The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence

Carl Sagan examines how human intelligence evolved, drawing on neuroscience, anthropology, and animal behaviour. He describes the triune brain proposed by Paul MacLean, with reptilian, limbic, and neocortical layers, and considers how they interact in emotion and reason. He looks at the possible link between myths of dragons and ancient fears, dreams, the role of the brain's hemispheres, and attempts to teach language to chimpanzees. The book ends with thoughts on machine intelligence and the search for life elsewhere. It won the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction in 1978.

Readers interested in the brain, the origins of thought, and Sagan's wide-ranging curiosity will find a speculative work, partly dated by later research. Treat it as an engaging historical view of scientific ideas.

Deep; a moderate read.

Best for readers like The Deep Diver. Which reader are you?