim countries; Muslims
Islamist extremists
Availability heuristic and worries about, 42
certainty of values of, 5, 420
civil war increases since Cold War and, 158–9
female literacy and, 240
hate crimes following terror attacks, 219–20, 220
and motives of terrorist killers, 196, 216
number of Americans killed by, 194, 469n10
perceived as threat to U.S., 42, 162, 198, 404
and reactionary ideology of Sayyid Qutb, 441
and right-wing nationalism, 451
and Syrian civil war, 159
theoconservatism (Christian) similar to, 449
and wars within Muslim-majority countries, 439
See also ISIS; terrorism and terrorists
anti-Islamic hate crimes, 219–20, 220
Ismail, Gululai, 443
Israel
agriculture of, 129
cyber-sabotage and, 304
happiness ranking of, 475n30
and war, 313
Italy
child labor force in, 231–2, 231
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
literacy in, 236
poverty and, 79
social spending in, 108
Jacobs, Alan, 283
Jainism, 23
Jamaica, homicide rates in, 172
Jamison, Dean, 67
Japan
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
fertility rates falling in, 125
secularization and, 436, 489n68
social spending in, 108
and World War II, 158, 161, 196, 305, 314
Jaspers, Karl, 23
Jefferson, Thomas, 27, 95, 412, 417
Jencks, Christopher, 116
Jensen, Robert, 95
Jetsons, The, 330
Jindal, Bobby, 387
Johnson, Samuel, 162
jokes, bigoted, 217–19, 218, 471n13
Jonassohn, Kurt, 160–61
Juárez, Mexico, homicide rate in, 172
Judaism
and Axial Age, 23
humanistic branches, 412
religiosity and, 440
Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur, 167–8
and schools, development of formal, 233
Talmudic debate, 379
See also anti-Semitism
Jussim, Lee, 373
Kahan, Dan, 154, 357–8, 360–61, 366, 381, 382–3
Kahneman, Daniel, 41, 353, 383, 404
Kahn, Herman, 309
Kaku, Michio, 308
Kalahari “Bushmen” (San people), 249, 353–4
Kant, Immanuel
and arguments for the existence of God, 421
categorical imperative of, 412
as cognitive psychologist, 392
and deontology, 416
on enlightenment, 7
and human nature, 10
and irrationality of humans, 8–9, 353, 482n6
on progress, 11
Kazakhstan, nuclear weapons relinquished by, 313
Keith, David, 153–4
Kelley, Jonathan, 101
Kellogg-Briand (Paris Peace) pact (1928), 163–4
Kellogg, Frank, 164
Kelly, Kevin, 254, 301–2, 304, 344–5, 477n20
Kelsey, Elin, 292
Kendall, Henry, 308
Kendrick, Pearl, 64
Kennedy, John F., 31, 312, 336
Kepler, Johannes, 424
Keynes, John Maynard, 347, 400
Khomeini, Ayatollah, 447
Khrushchev, Nikita, 312
Kim Il-sung, 447
Kim Jong-il, 78
Kim Jong-un, 313
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 223, 405
Kingston, Maxine Hong, 284
Kinzer, Stephen, 420
Kissinger, Henry, 316
Klein, Daniel, 362–3
Klein, Naomi, 138–9
computation and, 21
populism and disdain for, 333
Trump’s disdain for, 336
unity of, as consilience of humanities and science, 390, 406–9, 486n13
See also education; literacy; reason
Knowlton, Nancy, 122
Koch, Charles and David, 139
Kosovo, 203
Kotler, Steven, 330
Kozol, Jonathan, 456n1
Krasnow, Max, 140
Krauss, Lawrence, 308
Kristof, Nicholas, 373
Kunstler, James, 465n76
Kurzweil, Ray, 60
Kuwait, 171
conquest by Iraq (1990–91), 163
Kuznets curve
economic inequality, 103–6, 110, 111
environmental, 124, 463n9, 463n35
Kyrgyzstan, 203
labor movement, paid vacation and, 251
Lacan, Jacques, 406
Lahiri, Jhumpa, 284
Lamarckian process, 399
Landsteiner, Karl, 64
language
communication of ideas using, 27
development of, 23
Indo-European, 398
writing, 27
Lanier, Jaron, 477n20
Laplace, Pierre-Simon, 24, 298
Lasch, Christopher, 456n1
Latin America. See South and Central America
law enforcement. See police; rule of law
Lawrence, D. H., 446
Lears, Jackson, 388
Lebanon, 490n96
Leetaru, Kalev, 50
Lenin, Vladimir, 447
Lennon, John, 166
Lepper, Mark, 359–60
Lesotho, 172
Lessing, Doris, 261
Levi, Michael, 313
Levitsky, Steven, 206
Lewis, Sinclair, 284
Lewontin, Richard, 114
LGBT rights. See homosexuality and homophobia
Liar’s Paradox, 352
liberal values. See emancipative values
Liebenberg, Louis, 353–4
life and living things as anti-entropic, 18–19, 20
life expectancy, 53–61, 54, 58
developed vs. developing countries, 54–5, 95–6
fallacious pessimism about, 53
immortality, 60–61
and quantifiable index of global well-being, 245–6, 246, 473n45
light, artificial, 253–4, 253–4
lightning strike deaths, 189, 189
Lincoln, Abraham, 45–6
linguistics, 407
Lister, Joseph, 63
African Americans and, 219
of females, 239–40, 239, 473n27
literature
and human knowledge, 433
scholarship in, as discipline, 407–8
See also arts and culture; humanities
Lithuania, 278
living standards
of the 1950s, 113–14
intellectual scorn for, 34, 446
Optimism Gap and, 115
sympathy and, 34
London, Jack, 446
and civil wars, 158–60, 466n11
and democracies, rise of, 162–3, 200
Kellogg-Briand pact and, 163–4
realpolitik and, 163
trade and commerce and, 162
See also international community
Lord, Charles, 359–60
lottery, winning, 270
Lovelock, James, 465n76
Loving, Richard and Mildred, 376
Lucas, Robert, 89
Lutheranism, 412
Macaulay, Thomas, 327–8
McCloskey, Deirdre, 84
McGinn, Colin, 427–8
McKibben, Bill, 465n76
McNally, Richard, 281
Macron, Emmanuel, 339
Madfis, Erik, 198
Mahbubani, K., 459n16
Maher, Bill, 374
Mahmood, Omar, 443
Malamud, Bernard, 284
Malaysia, 57, 200, 203, 442, 457n8
Malthusian Era, 54
Malthus, Thomas, 73–4
Mandela, Nelson, 91
Mann, Thomas, 446
Mao Zedong
and nuclear weapons, 313
Western intellectuals as admirers of, 447
Marcotte, Amanda, 358–9
Marcuse, Herbert, 39–40
Marcus, Gary, 477n20
Maritain, Jacques, 418
Marxism
Critical Theory as quasi-Marxist, 396–7
human costs of, 78, 90–91, 101, 107, 165, 200, 247–8, 271, 364, 430
intellectuals’ sympathy with, 31, 364, 372, 447
See also communism
Marxist guerrillas and terrorists, 158, 195, 197, 198
Marx, Karl, 103, 165, 349, 405
Maslow, Abraham, 224
massive open online courses (MOOCs), 238
Maurras, Charles, 448
meaningful life, 3–4
contrasted with happy life, 267–8
Enlightenment ideals and, 3–4
freedom and, 265–6
humanistic caring and, 434–5
Humanist Manifesto III on, 411
measles, 66
Medellín, Colombia, 172
media
about things that happen vs. don’t happen, 41
anxiety produced by, 286–7
Availability heuristic and, 42, 201
Betteridge’s Law of Headlines, 282
child labor exposed by, 230
climate change coverage, 151
dystopian rhetoric of, 50, 343
liberal tilt of journalism, 372–3, 484n54
mental health perceptions and, 282–3
“nuclear war” less mentioned, 310, 479n80
political coverage, improvement of, 381, 383
populism and, 343–4
and shift from glorifying to exposing leaders, 50
terrorism coverage, recommendations for, 197–8
time scale of positive vs. negative events, 41
tone of the news (1945–2010), 50–51, 51
Trump’s election, role of, 50, 343, 376, 449
Trump’s threats to, 336
and violence, portrayal of, 42, 215–16
workplace safety coverage, 186
—NEGATIVE NEWS AS FOCUS OF, 42, 50
anxiety and depression and, 286–7
children and, 229
cumulative psychological effects of, 292
equal rights and, 215
incremental system change, loss of belief in, 50
upticks of problems and, 44
viewed as duty of journalists, 49
Medicare, 109
medicine
blood groups, 64
evidence-based, 380
future gains not calculated in life expectancy, 60
and immortality, hope for, 60–61
new technologies for, 331
progress in, as incremental, 55, 61
sterilization of hands and equipment, 63, 67
See also drugs, pharmaceutical; health; health care; infectious disease; vaccines
Medvedev, Dmitry, 316
Meehl, Paul, 403–4
Mellers, Barbara, 367–8, 370–71
memory, autobiographical, 3, 48, 407
Mencken, H. L., 446
men. See sex differences; women
mental health and illness
cognitive behavioral therapy, 175, 282
depression, 280–83, 284, 476n74
disease mongering/concept creep, 281–2
and freedom, 285
paradox of, 282
as percentage of global burden of disease, 282
rates of depression and anxiety, 282–3, 476n74
See also anxiety; suicide
mental models, 22–3
Mercier, Hugo, 380
Merton, Robert, xvii–xviii
methane (natural gas), 136, 143, 147, 183
methodological naturalism, 421–2
Mexican-American War (1946–48), 163
Mexico
agriculture in, 76
homicide rates in, 169, 170, 172
literacy in, 236
Mexican Revolution, 199
social spending in, 109
Trump and immigration from, 336
women’s rights in, 222
Meyer, Bruce, 116
microwave ovens, 252
Midas, King, 299
Middle Ages
accidental death rates in, 180–81
belief in external forces, 9–10
cost of artificial light in, 253, 253
poverty and, 79–80
private militias as ubiquitous in, 197
racism and slavery of, 397
middle class
globalization and effects on, 112, 113, 118–19, 339, 340
worldwide increase of, 86, 459–60n18
Middle East and North Africa
carbon emissions of, 144
communist governments in, 200
emancipative values in, 227–8, 227, 439
imperialist interventions in, 439
literacy and, 236
refugees from, and European populism, 338
See also Arab countries; Muslim countries; individual countries
Milanović, Branko, 104–5, 111, 112, 113
military governments, 200
military spending, 162, 467n18
Millennials, 225
depression and, 476n74
digital technology and, 244
happiness and, 273
as increasingly liberal, 217
low voter turnout in Trump’s election, 343
secularization and, 437
suicide and, 280
well-being of, 283
Miller, George, 314
Milošević, Slobodan, 447
mind-body dualism, 3, 22, 422, 427
mining safety and working conditions, 185, 230
minority rights, populist disregard for, 333, 340
misanthropy
of cultural criticism, 34, 247, 446
of traditional environmentalism, 122, 134, 154
Mishima, Yukio, 446
Missouri, capital punishment in, 211
mobile phones/smartphones, 94–5, 257, 331
Molière, 411
Monbiot, George, 264
Monitoring the Future (youth survey), 185
monotonicity, 44
Montefiore, Hugh, 465n76
Montesquieu, 8, 10, 12, 13, 223
Monty Python’s Flying Circus, 392
Mooney, Chris, 387
Moore, Patrick, 465n76
morality
as balancing desires conflicting with others’, 414
capital punishment abolition and, 211–12, 213
deontological, 416–18
evolution as selecting for, 415
progress in, as cumulative, 327
relativists vs. realists, 429–30
and safety regulations, 190
social contracts against harm, 27–8
sympathy and, 415
utilitarian, 415–19
and violence, vulnerability to, 414–15
See also theism and theistic morality
moral sense
abstract reasoning and honing of, 243
root-causism and, 169–70
sacrifice and, 140–41
Morgenthau, Hans, 309
Morrison, Philip, 308
Morton, Oliver, 154
Moss, Jonathan, 402
Mothers Against Drunk Driving, 178
motor vehicles
accident deaths, 42, 176–8, 177
deaths in, vs. terrorist deaths, 192, 193
decline in demand for, 135
drunk driving, 178
robotic cars, 180
safety, development of, 177–8, 190
Moynihan, Daniel Patrick, 200
Mozambique, escape from poverty of, 85, 86
Mozgovoi, Aleksandr, 479n93
Mueller, John, 205–6, 263, 305, 310–311, 313
Mugabe, Robert, 91
Mukherjee, Bharati, 284
Muller, Richard, 313
multiethnic communities, 405, 448, 450
multiverse theory, 424–5
Munroe, Randall, 127, 128, 430, 489n52
Musk, Elon, 296
Muslim countries
atheists in, 435
cruel punishments in, 439, 440
emancipative values weakest in, 223, 227–8, 227, 240, 439, 442
female genital mutilation in, 439
fertility decreasing in, 126, 436
homosexuality as crime in, 223, 439, 440
“honor killings” of women in, 439
and humanism, lack of progress in, 439–42
humanistic revolution in, 442–3, 491n106
human rights violations and, 439
separation of mosque and state, 441
theocracies and, 201
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 418–19
women’s rights in, 222, 439, 442, 491n106
See also Arab countries; Islam; Islamist extremists; Muslims
Muslims
conspiracy theories and, 67, 336
hate crimes targeting, 219–20, 220
literal readings of Quran, 440, 490n96
percentage of world population, 436
as strongly religious, 440
Trump and immigration of, 336
Mussolini, Benito, 445, 446, 447, 491n118
Mutar, Faisal Saeed Al-, 442
Myhrvold, Nathan, 477n20
Nabokov, Vladimir, 261
Nader, Ralph, 177
Nagel, Thomas, 351–2, 412, 413, 427, 429, 482n4, 488n43
Nalin, David, 64
Namazie, Maryam, 443
Namibia, 203
Nasr, Amir Ahmad, 443
Nasrin, Taslima, 443
nationalism
as counter-Enlightenment value, 30–31, 448
political ideologies and, 31
romantic nationalism, 165–6, 447, 448, 449–51
Russian, 159
vs. social contract, 31
See also populism
National Science Foundation, 356–7, 387
nation-states
cyber-sabotage accomplished by, 304
as putative units of group selection, 31, 448, 450
romantic nationalism, 165, 447, 448, 449–51
tribalism and, 450
natural disaster deaths, 187–9, 188
destruction of civilizations, 295–6
extinction of human species, 294–5
natural gas (methane), 136, 143, 147, 183
naturalism, 392, 421–2, 486n17
Natural Resources Defense Council, 465n76
natural selection, 18–19
homeostasis discovered by, 22
human intelligence and, 297
humanism and, 413–14
reality as selection pressure, 355
See also evolution
nature
competition and arms races in, 19, 24–5
environmentalism, traditional view of, 122
purpose in, science as refuting, 8, 24, 394–5, 434–5
as robust, 133
See also natural selection
Nawaz, Maajid, 443
Nazi Germany
Christianity of, 430
counter-Enlightenment ideology of, 397
eugenics and, 399
intellectual fans of, 447
Nietzsche as influence on, 445
public health invoked by, 399
“scientific racism” of, 397–8
See also Germany; Hitler, Adolf
Negroponte, John, 310
Nemirow, Jason, 140
Nepal, 203
Netherlands
commerce, embrace of, 84–5
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
happiness ranking of, 475n30
life expectancy in, 95
literacy in, 236
populism repudiated in, 338–9
secularization and, 436
social spending in, 108
New Deal, 107–8
New England, homicide rates in, 169, 170
New Peace, 43
New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, 317, 318
Newton, Sir Isaac, 24
New York City, 172, 286–7, 380
New York Times, 44, 50, 74, 97, 151, 280, 292, 373, 409, 420
New Zealand
economic freedom in, 365, 483n39
education in, 237
and escape from poverty, 85
secularization and, 437, 438–9
social spending in, 365, 483n39
women’s rights in, 222
Nicaragua, 158
Niebuhr, Reinhold, 311
Nietzsche, Friedrich, 443–7
cultural pessimism, advocate of, 39–40, 406
intellectuals and artists as fans, 445, 446–7, 452
quotations from, 444–5
See also romantic heroism
Niger, 203
Nigeria
democratization of, 203
famine in, 73
killings by Boko Haram in, 162
polio in, 65
secularization and, 436
terrorist deaths in, 193
Nisbet, Robert, 40
Nixon, Richard, 119
Nobel Peace Prize, 203, 232, 240, 316
Nomani, Asra, 443
Non-Proliferation Treaty (1970), 316–17
No Nukes concert and film (1979), 147
nonviolent resistance, success rate of, 405
non-Western Enlightenments, 29–30, 419, 439, 442–3, 456n2
Norberg, Johan, 54–5, 68, 79, 125, 203–4
Nordhaus, Ted, 122, 141–2, 147, 253–4
Nordic countries
egalitarian income distribution in, 98
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
environment of, 130
and escape from poverty, 85
forced sterilization laws of, 399
Norma Rae (film), 113
North, Douglass, 83
North Korea
Arduous March, 78
as autocratic, 201–2
conflict with South Korea, 158
democratization and, 206
famine in, 78
poverty in, 90
Norvig, Peter, 477n20
Norway
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
happiness ranking of, 475n30
income per capita in, 271
populism and, 341
Nozick, Robert, 99
nuclear power, 144–5, 146–50, 330, 465n76
nuclear war, 307–321
balance of terror, 315
ban on (Global Zero), 315–17, 320–21
close calls, 310, 312–13, 318, 479nn93,95
deterrence and, 312, 314–15, 317
fear, failure to mobilize public, 308–311, 479n80
Graduated Reciprocation in Tension-Reduction (GRIT), 318, 320
historical pessimism and, 308
and international relations, 312, 315
launch on warning (hair trigger), 315, 319–20
Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD), 315
nations with capacity, 313, 317–18, 318
New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), 317, 318
no-first-use pledge, 320
Non-Proliferation Treaty (1970), 316–17
probability of nuclear war, 312–13
proliferation limited, 313
reduction of arsenal, 317–19, 318, 480nn113,117,121
second-strike capacity, 315, 319
security dilemma (Hobbesian trap) of, 315
Trump and, 336–7
nuclear weapons
arms race during Cold War, 291, 308, 311
complacency about, 286
Hiroshima bombing, 305
Manhattan Project and development of, 314
terrorism as threat, 310–311, 313–14
treaty banning atmospheric testing, 133–4
uranium extracted for power plants, 149, 317
Nussbaum, Martha, 248, 264, 413
Nye, Bill, 434
Nyerere, Julius, 447
Obama, Barack
approval rating on departure, 338
bullying as issue for, 49
conspiracy theories about, 336, 358
farewell speech and Enlightenment, 338, 481n30
as first African American U.S. president, 214
health care and, 109
on income inequality, 97
on “now” as best time to be born, 37
and nuclear weapons, 316, 319, 320–21, 336–7
racism and, 217
Republican obstructionism and, 432
theoconservatives and, 449
Obamacare, 109
Obama, Michelle, 214
obesity epidemic, 69
objective measurement
actuarial formulas outperforming experts, 403–4
as goal of scientific literacy, 403–5
as morally enlightened, 43
Naomi Klein’s dismissal of, 139
resisters of scientific thinking objecting to, 403
See also data
occupational safety and accident deaths, 185–7, 187
Occupy Wall Street, 97
Oceania, postcolonial governments of, 201
oceans
acidification of, 137, 138, 153
and carbon dioxide (CO2) capture, 136, 150
deep-sea vents as biological energy source, 19
desalination of water, 129, 149
fisheries, 325
geoengineering and, 150, 152–3
marine conservation areas, 132–3, 133
species extinctions and, 463n32
Oklahoma City bombing (1995), 194
Olds, Jacqueline, 274
O’Neill, Eugene, 446
O’Neill, William, 286
Ono, Yoko, 166
On the Waterfront (film), 113
opioid overdoses, 184–5
Oppenheimer, J. Robert, 308
optimism
complacent vs. conditional, 154–5
enlightenment as, 7
historical improvement as basis for, 51, 327–8
Optimism Gap, 40, 115, 225–6, 268
perceived as salesmanship, 49
rational (pessimistic hopefulness, possibilism, protopia, opti-realism), 52, 344–5, 482n55
See also pessimism
order
improbability of, 15–16, 24, 25
meaning of life as creation despite entropy, 17
self-organization, 17–19
Orlando nightclub massacre, 215, 216
Orlov, Vadim Pavlovich, 479n93
Osgood, Charles, 318
Osler, William, 63
Our World in Data (Web site), xviii, 52
Pacification Process, 43
pacifist’s dilemma, 166, 414, 488n10
Paddock, William and Paul, 74
Pagden, Anthony, 482n6
Pagel, Mark, 477n20
Paine, Thomas, 409
Pakistan
agriculture in, 76
climate change and, 151
as democracy, 207
and literacy, female, 239, 240
nuclear weapons and, 307–8, 317, 318, 320
polio in, 65
terrorist deaths in, 193
Palin, Sarah, 374–5
Pan-African Parliament, 222
paradox of value (income statistics can mislead)
definition of, 82
globalization and, 117
increasing with humanism, 332–3
inequality and, 117
paranormal phenomena, 422, 427, 428
Parfit, Derek, 429
Paris, terrorism and, 219
Paris Agreement on climate, 134, 152, 335, 449
Paris Peace Pact (1928), 163–4
Parker, Theodore, 223
Pascal, Blaise, 162
Pasteur, Louis, 63
democracy as fostering, 162–3
education as fostering, 235
as inherently worthy, 164–5, 166
peacekeeping forces, success of, 404–5
romantic militarism giving way to, 165–6
as self-reinforcing, 164
See also Long Peace; war
Peak Car, Carbon, Children, Coal, Paper, Timber, 144
Peak Oil, 135
Peak Stuff, 135–6
Peanuts (comic), 377
Pearl Harbor, 196
pedestrian deaths, 179–80, 179
Pelopidas, Benoît, 316
period (zeitgeist) effects, 224–5
religious belief and, 437–8
See also age (life cycle) effects; cohort effects
permafrost, melting, 136
about democratization, 201
about human rights, 207
about life expectancy, 53
mistaken for moral seriousness, 49
as one-upmanship, 49
about racism, sexism, and homophobia, 215
and sympathy, expansion of circle of, 49
about terrorism, 191
and Trump’s election, 340
See also fatalism; intellectuals; media; optimism; romantic heroism
—CULTURAL PESSIMISM, 33
doomsday scenarios from, 293, 294
German, 165
and happiness, lack of, 263–4, 268
and the humanities, malaise of, 406
quality of life, 247
and romantic militarism, 165–6
about science, 400
—HISTORICAL PESSIMISM, 33
and democracy, 201
and nuclear war, 308
root-causism, 169–71
petroleum
carbon-to-hydrogen ratio of, 143
deaths caused by, 146–7
new technologies for use of, 330
See also climate change; coal; energy
pharmaceutical drugs. See drugs, pharmaceutical
arguments lead to moral progress, 210, 409
arguments about consciousness, 425–8
arguments on reason and rationality, 8, 351–3
and consilience with science, 407
naturalism as favored position of, 392, 486n17
not divorced from empirical world, 391–2
Second Culture misconceptions of, 408–9
See also reason
photography, 257
Picasso, Pablo, 447
Piketty, Thomas, 99
Pimm, Stuart, 133
Pinker, Robert, xviii
Pinker, Roslyn, xviii
Pinter, Harold, 447
plague, 80
plane crash deaths, 42, 180, 180
plane travel, democratization of, 257–8, 258
plants, energy/food production, 19, 150
pneumonia, childhood deaths from, 66
poison, deaths from, 182, 183–4
police
killings of African Americans, 215–16, 471n6
and violent crime reduction, 168, 173–4, 176
See also rule of law
political ideologies of left and right
belief in evolution and, 356
as biased on specific polarized topics, 361–3
conservative rejection of ideal of progress, 363–4
democracy undermined by, 374
denial of climate change and, 357
eugenics and, 399–400
innumeracy on polarized topics, 360–61
irrationality of issues charged with, 381–4
leftist sympathy for Marxism, 364
libertarian right extremism, 364–5
moderates, 372
nationalism and, 31
polarization increasing, 371, 374–5
populism and, 334
predictions affected by, inaccuracy of, 368, 371
rational approach to politics vs., 365–6
religion and, 31–2
research as harmed by, 373, 387–8
scientists and, 138, 356–8, 372
as secular religions, 32
Social Darwinism and, 399, 486n36
social segregation according to, 371
as sports fandom, 359, 360, 366, 381, 383
Trump’s election and, 343
See also academia
political science, 407
Polk, James, 63
pollution. See environmental protection: pollution
poor countries. See developing countries/world
Popper, Karl, 205, 393, 486n21
population
control measures, 74
demographic transition, 125, 135–6, 436
education and decline of, 238
explosion of, 56, 73–4, 125–6, 125
fertility of religious believers, 436, 489n70
fertility rates as decreasing, 125–6
growth of, 125
and Peak Stuff, 135–6
age rolloff in support for, 341–2, 342
backlash against equal rights, 219, 221, 225
cultural backlash as primary issue in, 340, 342
dystopian rhetoric and, 343–4
and electoral irregularities, repair of, 342–3
in Europe, 334, 338–9, 341–2, 342, 438, 451
institutional limits on power of, 337–8
intellectuals and, 343–4
vs. international community, 163, 337–8
left- and right-wing varieties, 334
media and, 343–4
minority rights, disrespect for, 333, 340
Peak Populism, 451
and “political correctness,” 219
progress as rejected by, 334, 363–4
racism and, 339–40
repudiation of, 338–9
strongman emergence as factor in, 340–41, 343
and terrorism, fear of, 338, 339
theoconservatism and, 448–9
voter characteristics and, 339–40
See also Trump, Donald
Porter, Roy, 84
positivism, 388. See also reductionism; scientism
postcolonial governments
civil war and intercommunal violence of, 164
and democracies, rise of, 200, 201
famine exacerbated by policies of, 78
postmodernism, 351
hatred of science, 397
and malaise of the humanities, 406
Nietzsche as influence on, 446
relativism, 406
Poststructuralism, 446
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), 281, 282
“post-truth era,” 375
Potomac River, 130
Pound, Ezra, 447
poverty, 79–96
as default state of humankind, 25, 79
definition of, 79
and disposable income, 115–16, 116
economic inequality confused with, 98–9
energy requirements to escape, 141
escape from, 24, 54, 85, 364, 459–60nn16,18,20
escape from, factors contributing to, 90–96, 234
homelessness, 116
retirement and alleviation of, 250–51, 250
social spending to alleviate, 107–110, 115–16
See also developing countries/world; economic inequality; wealth
—EXTREME POVERTY, 87
number of people living in, 88–9, 88
per capita income distribution and, 86–7, 86
percentage of world living in, 87–8, 87
United Nations’ goal for reducing, 89, 460n28
power-law distribution, 46, 162, 290, 292–3
Prados de la Escosura, Leandro, 110, 245, 473n45
Availability heuristic and, 370
Bayesian reasoning and, 369–70
common-sense awareness of, 366
ideology driven as least successful, 368, 371
media and intellectuals unaccountable for, 366–7
prophecy distinguished from, 46
superforecasters, 368–71, 380, 393, 404
wisdom of crowds and, 370
President’s Council on Bioethics, 60
Preston Curve, 95
probabilities
of imaginable events, inaccurate estimates, 292
of nuclear war, 312–13
of rare events, 46, 162, 290, 292–3
See also Availability heuristic; prediction
productivity, 328
delay in effects of technological change, 330
factors affecting slowdown of, 329
technological sophistication and, 328
progress
as apparent historical force, 109, 177–8, 190, 211–13, 215, 220–21
vs. Authoritarian High Modernism, 11–12
as cumulative, 326–7
definition of, 11, 51–2, 55, 410
vs. dialectics and other mystical forces, arcs, and struggles, 11, 109, 326, 395, 400
general factor (quantitative), 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
global shaming campaigns and, 222, 443
Human Development Index, 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
institutions as hope for, 12
Romantic vs. Enlightenment versions, 11, 109, 326, 395, 400
summary of, 322–6
threats to, 328–41. See also economic stagnation; populism
unbundling negative features from, 94
United Nations Millennium Development Goals for, 52, 89, 239–40, 457n31, 459–60n18
Protestant countries, emancipative values in, 227
Protestant ethic, 85
psychology
clinical. See anxiety; depression; mental health and illness; psychotherapy; suicide
Enlightenment precursors, 8–9, 10, 353, 392
evolutionary, 17, 25–8, 353–5, 415, 426, 448, 450
See also cognitive biases
psychotherapy
cognitive behavior therapy, 282
Feedback-Informed Treatment, 380
and media focus on negative news, 286–7
public goods game. See Tragedy of the Commons
public health
bioterror and international networks, 301
Ebola control, 307
Nazi Holocaust invoking, 399
See also vaccines
“Publius Decius Mus” (Michael Anton), 448, 449
Pulitzer Prize, 52
purpose, absence of in nature, 8, 24, 394–5, 434–5
“spirituality” and, 434
Putin, Vladimir, 159, 201, 205, 335, 336
Pynchon, Thomas, 456n1
Pythagoras, 23
Quakers (Society of Friends), 162, 412
quality of life, 247–61
and diet, diversification of, 258–9
entertainment and culture, diversity of, 260–61
fundamental capabilities, 248, 264–5, 413
and GDP, 95
leisure time and family life, 255–6, 256
light, affordability of, 253–4, 253–4
necessities, cost of, 254–5, 254
plane travel, affordability of, 257–8, 258
poverty, alleviation of, 251, 473–4n8
secularization and, 438–9, 490n87
time required to stay alive, 248–52, 252, 255
vacation time, 251
See also happiness; well-being, subjective
quantitative mindset. See objective measurement
quantum mechanics, 423, 424, 425, 427
Quarantelli, Enrico, 305
Qutb, Sayyid, 441
Rabi, Isidor, 308
Rabinowitch, Eugene, 311
racism, 214–15
and academia’s left-wing tilt, 373–4
of ancient Greeks toward Africans, 397
global progress in, 222
Internet searches as index of, 217–19, 218, 339–40, 471n13
and interracial marriage, 376
of medieval Muslims toward Africans, 397
police shootings of African Americans, 215–16, 471n6
public opinion in the U.S., 216–17, 216, 471n8
of Romans toward Britons, 397
“scientific racism” misdescribed, 397–8, 486n32
Trump’s election and, 339–40
Radelet, Steven, 59, 90, 91, 93, 459n16
radioactive fallout, 133–4, 315
Radner, Gilda, 266
Railton, Peter, 429
Raitt, Bonnie, 147
Ramdas, Kavita, 94
Ramon, Gaston, 64
categorization as terrorism, 192, 193–4
copycat killings, 193–4
media response, recommendations for, 198
Rand, Ayn, 446
Randomistas, 380–81
rare events, probability of, 46, 162, 290, 292–3
Rawcliffe, Carol, 181
Rayburn, Sam, 16
Raza, Raheel, 443
Reagan, Ronald, 110, 115, 316, 374–5
real estate, social status, and dematerialization, 135
Cartesian argument, 8, 351–2, 413, 482n4
and cosmopolitanism, 11
depoliticizing, 381–3
evolutionary roots in hunter-gatherers, 353–4
fact-checking in media, 375–6
and human irrationality, 8–9, 351, 353, 358, 375, 407, 482n6
increase of, despite contrary sense, 380–81
the meaning of life and, 3–4
vs. politicization, 381–4
and religion, 8, 30, 388, 389, 393–5
See also cognition; cognitive biases
Reed, Lou, 284
Rees, Martin, 290–91, 301, 423
reforestation, 76, 130, 134, 150, 459n25
refrigeration, 75, 82, 251, 252
refugees/displaced persons, 160, 338, 466n12
relationships. See family life; social support vs. isolation
relativism
incoherence of, 351–2
morality and, 429–30
Nietzsche as inspiring, 445, 446
postmodernism and, 406
and capitalism, development of, 84, 85
and China, freedoms in, 204
commerce as ameliorating hatreds, 84
Cornwall Declaration on environment, 287
as counter-Enlightenment, 30, 31–2
decline of. See secularization
development of (Axial Age), 23
doomsday prophecies by, 294
equal rights for religious minorities, 222
freedom of, utilitarianism and, 417
humanism, clashes with, 30, 432–3
humanism, compatibility with, 412, 431–2
Inquisition, 442
and morality. See Euthyphro (Plato); morality: basis of; theism and theistic morality
positive contributions to community, 431–2
science encroaching on, 388, 391, 394–5, 422–3
separation of church and state, 418, 441
spirituality, 433–5
summum bonum, rethinking of, 84
theodicy (rationalization for suffering), 39, 423
See also God; soul, immaterial; specific religions
Republican Party
attempts to repeal Obamacare, 109
and climate change, 357
democratic norms undermined by, 374
electoral floor of support for, 338
increased partisanship of, 371–2
innumeracy of, on polarized topics, 361
journalists in, 484n54
theoconservatism and, 448–9
war on science of, 387–8
See also political ideologies of left and right; populism
Rhodes, Richard, 313
Richardson, Samuel, 284
Richards, Robert, 398
Ridley, Matt, 464n45
Riesman, David, 274
Right Revolutions, 43
Rijpma, Auke, 245
rinderpest (cattle plague), 65
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, homicide rates in, 172
rivers. See waterways
Rizvi, Ali, 443
roads and highways, 168–9, 178
Robinson, John, 255
Rockwell, Norman, 256
Romania, 341
romantic heroism, 33, 419–20, 443–51
disdain for the common person, 444–5, 446, 447
fascist movements inspired by, 445, 448
intellectuals and artists as fans, 445, 446–7, 452
and nationalism, 165–6, 445, 447, 448, 449–51
rejection of Enlightenment, 33, 444–5
sexism of, 444
and totalitarian dictators, 445, 446–7, 491n118
Trumpism as influenced by, 448–50, 491n118
and will to power, 33, 296, 444, 445
See also Nietzsche, Friedrich
counter-Enlightenment, 30, 351
environmental movement and, 32, 121, 122
and factory work, 92
heroic struggle as the greatest good, 30, 33, 448
progress, version of, 11. See also progress: vs. dialectics and other mystical forces, arcs, and struggles
violence as glorified in, 30, 33
See also environmental movement (traditional); romantic heroism
romantic militarism, 165–6, 445
romantic nationalism, 165, 447, 448, 449–51
Romantic poetry, 433
Roma people, 399
Rome, ancient. See classical Greece and Rome
Romer, Paul, 154–5
Roosevelt, Eleanor, 419
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 63
Roosevelt, Theodore, 400
Rosenberg, Nathan, 79
Rosenberg, Robin, 282
Rosenberg, Tina, 50
Rosenthal, Bernice Glatzer, 445
Rose, Stephen (economist), 114
Rose, Steven (neuroscientist), 447
Rosling, Hans, 52, 53, 74, 251–2, 345
Rosling, Ola, 86
Ross, Lee, 359–60
Rotblat, Joseph, 308
Roth, Philip, 284
Roth, Randolph, 174
Rothschild, Nathan Meyer, 62
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 10, 30, 230
Ruddiman, William, 123
rule of law
democracy as dependent on, 335–6
establishment of, in early modern Europe, 43
integrity of, and emancipative values, 228
violent crime reductions and, 43, 168–70, 174
Rushdie, Salman, 443
Ruskin, John, 165
Russia
as autocracy, 201, 203, 205, 335
civil war, 78
conflict with Georgia, 335
conflict with Ukraine, 158, 159, 335
Crimea annexation (2014), 164, 335
cyberattacks by, 335
democracy, undermining of, 335
famine in, 72
homophobia in, 223
legitimacy of government, and crime wave, 174
nationalism of, 159
nuclear weapons, 308, 315, 316–17, 318, 320–21
revolution, 78
secularization and, 436
Trump administration’s collusion with, 335
See also Cold War; nuclear war; Soviet Union
fall prevention, 181–2
fire safety, 183
flood control, 188
gas and vapor, 183
government regulations, 177–8, 186, 187
natural disasters and, 187–9
opioid addiction, 184
Trump and, 335
See also accidental deaths; motor vehicles
Sahel, 73
Said, Edward, 39–40
Saint-Pierre, Abbé de, 13
Sale, Kirkpatrick, 456n1
Sanders, Bernie, 97
Sanger, Margaret, 400
San Pedro Sula, Honduras, 172
São Paulo, Brazil, homicide rate in, 172
Sartre, Jean-Paul, 39–40, 446, 447
Saturday Night Live, 266
Satyarthi, Kailash, 232
Saudi Arabia, 209–210, 336, 419
Savulescu, Julian, 402
Scalia, Antonin, 336
Scandinavia. See Nordic countries
Schank, Roger, 477n20
Scheidel, Walter, 106–7
Schelling, Friedrich, 30
Schelling, Thomas, 480nn105,112
Schell, Jonathan, 309–310, 456n1
Schmitt, Carl, 447
Schopenhauer, Arthur, 39–40, 165
Schrag, Daniel, 151
Schumer, Amy, 434
Schwartz, Richard, 274
science
application to wealth creation, 82–3, 94–5
beauty and, 34, 260, 386, 407–8, 433–4
climate change, consensus on, 137–8, 464n45
cosmopolitan virtues of, 409
depth of achievements of, 385–7
doubt as first principle of, 390
and errors and prejudices, discrediting own, 391
heroes of, 63–4
ideals of, 27, 387–8, 390, 392–3, 409
naïveté of scientists on policy, 390–91
national boundaries transcended by, 387–8, 409
nuclear war activism by scientists, 308–310
nuclear weapons as indictment of, 308
and political correctness, accusations of, 138
political ideology in scientists, 138, 356–8, 372
and “scientific method,” as term, 392
science, disdain for, 33–4, 387, 389–90, 395, 408–9
and bioethics, 402
as bipartisan, 388–9
cultural sophistication and, 17
faitheism and, 430
history of science and, 395–6
and Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 395, 486n21
left-wing repression, 373, 388
medical progress and, 63
right-wing politicians and, 387–8
“science studies” and, 396
Second Culture paranoia about, 389–90, 409
university general education, 400–401
See also intellectuals; scientism
—EVILS BLAMED ON SCIENCE, 388–9, 397, 400
Holocaust, 397
nuclear weapons, 308–310
racism and imperialism, 34, 388, 397–8, 399, 486n32
Social Darwinism, 388, 398–9, 486nn36–37
Tuskegee syphilis study, 401
science of man, 10
Scientific Revolution, 8, 9–10, 24, 326
scientism, 34, 388, 389, 390, 392, 395. See also science, disdain for
Scott, James, 12
Scott, Robert, 9–10, 180–81
Second Culture (Snow), 33–4, 389–90, 456n12. See also humanities; intellectuals; Two Cultures
Second Law of Thermodynamics, 15–18
misunderstood by creationists, 19
pollution and, 123
progress and, 344
See also Entropy, Law of
secularization, 435–6, 489nn65,68
affluence and education and, 435–6
cohort effect, 437–8
and fertility of religious believers, 436, 489n70
period effect, 436–7
quality of life and, 438–9, 490n84
United States and, 436, 437–8, 439, 489n75
voter turnout and, 438
secular stagnation. See economic stagnation
security dilemma (Hobbesian trap), 164, 173, 315
Seinfeld, Jerry, 374
Selin, Ivan, 148
Semmelweis, Ignaz, 63
Sen, Amartya, 245, 248, 264, 265, 442
Senegal, 203
Sennett, Richard, 456n1
September 11, 2001, attacks
conspiracy theories about, 336, 358
high death toll of, 193, 194, 194
resilience of people and, 305–6
success of, as uncommon, 303
as theater, 196
uptick in anti-Islam hate crimes and, 219, 220
used as analogy in dystopian rhetoric, 343, 449
Serbia, 203
Serengeti wilderness park, 123
service organizations, 287, 432, 450
Seven Years’ War, 484n77
sex differences
anxiety, 285
depression, 476n74
educational parity, 239–40
See also sexism; women
sexism, 214–15
definition of, 214
education of girls and women and, 239–40, 239
Internet searches, as index of, 217–19, 218
public opinion in the U.S., 216–17, 216
romantic heroism and, 444
See also equal rights; sex differences; women
Sex, Lies, and Videotape (film), 286
Shakespeare, William, 433
shaming campaigns, global, 222, 443
Shapiro, Scott, 163–4
sharing economy, 135
Shaw, George Bernard, 287, 341, 400, 446, 447
Shellenberger, Michael, 122, 141–2, 147
Shelley, Percy Bysshe, 295
Shermer, Michael, 455n10, 457n32, 458nn19,21, 464n45, 471n3, 472n26, 487n63, 488n34
Sheskin, Mark, 101–2
Shiite Muslims, 162
Shtulman, Andrew, 356
Sidgwick, Henry, 487n5
Sierra Club, 465n76
Sikkink, Kathryn, 207
Silent Generation, 225
emancipative values and, 226
secularization and, 43
suicide and, 280
Silicon Valley, quest for immortality, 60
Simmel, Georg, 165
Simon, Julian, 126
Simon, Paul, 284
Simon & Garfunkel, 257
Simpson, Wallis, 270
Sinclair, Upton, 186
Singapore, 85, 85, 171, 207, 457n8
Singer, Isaac Bashevis, 284
Singer, Peter, 429
Sino-Japanese War, 484n77
Sirleaf, Ellen Johnson, 91
slavery
abolition of, 11
arguments defending, as corrected errors, 408–9
historical ubiquity of racism and, 397
utilitarianism and laws against, 417
Smith, Adam
and human psychology, 8–9, 353
on market exchange, 83
on paradox of value, 82
and poverty as default human condition, 25
on real price as the trouble of acquisition, 253
and self-interest working for common good, 13
on specialization, 12–13
Smith, Lamar, 387
Smith, Logan Pearsall, 328
smoke and fire deaths, 182–3, 182
Smokey the Bear, 183
Snopes (Web site), 260
Snow, C. P.
on disdain for science, 17
on factory vs. farm work, 92–3, 446
on First and Second Cultures, 33–4, 389–90, 456n12
and nuclear disarmament, 308, 309
on science as a moral imperative, 34
Snow, John, 63
social capital, 235
social comparison/status anxiety, 99–100, 263
social contract, 12, 27–8, 31, 412, 413
Social Darwinism, 388, 398–9, 486nn36–37
social isolation. See social support vs. isolation
“social justice warriors,” 31, 373, 375
social media
as boon to human closeness, 256–7
and dematerialization, 135
and leisure/family time, 255, 256
See also Internet
social psychology, 100, 373, 407. See also cognitive biases; happiness; moral sense; psychology; racism
social spending, 107–110
as compatible with capitalism, 365, 483nn39,42
Egalitarian Revolution, 107
hidden welfare state (U.S.), 115, 116, 119
increase over time, 107–8, 108, 109–110
and inexorable change, 109
pre-capitalist, 107
Reagan/Thatcher ideology against, 110
redistribution/welfare state, 108–9
as reducing inequality and poverty, 107–110, 115–16
Trump and, 334
universal basic income, 119
as universal in developed nations, 110, 115
Wagner’s Law and, 109–110
and well-being, 108, 110, 365, 483nn39,42
social support vs. isolation
constancy of, over time, 274–5, 475n46
as factor in happiness, 271
loneliness, decreasing, 275–7, 276
perception of increasing isolation, 274, 277
Sokov, Nikolai, 316
Sontag, Susan, 376–7, 447, 456n1, 484n77
soul, immaterial
vs. activity of brain, 22, 422, 427–8
hard problem of consciousness, 427, 428
mental life attributed to, 22
religions valuing, above lives, 30, 429, 433
religious wars and, 429
as testable hypothesis, 422
South Africa, 98, 172, 313, 419
South and Central America
carbon emissions of, 144
drug-fueled violence in, 175
emancipative values in, 227, 227
happiness in, 271
homicide rates and concentrations in, 172, 173–4
IQ gains in, 241
life expectancy in, 53–4, 54, 55
military juntas of, 200
personal violence, deaths from, 167
undernourishment in, 72
See also individual countries
South and Southeast Asia
Communist governments in Southeast Asia, 200
emancipative values in, 227, 227
undernourishment in, 72
South Korea
child mortality and, 56
conflict with North Korea, 158
escape from poverty of, 85, 85, 90
GDP of, 85
military government of, 200
nuclear power and, 148
suicide and, 278
Soviet Union
Afghanistan invasion by, 439
atheism of, 430
Chernobyl nuclear disaster, 146
and economic inequality, 98
former republics, emancipative values in, 227
multiethnic neighbors, peacefulness of, 405
Nietzsche as influence on, 445
nuclear arms race of 1960s and, 291, 313
quality of life and, 247
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
See also Cold War; nuclear war; Russia
Sowell, Thomas, 447, 450, 459nn4,32, 460n33, 461nn5,18, 462n47, 467n9, 483n43, 484n55, 487n55, 491n115
Soyinka, Wole, 261
Spain, 200, 234, 341, 481n32, 489n68
Spanish-American War (1898), 376
Spanish flu pandemic (1918–19), 55, 306
Sparky the Fire Dog, 183
Spectator, The, 34
Spencer, Herbert, 399
Spengler, Oswald, 165
Sperber, Dan, 380
conatus (effort or striving), 19, 453
and irrationality of humans, 8–9, 353
and reason, ix, 353, 410, 412, 421
P. G. Wodehouse and, 446
spirituality, 433–5
sports
Moneyball, 381
politics similar to, 359, 360, 366, 381, 383
Springsteen, Bruce, 284
Stalin, Joseph, 78, 161, 203, 313, 445, 447
Starmans, Christina, 101–2
Star Trek, 427
Stein’s Law, 61, 241, 283, 327
Stenger, Victor, 423
Stephan, Maria, 405
Stephens-Davidowitz, Seth, 217–18, 339–40, 471n13, 482n44
Stern, Charlotta, 373
stoves, cooking, 117, 144, 183, 251, 252
Strauss, Leo, 491n118
Stuxnet worm, 304
Subbiah, Ilavenil, xix
subjectivity
hard problem of consciousness and, 425, 426–8, 488n43
Sudan, 72, 73, 89, 160, 161, 162
suicide, 277–80
age, cohort, and period analyses, 278, 279
decreasing rates of, 277–80, 279, 476n74
as “self-murder,” 278
Sweden’s high rate of, as urban myth, 264, 280
See also mental health and illness
Sullivan, James X., 116
Sultan, Wafa, 443
Summers, Lawrence, 67, 328, 461n8, 462nn62,65, 480n9, 490n106
Supreme Court, U.S., 212–13, 214–15, 374
Sutherland, Rory, 135
Sweden
depression and, 282
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
fallacious pessimism and, 53
famine in, 68
happiness ranking of, 475n30
nuclear power and, 148
per capita income of, 86
populism and, 341
secularization and, 436, 437, 489n68
social spending in, 108
traffic death rates in, 178
Switzerland, 271, 278–9, 279, 475n30, 489n68
Syed, Muhammad, 443
sympathy (benevolence, compassion), 11
cosmopolitanism and, 221
humanism and, 415
and infectious disease improvement, 67
the meaning of life and, 3–4
pessimism and expanding circle of, 49
for the poor, 107
and psychopathology, awareness of, 282
standard-of-living improvements and, 34
Syria
civil war in, 49, 159, 160, 335
happiness ranking of, 475n30
terrorist deaths in, 193
Szilard, Leo, 308
Tan, Amy, 284
taxes
economic freedom compatible with, 365, 483nn39,42
libertarians and, 364–5
poverty mitigated by, 107, 115–16
Trump and, 335
Taylor, Paul, 340
Taylor, Theodore, 308
technology
advance of, and paradox of value, 82, 117, 332–3
and climate change, 143–5, 150, 153–4
and creation of wealth, 83, 94–5
delay in productivity growth due to, 330
dematerialization and, 135, 136, 332
democratization of platforms for, 332
demonetization and, 332–3
digital, Flynn effect and mastery of, 244
donated as foreign aid, 95
doomsday prophecies and, 293–4
for environmental protection, 124, 128–30, 132–6, 134–6
future advances in, 330–32
knowledge growth as exponentiated by, 233
mobile phones/smartphones, 94–5, 257, 331
nuclear power, 148–50
productivity dependent on, 328
science applied to, 82–3
Second Machine Age, 330–32
social embeddedness of, 302
technophilanthropists, 332
Trump and, 335
See also artificial intelligence (AI); consumer products; existential threats; Internet; safety; social media
teenagers
depression and, 476n74
drug use declining among, 184–5, 229
transgressive Web searches by, 218
Teilhard de Chardin, Pierre, 418
teleological systems, 21–2
Terminator (films), 296
terrorism and terrorists, 191–8
Availability and Negativity biases, 42, 195, 302, 307, 404
bioterrorism, 300–302, 305, 306–7
civil wars as primary locations of, 193
cyber-sabotage, 300–302, 304–6, 335
historical trends, 193–5
media responses to curtail, 197–8
motives of killers, 196
nation-states’ reactions to, 197–8
nuclear terrorism, 197, 310–311, 313–14
number of potential competent, 302–5
objective assessment of threat, 195–7
panic as risk of, 191, 195, 197
right-wing American terrorism, 194, 196, 469n10
safety of society as enhancing threat of, 197, 198
success, lack of, 196–7, 198, 303–4, 404
See also hate crimes; rampage shootings; September 11, 2001, attacks
—DEATHS FROM
double-counted as war deaths, 193
number of, 192–5, 192, 194–5, 194, 469n10
vs. other causes, 191–2, 192, 193
Tetlock, Philip, 367–71, 373, 378–9, 404
Texas, capital punishment in, 211
Thackeray, William Makepeace, 284
Thailand, 259, 336, 419, 457n8
theism and theistic morality, 419, 420–22, 428–30
Argument from Design, 18, 421, 423
and consciousness, hard problem of, 423, 425–8, 488n43
and existence of God, arguments against, 421–2
fundamental physical constants and, 423–5
God of the Gaps argument, 423–8
refutation of theistic morality, 428–30
See also deism and deists; God; secularization
theoconservatism, 448–9
Thermodynamics, Laws of, 15–16
See also Entropy, Law of
thick tails. See power-law distribution; rare events
Thiel, Peter, 329
Thomas, Dylan, 53
Thoreau, Henry David, 268
Three Mile Island accident (1979), 146, 148
Time magazine, 151
Timor-Leste, 203
Tocqueville, Alexis de, 165, 437
Tolstoy, Leo, 284
Tooby, John, 17, 359, 414, 477n20
Torrijos, Omar, 447
trade
benefits of, 13, 84, 162, 198–9, 228
Trump and international, 334–5
Tragedy of the Belief Commons. See identity-protective cognition
Tragedy of the Commons, 141
for beliefs, 358, 359, 376, 379
for carbon emissions, 141, 151, 153, 154
transportation
agriculture and food supply and, 75, 77, 78
and human closeness, 257
See also motor vehicles
travel/tourism, 258–9, 259, 338
treaties
Kellogg-Briand (Paris Peace) pact (1928), 163–4
New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), 317, 318
Non-Proliferation Treaty (1970), 316–17
nuclear weapons atmospheric testing ban, 133–4
ozone layer protection, 134
Paris climate agreement, 134, 152, 335, 449
sulfur emissions (acid rain prevention), 134
of Westphalia, 450
tribalism
deontological ethics and, 417
vs. Enlightenment ideals, 5, 10, 29, 32, 333, 334, 341, 447–51
human nature, as part of, 26, 393, 417, 419, 450
political, as source of irrationality, 355–63, 383
See also identity-protective cognition; populism; racism
Trump, Donald
age rolloff in support for, 341–2, 342
antidemocratic agenda of, 335–6, 337, 374, 449
antiprogress agenda of, 334–7
approval ratings of, 338
attempts to repeal Obamacare, 109, 334
dystopian vision of, xvii, 343
on hackers, 300
institutional limits on power of, 337–8
intellectual influences, 343, 447–50, 491n118
Islamophobia and, 219
lies and conspiracy theories of, 336, 358, 375, 376
nuclear weapons and, 320
and Paris climate agreement, 134, 152, 335, 449
prejudice and hate crimes and, 217, 219
and will to power, 336
See also populism
—CAMPAIGN AND ELECTION AS PRESIDENT
economic vs. cultural factors in, 339–40
as Electoral College win, 214, 334, 340
Evangelical Christian support, 432–3, 438
intolerant rhetoric of, 215
“Make American Great Again,” 5, 334, 337
media role in, 50, 343, 376, 449
pollster predictions for, 367
popular vote loss of, 338
shrinking demographic base of, 219, 341–2, 342
truth
vs. expressive performance, 359
institutions and norms of, 27, 374, 376, 380
Nietzsche and, 446
as not always halfway between extremes, 365
vs. rationalization, 359
science vs. erudition as way to seek, 34, 390
See also objective measurement; “post-truth era”; reason; relativism
Tuskegee syphilis study, 401
Tutsi people, 161
Tversky, Amos, 41, 47, 383, 404
Two Cultures, The (Snow), 33–4, 389. See also Second Culture
Übermensch, 443–5, 447. See also Nietzsche, Friedrich
Uganda, 160
Ukraine, 78, 158, 203, 313, 335
ul Haq, Mahbub, 245
Unabomber, 122
Union of Concerned Scientists, 308, 312
Unitarians, 412
United Kingdom
Brexit vote, 334, 340, 341–2, 342, 343
capital punishment abolition in, 209
carbon emissions per dollar of GDP, 143, 143
economic freedom in, 483n39
economic inequality in, 105–6, 106
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
escape from poverty and, 84–5, 85
Falkland Islands war, 315
GDP of, 85
happiness ranking of, 271, 475n30
life expectancy at birth, 58–9, 58
literacy in, 236
nuclear weapons and, 317, 317, 320
Optimism Gap and, 40
Peak Stuff, 135–6
social spending in, 108, 483n39
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
woman as leader of, 214
women’s rights in, 222
See also England
United Nations
and capital punishment, 209
corporal punishment condemned by, 229–30
declaration on violence against women, 222
“extreme poverty” as defined by, 87
gender parity in education in, 239–40
HIV/AIDS epidemic, plan to end, 66
homicide reduction, goal for, 468n15
and homosexuality, decriminalization of, 223
Human Development Index, 245, 483n42
humanist ideals and, 411–12
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 234
Millennium Development Goals, 52, 89, 239–40, 457n31, 459–60n18
and outlawry of war, 163
peacekeeping forces of, 164
Population Fund, 222
Secretariat as “evidence-free zone,” 403
Security Council, 163
Sustainable Development Goals, 89, 468n15
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 207, 209, 411–12, 418–19
United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 162, 418
United States
accidental deaths in, 167
calories available per person, 70, 70
capital punishment in, 210–213, 211
carbon emissions of, 143, 143–4, 144
childhood stunting in, 71
child labor force in, 230–31, 231
Civil War, 174
climate/Paris agreement and, 134, 152, 335, 449
corporal punishment and, 230
cyber-sabotage and, 304
economic inequality in, 98, 103, 105–6, 106, 114–17, 461n4
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
and escape from poverty, 85, 85
GDP of, 85
happiness, underachievement of, 271–4, 283–9, 288, 292, 439, 475nn30–31, 483n42
homicide rates in, 169, 170–71, 170–71, 172, 192, 467n11, 469n4
malaria in, 66
nuclear power and, 146, 147–8, 149–50
nuclear weapons of, 317–18, 318, 480nn113,117,121
Optimism Gap and, 40
Rights, Bill of, 411
social spending in, 107–8, 108, 109
and spending on necessities, 254–5, 254
terrorism deaths in, 192–4, 192, 194, 469n10
and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 419
and World War II, 196
universal basic income, 119
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 207, 209, 411–12, 418–19
university and college education
access to, expansion of, 220, 237–8, 238
critical thinking instruction, 377–9
general education requirement, 400–401
humanities instruction, 405–8
political leaders influencing, 347–9, 443
political science, leftist vs. quantitative, 405
politicization and, 372–5
science instruction, 34, 395–6, 400–402
See also academia; education; humanities
Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), 158
urbanization
cultural contributions, 451
density of, as environmentally beneficial, 134
populism as decreasing with, 343
Urey, Harold, 308
utilitarianism, 415–17, 415–17. See also deontological ethics; happiness
vaccines
conspiracy theories about, 67, 334
for Ebola, 307
for HPV vs. hepatitis B, as politicized issue, 382
inventors of, 63–5
Trump and, 334
vacuum cleaners, 252
values
changes across age, period, and cohort, 224–5, 272–4, 275
and hierarchy of needs, 124, 224
See also emancipative values
Vatican City, 222
Venezuela, 91, 171, 172, 343, 467n12
Vico, Giambattista, 10
Vidal, Gore, 456n1
Vietnam War, 50, 158, 160, 161, 193, 376
Vikings, romantic heroism and, 33, 398, 444
violence
against children, 229–30, 229, 232
decline of, objections to data showing, 44–7
evolution and, 25
vs. nonviolent resistance, success rates of, 405
pacifist’s dilemma of refraining from, 166, 414, 488n10
perceived as moral, 26
Romanticism’s embrace of, 30
social contracts against harms, 27–8
will to power and (Nietzsche), 33, 444, 445
See also genocide; terrorism and terrorists; violent crime; war; women: violence against
violent crime, 168–76
cognitive behavioral therapy and, 175
contraband and, 175
decline reducing support for death penalty, 212
decline since 1992, 170–71
decline with imposition of law, 168–9, 170
drugs and, 175–6
evidence-based approach to reducing, 176
focused deterrence and, 174
Great Depression of 1930s and decline in, 170
Hobbesian trap and, 173
homicide rates as reliable indicator of, 169
law enforcement as reducing, 168, 173–4, 176
legitimacy of authority and, 174
number of deaths due to, 167
opportunity reduction, 175
reductions via Compstat program, 380
rule of law and reductions in, 43, 168–70, 174
See also criminal punishment; hate crimes; homicide; rampage shootings; terrorism
volcanoes and supervolcanoes, 152, 187–8, 295
Voltaire, 13, 39, 84, 162, 223
von Mises, Ludwig, 13
Wagner, Richard, 398
Wagner’s Law, 109–110
Wallace, Alfred Russel, 18
Wallis, John, 83
Walmart, 117
war
atheism and, 429–30
battle deaths (1946–2016), 159–60, 159
chemical weapons, 459n18, 479n95
commerce/trade as reducing, 162
deaths, vs. terrorism, homicide, accidents, 192
decline of, between great powers, 157–8, 157
decline of, between nation-states, 158, 164
decline of civil wars, 164
definition of, 466n6
democracy as reducing, 162–3
economic equality generated by, 106–7
famine and, 78
illegality of, 163–4
as inevitable vs. a solvable problem, 166
international norm against, 163
mistakes and rumors as cause of, 376, 484n77
preparation for, as decreasing, 162, 467n18
refugees/displaced persons, 160, 338, 466n12
religious wars, generally, 10, 429–30
romantic militarism, 165–6
state-based cyber-sabotage as, 304
terrorism as largely a phenomenon of, 193
See also civil wars; Cold War; genocide; Long Peace; nuclear war; peace; weapons; specific wars
Washington, George, 13
water
flooding and contamination of, 188
nanofiltration of, 331
running water in home, 251, 252
sewage, protection from, 63
See also waterways
Watergate, 50
waterways
environmental protection of, 140
improvements in cleanliness of, 130
removal of dams from, 149
See also oceans
Watson, James, 386
Watson, Paul, 122
Way, Lucan, 206
wealth, 79–96
history as written by the affluent, 79
“lump fallacy”/“physical fallacy,” 80, 99
and specialization, 12–13
Trump and, 334–5
See also developed countries/world; Gross World Product; poverty
weapons
bioweapons, 410
chemical weapons, 459n18, 479n95
voluntary nondevelopment of, 314, 316
voluntary scrapping of, 315–16, 317–19
See also nuclear weapons; war
Webb, Sidney and Beatrice, 400, 447
Weber, Max, 85
Weingast, Barry, 83
Weisskopf, Victor, 308
Weizenbaum, Joseph, 309
Well-Being Composite, 245–6, 246, 473n45
well-being, subjective, 262–89
distinguished from objective well-being, freedom, happiness, meaningfulness, 264–8
eudaemonia (“good spirit”), 267
freedom/autonomy and, 265–6
secularization and, 438–9, 490n87
self-evaluations of, 266–7
social spending and, 108, 110, 365, 483nn39,42
See also happiness; meaningful life; quality of life; social support vs. isolation; suicide
Welzel, Christian, 124, 224, 226–7, 228, 440
West, Cornel, 39–40
Western Europe
and democracies, rise of, 200–201
economic freedom compatible with taxation, social spending, and regulation, 365, 483nn39,42
emancipative values in, 225–7, 226, 227
homicide rates in, 192–3, 192, 469n4
and Long Peace, 158
per capita income of, 86
secularization and, 436, 489n68
terrorist deaths in, 192–3, 192, 194
vacation time in, 251
vehicle accident deaths in, 192–3, 192, 469n4
Whitehead, Alfred North, 1
White, Matthew, 199, 429, 484n77
whites, anti-white hate crimes, 219, 220
white supremacy, Trump administration and, 336
Wieseltier, Leon, 390, 391, 408–9
Wilde, Oscar, 82
wilderness preserves. See conservation areas
Williams, Bernard, 482n4
Wills, Garry, 456n1
will to power, 33, 296, 336, 444, 445
Wilson, E. O., 390
Wilson, Ward, 316
Wilson, Woodrow, 400
Winship, Christopher, 174, 175–6
wisdom, as balancing conflicting desires, 414
Wodehouse, P. G., 446
Wolf, Martin, 459n16
Wolman, Abel, 64
women
anxiety and, 285
education of girls and, 235, 239–40, 239, 473n27
happiness and, 272
household labor, liberation from, 251–2, 252
industrialization and labor of, 93–4
and social media, 276–7
See also sex differences; sexism
—RIGHTS OF
as emancipative values, 224
genital mutilation, 222
utilitarianism and, 417–18
—VIOLENCE AGAINST
as decreasing, 220–22, 221, 471n24
wood, carbon-to-hydrogen ratio of, 143, 465n66
workplace
paid vacation time, 251
safety and accidental deaths, 185–7, 187
utilitarianism and workers’ rights, 417
World Bank
on climate change, 137
on economic inequality, 461n4
“extreme poverty” as defined by, 87, 460n28
and fear of population explosion, 74
on GDP, 461n4
world/global statistics
calories available per person, 70, 70
carbon emissions per dollar of GDP, 143, 143
deaths from accidents vs. violence, 192
deaths from homicide, 43, 169–71, 171, 192, 467nn12–13
deaths from terrorism, 192, 193–5, 194
deaths from war, 192
GDP, 85
homosexuality, decriminalization of, 223
IQ gains, 241
middle class, increases in, 86, 459–60n18
progress, general factor (Human Development Index), 245–6, 246, 473n45, 483n42
racial equality, affirmation of, 222
religious equality, affirmation of, 222
women’s rights, 222
World Happiness Report 2016, 268, 269, 271
World Health Organization, 65, 66, 171–3
World Public Opinion poll, 222
World Values Survey, 124, 224, 226–7, 268, 269, 270, 440
World War I
chemical weapons and, 459n18, 479n95
The Great Illusion (Angell), 481n16
Gustav Gun (“supergun”), 316
mistakes and rumors as cause of, 484n77
religiosity of nation-states in, 430
romantic militarism and, 165–6, 445
World War II
civilian bombing as strategy of, 305
deaths during, 159–60
decline of great-power war after, 157–8, 451
famine and, 78
fascism and, 445
genocide and, 161
nuclear weapons development in, 314
refugees and displaced persons in, 160
religiosity of nation-states in, 429–30
rise of democratic governments after, 200
and romantic militarism, 166, 451
See also Long Peace; Nazi Germany
Wright, Quincy, 418
Y2K Panic, 293–4
Yazidi people, 162
Yeats, William Butler, 446, 447
yellow fever, 62
Yong, Keehup, 490n87
Yousafzai, Malala, 232, 240, 443
youth. See teenagers
Yugoslavia, former republics of, 227, 227
Zelizer, Viviana, 230
Zencey, Eric, 293
Zimbabwe, 91
Zola, Émile, 165
Zoroastrianism, 23