### ch07p216 climate change drove cereal domestication > It's a very different view of human history than perhaps we're used to. Not a series of triumphant advances, driven by sheer ingenuity and inventiveness, but a story of misfortune and accidents, contingency and serendipity. People falling on hard times and being forced to change their lifestyles, to adapt and accommodate to a changing environment. The circumstances which led to cereals becoming staples, and then being cultivated, at opposite ends of Asia, make more sense if we see it as less of a choice and more of a necessity driven by a climactic downturn. This reminds me of how a lot of great technological leaps forward are driven not by random scientists being chill and smart and more by the necessity of war. But then again, some neat stuff does come out of economic competition and teenagers doing contents. ## Chapter 08 Horses - [[Tamed by Alice Roberts#ch07p216 climate change drove cereal domestication|View in Vault]]