Natural (Hardback)
The Seductive Myth of Nature’s Goodness
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Why arguments based on what is 'natural', in food, medicine, and society at large, are appeals to a false idol - our oldest, most persistent superstition
A TIMES AND SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR
Without our realising it, a single, slippery concept has become a secular deity throughout the modern industrial world. We make terrible sacrifices in its name: of our money, our health, and our planet. That deity is nature itself.
From supermarket shoppers to evolutionary biologists, from atheists to pastors, from Alex Jones to Gwyneth Paltrow, we are all prone to the intuitive faith that life should be lived 'naturally'.
But nature can't teach us how to live. If we try to stick to its imagined commands, eschewing human artifice in pursuit of Edenic purity, we jeopardise the environment, our health, and our society. (We also waste a lot of money on pots of weird slime). It is time to accept our profound responsibility to shape the world of which our technology and our selves are wholly a part.
Natural (Ebook)
The Seductive Myth of Nature’s Goodness
Buy from
Why arguments based on what is 'natural', in food, medicine, and society at large, are appeals to a false idol - our oldest, most persistent superstition
A TIMES AND SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR
Without our realising it, a single, slippery concept has become a secular deity throughout the modern industrial world. We make terrible sacrifices in its name: of our money, our health, and our planet. That deity is nature itself.
From supermarket shoppers to evolutionary biologists, from atheists to pastors, from Alex Jones to Gwyneth Paltrow, we are all prone to the intuitive faith that life should be lived 'naturally'.
But nature can't teach us how to live. If we try to stick to its imagined commands, eschewing human artifice in pursuit of Edenic purity, we jeopardise the environment, our health, and our society. (We also waste a lot of money on pots of weird slime). It is time to accept our profound responsibility to shape the world of which our technology and our selves are wholly a part.
Natural (Audiobook)
The Seductive Myth of Nature’s Goodness
Buy from
Why arguments based on what is 'natural', in food, medicine, and society at large, are appeals to a false idol - our oldest, most persistent superstition
A TIMES AND SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR
Without our realising it, a single, slippery concept has become a secular deity throughout the modern industrial world. We make terrible sacrifices in its name: of our money, our health, and our planet. That deity is nature itself.
From supermarket shoppers to evolutionary biologists, from atheists to pastors, from Alex Jones to Gwyneth Paltrow, we are all prone to the intuitive faith that life should be lived 'naturally'.
But nature can't teach us how to live. If we try to stick to its imagined commands, eschewing human artifice in pursuit of Edenic purity, we jeopardise the environment, our health, and our society. (We also waste a lot of money on pots of weird slime). It is time to accept our profound responsibility to shape the world of which our technology and our selves are wholly a part.
Natural (Paperback)
The Seductive Myth of Nature’s Goodness
Buy from
Why arguments based on what is 'natural', in food, medicine, and society at large, are appeals to a false idol - our oldest, most persistent superstition
A TIMES AND SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR
Without our realising it, a single, slippery concept has become a secular deity throughout the modern industrial world. We make terrible sacrifices in its name: of our money, our health, and our planet. That deity is nature itself.
From supermarket shoppers to evolutionary biologists, from atheists to pastors, from Alex Jones to Gwyneth Paltrow, we are all prone to the intuitive faith that life should be lived 'naturally'.
But nature can't teach us how to live. If we try to stick to its imagined commands, eschewing human artifice in pursuit of Edenic purity, we jeopardise the environment, our health, and our society. (We also waste a lot of money on pots of weird slime). It is time to accept our profound responsibility to shape the world of which our technology and our selves are wholly a part.
Reviews for Natural
Kenan Malik Guardian
James McConnachie Sunday Times
Daniel Akst Wall Street Journal
Science
Guardian
Patrick Barkham Guardian
Robert M. Sapolsky author of Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
Tom Nichols author of The Death of Expertise
Deborah Blum author of The Poison Squad
Publisher's Weekly