Person
Every book Matt Ridley recommended on podcasts
Across 3 podcasts. Every show Matt Ridley appears on, in one place — not just one.
Matt Ridley’s most recommended books
- The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
- The Evolution of Beauty by Richard O. Prum
- The descent of man by Charles Darwin
- The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins
- Second Nature by Haim Ofek
- The Heart is a Quarter Pounder by Jeffrey Miller
- The Innovators by Walter Isaacson
- The Mating Mind by Geoffrey Miller
- The Second Sleep by Robert Harris
- The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin
Matt Ridley discussed several evolutionary texts across his podcast appearances. On EconTalk, he recommended Richard O. Prum's book The Evolution of Beauty as part of a modern effort to revive Darwin's perspective on beauty and sexual selection. He also noted that Charles Darwin considered natural beauty and evolution even before writing The Origin of Species. During his appearance on Modern Wisdom, Ridley expanded on these themes, mentioning Darwin's Origin of Species to discuss where Darwin briefly introduced sexual selection and how his focus on natural selection shifted afterward. Additionally, Ridley referenced Richard Prum's book again to illustrate the extreme lengths of sexual selection. He also brought up Jeffrey Miller's book The Mating Mind to support the idea that the human brain is a sexually selected feature, noting how Miller laid out the concept twenty-five years ago. Throughout these discussions, Ridley used these historical and contemporary works to trace scientific understandings of evolution, mate choice, and aesthetic traits in nature.
Books recommended by Matt Ridley
-
The Origin of Species
The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin is a foundational 1859 scientific text that introduced the theory of evolution by natural selection, forever altering humanity's understanding of biology and the natural world.
Discussed“well he mentioned the idea in the Origin of Species very briefly”
Where to get it
-
The Evolution of Beauty
The Evolution of Beauty by Richard O.
Discussed“and Richard PR has written about this in in his book The Evolution of beauty”
Where to get it
-
The descent of man
The Descent of Man by Charles Darwin is an 1871 scientific work that expands on evolutionary theory by focusing heavily on sexual selection, human ancestry, and the development of social and moral faculties.
Discussed“So, there's a wonderful quote from The Descent of Man, which was his 1871 book, where he says, "The most refined beauty may serve as a sexual charm and for no other purpose."”
Where to get it
-
The Selfish Gene
The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins is a seminal science book that popularizes a gene-centric view of evolution and explores the biological origins of selfishness and altruism.
Discussed“new book published by one of the professors that was about to teach me it turned out his name was richard dawkins the book was called the selfish gene and that sent those hairs up on the back of my neck reading it”
Where to get it
-
Second Nature
Discussed“i got that from a book called second nature by a guy called haimofek which was about basically sort of you know stone age economics”
Where to get it
-
The Heart is a Quarter Pounder
The Heart is a Quarter Pounder is a provocative look at evolutionary psychology and human behavior.
Discussed“but which was laid out in a very good book by Jeffrey Miller 25 years ago called The Mating mind”
Where to get it
-
The Innovators
The Innovators by Walter Isaacson is a comprehensive historical account detailing the collaborative efforts of hackers, geniuses, and geeks who engineered the digital revolution and invented the computer.
Discussed“i mean i have a section in the book called who invented the computer and i draw very heavily on walter isaacson's wonderful book the innovators to to understand that story”
Where to get it
-
The Mating Mind
The Mating Mind by Geoffrey Miller is an evolutionary psychology book arguing that the human brain evolved primarily as a complex sexual ornament, much like a peacock's tail, to attract mates through creativity and intelligence.
Discussed“laid out in a very good book by Jeffrey Miller 25 years ago called The Mating mind in which he says”
Where to get it
-
The Second Sleep
Discussed“there's a very nice uh novel by robert harris a very recent novel uh called the second sleep which came out about a year ago”
Where to get it
-
The Voyage of the Beagle
The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin is the celebrated travel memoir and scientific journal chronicling Darwin's five-year survey expedition that fundamentally shaped his theories on evolution and natural selection.
Discussed“well he mentioned the idea in the Origin of Species very briefly”
Where to get it
-
The Wealth of Nations
The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith is a foundational text in classical economics that explores the nature and causes of national wealth through the division of labor, productivity, and free markets.
Discussed“now i'm only here repeating what adam smith said in um uh the wealth of nations about the you know the the the butcher and the baker are not uh giving you bread and beer because they want to be kind to you they're doing it to make a living but they end up being kind to you and you”
Where to get it
-
Unweaving the Rainbow
Unweaving the Rainbow by Richard Dawkins is a science book that explores the relationship between scientific understanding and aesthetic wonder.
Discussed“I think Richard Dawkins has made a very good point here that unweaving the rainbow um finding out what a rainbow is made of has not made it less wonderful”
Where to get it
Books Matt Ridley wrote
- Viral
- The origins of virtue
- Birds, Sex and Beauty: The extraordinary implications of Charles Darwin’s strangest idea
Appearances
Other mentions (3: passing, ad reads, own books)
“and the book is the book is called I should say bird sex and Beauty The Strain the the the um oh what did I what's the subtitle the the implications of Charles Darwin strangest idea”
“and then i came across the work of alina chan who eventually became my co-author on this book”
“and he wrote back and said well i think i got that idea from your book the origins of virtue”