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How to Remember Everything: The Immortal Life of Books through Big History
Jennifer Doering
3 December 2013
Dr. Bower
Big History, FYE 2000, section 2

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Where can one battle a sea-god and monster, live in a log cabin, attempt to discover their
purpose in life, and perform magic spells all at the same time? In a book, of course. Books can
unlock imagination and also information. They hold written words, someones ideas made
concrete and permanent by the act of writing or printing them in a book. Ideas and information
can survive on their own, but everyone has felt the feeling when one had an amazing idea, but
then forgot it and hadnt written it down. That idea is lost forever. If something is written down,
it will survive, immortalized. Books contain written information and are something incredibly
important to humanitys history, and the history of the universe as a whole, Big History. Big
History spans eight thresholds, according to the text by Christian, Brown, and Benjamin (2014).
Books have been a part of every chapter, every threshold, in that history. Let me show you:
The first threshold dealt with the origin of the universe. The textbook claims that the
theory of big bang cosmology is the modern origin story. It states that the first things to be
created were matter and energy. Temperatures were so hot that the two were interchangeable.
Next were phase changes, the four forces, and plasma (electron and proton soup). After 380,000
years, things changed again: temperatures cooled enough across the universe for protons and
electrons to combine to create atoms. Cosmic Background Radiation, a major source of evidence
for the big bang theory, also happened at this point as a giant flash of energy occurred (Christian,
Brown, & Benjamin, 2014, pp. 13-20).
The second and third thresholds are closely related. They consist of the formation of
stars, then the formation of chemical elements. The first elements that existed in the universe
were hydrogen and helium. These were the components of the first stars. Gravity began pulling
clumps of matter together, and as temperatures rose to 10 million degrees Celsius, protons began
the process of fusion and the first stars were born. Heavier elements were created when these

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stars began to die. If a star is big enough, it will go through a period of expansions and collapses
as it dies, first creating carbon, then more complex elements, depending on its size (Christian, et
al., 2014, pp. 23-29).
Books are connected to thresholds one, two, and three in the same way that many modern
articles are: matter was created in the big bang, and all things are created out of matter, including
books. Stars created the conditions necessary for the creation of the more complex elements that
paper and ink are made of, the main components of books. The first inks consisted of carbon,
water, and a stabilizer such as natural gum (Kunjappu, 2003, para. 2). They are much more
complex now, but are still created with chemicals that would only be possible with the third
threshold.
Threshold four detailed the emergence of our sun and solar system. First there was a solar
nebula cloud, which contained hot gas and dust, that eventually condensed into a proto-sun. By
the process of accretion, planets began to form from the extra material in the solar nebula cloud.
The early earth was much different than modern earth: it was incredibly hot and rocky, with little
water and no life. The formation of an atmosphere was one of the first events in earths history: It
began with no atmosphere, then outgassing created an early atmosphere of carbon dioxide, then
the oxygen revolution, assisted by photosynthesis, led to our current atmosphere (Christian, et
al., 2014, pp. 38-45).
Books, including many other modern items, wouldnt be here without threshold four. The
formation of the sun created the energy force necessary for photosynthesis, an essential way of
life for trees, the predecessors of paper. In fact, Battles (2003) explains that it has been
speculated that the English word book in fact comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for beech

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(boc) a tree (p. 57). It could be said that this threshold created the name of books. The formation
of the earth, and its atmosphere, created the perfect environment for trees, books, and life.
Threshold five explained one of the most important stages: the formation of life. The
textbook explains that the theory of chemical evolution could explain the emergence of life. It
also claims that life must have three characteristics to be considered life: 1) metabolism, or the
use of energy, 2) reproduction, and 3) adaptation. DNA is essential to life and it connects all life
on earth. We all share some of the same DNA and LUCA was the first life to emerge. The stages
of life began with prokaryote cells, then continued with photosynthetic organisms, respiration,
sexual reproduction, multi-celled organisms, vertebrates, land-dwelling creatures, and finally
mammals (Christian, et al., 2014, pp. 56-76).
Threshold five was an important threshold for books. The formation of life created the
plant material for paper so books had a medium to be printed on. Battles (2003) describes some
of the first books in Alexandria as being written on papyrus, which was just hammered plant
material (p. 28). But books didnt exist in threshold five, or any of the others preceding it.
Something important to note is that much of the information and ideas discussed in the first
thresholds isnt concrete. Most of it is simply theories, guesswork. Weinberg (1993) explains that
there is an embarrassing vagueness about the very beginning and that we may never truly
understand the beginnings of our universe (pp. 8-10). There is no concrete evidence of anything
in our universes history until something appeared that could write it down: they were right
around the corner.
Threshold six explored the emergence of a new form of complex life: humans. The
textbook explained that we evolved from a common ancestor of apes and chimpanzees, but not
directly from modern apes. The early hominines were called Australopithecines and were the

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first to be bipedal, or to walk on two feet. They evolved into Homo erectus about 1.9 million
years ago, and these were the first to use fire and migrate out of Africa. The third group of
hominines was the Homo neanderthalensis (Neandertals) who were very similar to Homo
sapiens, but had limited language and were less successful at adapting than humans. Language
and our ability to adapt is what the text claims sets us, Homo sapiens, apart from other animals.
We have the power of Collective Learning, to learn during our lifetime and pass that information
on to our descendants (Christian, et al., 2014, pp. 83-92).
Books may not have been around in Threshold six, but the information that would one
day be written down in books was. Collective Learning is what books are for; books allow us to
pass on information to our descendants, because they are a tangible representation of that
information. Early humans created cave paintings to preserve their knowledge. But these
paintings were also much more: Clayton Eshleman, a man Davis (2009) consulted about early
cave paintings, explained that the art pays homage to that moment when human beings, through
consciousness, separated themselves from the animal realm, emerging as the unique entity that
we now know ourselves to be (p. 30). These paintings are a snapshot of when we became
special, from an evolutionary standpoint. These paintings were when we started to have
Collective Learning, when we thought of ourselves as different from other animals. Books, with
their ability to record knowledge, have always been essential to humans, even before they were
around.
Threshold seven began with the emergence of agriculture and revolutionized the way that
humans lived. Agriculture allowed them to take more energy than foraging from the land, raising
populations and Collective Learning. Larger populations led to the creation of cities, and the
emergence of power. Consensual power was the first type to emerge, with the inhabitants of

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cities permitting leaders to rule them in exchange for protection and organization. Coercive
power also emerged, with leaders learning that they could force subjects to do their will with
militaries. New, specialized jobs emerged with the creation of cities, including scribes,
metalworkers, warriors, and priests. Writing also appeared, with the Mesopotamians myths and
the first written literature, the Epic of Gilgamesh. The beginnings of an interconnected world
developed with trade between cities and the establishment of the Silk Roads (Christian, et al.,
2014, pp. 105-156). The world was quickly becoming more complex and interconnected.
Writing as a form of immortalizing ideas and stories was new in threshold seven. This
was the first concrete step towards books. Everything came together to lay the ground work for
books: Agriculture created division of labor and allowed for new jobs to be formed, creating
scribes, writers of books. Power emerged, and with it, leaders who had information they wanted
to keep. Trade created the conditions for many more people to meet and exchange ideas,
furthering Collective Learning and the need for books. The printing press was invented first in
Asia and then re-invented by Johannes Gutenberg in Germany in 1453 with the aid of several
Goldilocks Conditions: Gutenbergs mindset, and his political and social context (Christian, et
al., 2014, p. 239; Chappell, 2011, p. 26-29). The printing press revolutionized book production
and allowed Collective Learning and the economic expansion of cities to increase (Dittmar,
2011, p. 1134). It was an innovation that pushed books and the world towards the modern
revolution.
Threshold eight began with the modern revolution. Change accelerated due to three
factors: 1) total globalization, 2) the rise of commerce and markets, and 3) the discovery of fossil
fuels. Even more people could be supported by the new energy source (fossil fuels) and
Collective Learning increased. The industrial revolution revolutionized the way people lived,

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worked, and survived. People who had once been farmers became wage earners, working in
factories. Capitalism emerged in the new world economy, creating a bigger gap between the rich
and poor, but Consumer Capitalism soon followed, allowing more people than ever before to
purchase luxury goods, such as books. However, first-world and third-world countries also
emerged, based on who had become industrialized and who had not. With them arrived
discrimination, racism, and imperialism. Europeans believed that they were superior to many
other races in the world, and conducted themselves as such, creating global conflicts. Life for
humans improved globally throughout the modern revolution, although the earth may not agree:
Humans have had an enormous impact on the biosphere, not entirely positively, and the future is
uncertain (Christian, et al., 2014, pp. 233-286).
Book production was in full swing during threshold eight. Books were still a major
source of increasing Collective Learning, especially with the increase in trade and availability of
goods to a different market. However, with the changing power groups of this era, many leaders
sought to destroy books and ideas. Censorship often occurred during transferrals of power, such
as during the French Revolution (Lyons, 2011, pp. 101-102). Battles (2003) explained that book
burnings occur for two reasons, 1) to revise information and/or 2) to erase their authors and
readers from history (p. 42). Many imperialist powers burned the books of their colonies, and
instead imposed their own ideas and writings upon them. Many books were also lost during the
World Wars created by this period. Most notably, the Nazis burned, destroyed, and censored
millions of books during World War II (Battles, 2003, pp. 161-174; Lyon, 2011, p. 200). They
wanted only their ideas to be known, and destroyed everything that didnt match up. Books are
still a huge part of life in the modern era, but are changing as the future approaches.

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The future of books is unclear at the moment. Kindles, Nooks, and other electronic ereaders have become increasingly popular in recent years. Lyons (2011) stated that books have
been cut free from their paper moorings. The electronic age has changed them more
fundamentally than the invention of the codex or the advent of printing (p. 207). But there is no
knowing if the rise of the electronic book will continue. Many people, myself included, mourn
the loss of the printed book. But it has been such at every stage of books lives. Battles (2003)
stated that when books first began to be printed on printing presses, many felt that printed by
unfeeling machines, shipped from factories in bales and stacks, the book [was] no longer the
work of an artisan (p. 128). It had lost its magic. This is happening once again with the change
from print to electronic books. It is just a natural progression of the evolution of the book.
Moreover, the electronic book is helpful for the environment, requiring us to cut down less trees,
saving the biosphere from more destruction. Books will continue on in the future, regardless of
what they are constructed of.
Books are an enormous part of the history of the universe. They first truly appeared in
threshold seven, but the ideas that are held in books, immortalized by them, began way back in
threshold one. Threshold one created the matter necessary to make books, thresholds two and
three created the elements necessary to construct them, threshold four allowed for
photosynthesis, threshold five created material for them to be printed on, threshold six created
humans to write them, threshold seven held their creation, and threshold eight helped them to
flourish. Books aided in Collective Learning, allowing humans to become increasingly powerful
and innovative, pushing us into the modern era. They hold our history, our stories, and we
wouldnt be the species we are today without them.

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References
Battles, M. (2003). Library: An unquiet history. New York: W. W. Norton.
Chappell, P. (2011). Gutenbergs press revisited: Invention and renaissance in the modern
world. Agora, 46(2), 26-30. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.dominican.edu/login?
url=http://search.ebscohost.com/
login.aspxdirect=true&db=ehh&AN=61136442&site=eds-live
Christian, D., Brown, C. S., & Benjamin, C. (2014). Big history: Between nothing and
everything. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Davis, W. (2009) The wayfinders: Why ancient wisdom matters in the modern world. Toronto,
ON: House of Anansi Press Inc.
Dittmar, J. E. (2011). Information technology and economic change: The impact of the
printing press*. Quarterly Journal Of Economics, 126(3), 1133-1172. Retrieved from
http://ezproxy.dominican.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=bth&AN=74440552&site=eds-live
Lyons, M. (2011). Books: A living history. Los Angeles: Getty Publications.
Kunjappu, J. T. (2003, March). Ink chemistry. Chemistry in Britain. Retrieved from www.rsc.org
Weinberg, S. (1977). The first three minutes: A modern view of the origin of the universe. New
York: Basic Books.