PDF Summary:21 Lessons for the 21st Century, by Yuval Noah Harari

...

(Shortform note: Yuval Noah Harari is an Israeli historian, philosopher, and lecturer at the Department of History, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Harari’s previous books include:

• Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, which explains how humans evolved to become the dominant species in the world. Read our summary of Sapiens to learn more.
• Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, which explores how humans will use their power and technology to shape the future

Whereas these books focus on the past and the future, 21 Lessons discusses the present moment and the remaining decades of this century.)

...

However, after the 2008 global financial crisis, people became disillusioned with the liberal view of the world. Liberal desires to protect the free global flow of products, people, and ideas fell out of favor, and nations began pushing back against immigration and trade agreements (we’ll explore this more as we discuss the rise of nationalism in Chapter 7). With the fall of liberalism, people around the world find themselves with no political story to interpret current events and plan for future challenges, such as climate change and technological advancements. Technological disruptions and a changing economic system have also played parts in making liberalism obsolete.

The Dual Rise of Infotech and Biotech

Liberalism was developed to fit the social, political, and economic context of the Industrial Era, but the massive technological innovations that have arisen since the 1990s have made the liberal story irrelevant. For example, the Industrial Revolution created an economy that was dependent upon a mass of unskilled workers. By contrast, now, it’s likely that artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually eliminate many jobs, and cryptocurrencies are dramatically...

...

The indirect effects of automating high-skilled jobs would be substantial and far-reaching. For example, if computers can do the job of doctors, the massive savings in payroll could make healthcare more affordable for everyone. Furthermore, patients in rural Uganda could receive the same quality of care as patients on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, because their robot doctors would have access to the same information and resources.

However, even with the improved capabilities of AI, not all professions lend themselves to automation. For example, AI doctors are more likely than AI nurses because doctors’ job duties involve collecting data on patients’ symptoms and analyzing the information in order to give diagnoses—and data collection and analysis are two of computers’ strongest abilities. On the other hand, nurses need a broader range of physical and emotional skills to work with patients.

Automating Creativity

While it’s tempting to assume that creative professionals like artists and musicians would be similar to nurses in being immune to automation, even the arts aren’t safe from AI. Just as decision-making and interpersonal interactions trace back to...

...

This biochemical process meant to promote your safety and well-being—which we call free will— has historically been a perfectly valid method of making decisions and running democracies. However, science has developed technology that can not only replicate that process but also perform it better than you can. As people shift authority from free will to computer algorithms, liberalism becomes increasingly obsolete.

People have already delegated some tasks to algorithms: You let Netflix suggest your next movie, and Google maps tells you when and where to turn. Each decision that algorithms make for you has two effects:

1. Your trust in the algorithm increases. When Netflix suggests a movie, and you end up loving it, that experience reinforces your reliance on Netflix’s recommendation. Similarly, if Google maps tells you to turn left, but you turn right and get stuck in traffic, next time you’ll follow Google’s direction—and when you do, and you arrive at your destination without traffic, you’ll not only gain trust in Google maps, but you’ll lose trust in your own abilities.
2. The algorithm learns more about your preferences, which enables it to make even...

...

Making matters worse, developments in biotech could enable wealthy elites to become biologically superior by improving their physical and cognitive abilities and extending their lives. Throughout history, socially and economically elite classes owed their status to good fortune, cultural privileges, and hard work. But if wealthy elites gain biological advantages over the poor—and the poor are pushed out of opportunities to work and gain wealth—it could create a vicious cycle that continually widens the gap between haves and have-nots. Taken to the extreme, bioengineering could eventually turn the rich into a separate species with no need for the underclass of commoners.

Protecting Your Data

In order to prevent the rise of a biologically superior species of wealthy tech elites, governments need to regulate who owns data, which is the most valuable asset of the 21st century. In the past, power belonged to those who owned the most land. Then, machines, factories, and corporations became the most valuable forms of capital. In the digital age, data is king.

Tech companies already profit from collecting and selling consumers’ data. The more that corporations learn...

...

Zuckerberg’s goal to connect people will only work if he can bridge the divide between the online world and the offline one. Facebook users can join meaningful communities online and connect with members of those communities through posts and messages—but will their community still exist if the website crashes? In order to truly bring humanity closer together, the communities that begin online need to make the jump to the real world.

Creating a true connection with someone requires you to interact with her as a whole person, which generally calls for face-to-face interaction. When you get to know someone only through her posts and curated photos, you have a limited understanding of her. By contrast, if you meet someone for a cup of coffee, your conversation could wander to topics that aren’t on her Facebook page, like your shared love of baseball. After that conversation, you’re more likely to be open-minded when she expresses a political view you oppose than you would be if you didn’t have a well-rounded understanding of her. In other words, without a physical, real-world relationship, you’re more likely to be polarized and repelled by opposing opinions.

**If Facebook...

...

Nationalism’s Shortcomings

Mild nationalism enables you to value your country as unique and valuable, and it motivates you to contribute to the well-being of all of your fellow citizens. On the other hand, extreme nationalism leads you to think your country is superior to all other nations, and it easily snowballs to war and violence toward foreigners.

To a point, people tolerate the negatives of nationalism, such as war, because of the benefits of nationalism, such as an education system. However, in the 1960s, the threat of nuclear annihilation caused Americans to step back from the nationalism that drove the country into wars; by the end of the Cold War, many people leaned heavily toward globalization. But, in recent years, feelings of disconnection from global economic forces and fears that globalization would disintegrate national systems of education and healthcare have revived a sense of nationalism.

Proponents of nationalism see immigration, multiculturalism, and globalization as threats to national traditions and identities. They’re in favor of closing borders and slowing the exchange of people, products, money, and knowledge. Instead, nationalists...

...

Anti-immigrationists argue that:

• Countries have no obligation to welcome foreigners, with the possible exception being refugees fleeing a neighboring country. Otherwise, any immigration that is allowed should be considered a favor, not a duty.
• Along with the right to choose whether to allow migrants to enter, countries should be able to accept or deny immigrants based on any criteria they want—including professional skills, criminal records, and religion.
• Immigrants who are allowed to enter a host country should feel grateful for the favor, regardless of their quality of life, rather than listing demands and grievances.

Of course, sometimes countries will say one thing and do another. For example, a country may turn a blind eye to undocumented workers because the economy benefits from their cheap labor, while also refusing to give them legal status. This dynamic ultimately creates an entire class of underpaid, undocumented immigrants who have no political power.

Term #2: Immigrants Must Assimilate

Once immigrants have entered a host country, **the nation and its citizens expect the immigrants to assimilate to local norms and values—however, people...

...

Terrorism Aims to Undermine Safety and Stability

Terrorism is only effective because citizens of the United States and other centralized countries are unaccustomed to political violence. Before modern times, political violence was a fact of life in most of the world: Individuals and groups gained political power only through violent force. As the centuries passed, many governments were able to reduce and nearly eradicate political violence, to the point that their citizens came to expect protection from such violence in daily life. This shift had two effects that made terrorism a viable strategy:

1. The public began to perceive even small attacks as major threats. Consequently, terrorists could make a small impact with few casualties and still create the intended fear and chaos.
2. The government’s legitimacy became dependent upon its ability to prevent political violence in the public sphere. As a result, even minor terrorist attacks do greater damage by undermining the government’s legitimacy.

Terrorism causes public fear, which pushes the government to prove its power and defend its authority, and that generally amounts to an overreaction—which plays...

...

Let’s examine some specific claims of Jewish achievement:

Morality: Jews may claim credit for morality, but tens of thousands of years before the advent of Judaism, Stone Age tribes developed their own moral codes. In fact, all social animals—from dolphins to monkeys—have evolved to follow ethical codes that promote group cooperation. Researchers have studied chimpanzee groups in which the alpha male has protected disabled members of the group or adopted orphaned young. The chimps didn’t need the Bible or the Torah to tell them to look after the poor and needy.

Monotheism: There’s evidence that Judaism was not the first or only ancient faith to worship just one god. Furthermore, whichever religion came up with monotheism should be blamed—not credited—because monotheism has been the root of many religious wars and persecutions. If you believe that there is just one god that everyone should worship, you’re more inclined to be intolerant of other people’s gods and rituals. By contrast, if you believe that there are multiple gods, it’s easier to accept that other people celebrate different gods and worship them differently than you worship.

Science: During the 19th...

...

While the rules of the lawgiver God may have successfully kept peace and social order in many eras and cultures, they have also been the source of much violence and discrimination. People have committed countless atrocities in the name of God. By contrast, secular laws have achieved the same social order as religious laws, but they have not inspired the same level of self-righteous violence.

Despite what some may say, humans don’t need divine law or the threat of hell in order to act morally. Morality is baked into the DNA of humans and all social animals, as we mentioned in the last chapter. As social animals, humans are motivated to do what’s best for their communities, because relationships play a large role in determining human happiness. Additionally, humans are motivated to be good to people outside of their immediate communities for reasons that are separate from religion, including:

1. People fear retaliation—in other words, don’t harm others, because you wouldn’t want them to harm you in return.
2. Societal structures like commerce only work when there’s trust between strangers (in this case, the merchant and the consumer).
3. Violent and harmful acts...

...

Besides being short on time, leaders also have the burden of power, which warps their perception of truth. First, when you have power, your perspective naturally skews to find ways to use your power—and your justification for using power may not always reflect the truth. Even if you are judicious about wielding your power, those around you will try to sway you to use it for their benefit. Second, leaders typically reach a position of power because they strongly represent the views of the group. The powerful people who surround leaders are invested in maintaining the order based on those existing views, not questioning them and jeopardizing social structures.

The dangers of groupthink and the knowledge illusion will become more severe as the 21st century progresses. Technology, the economy, and global politics will become increasingly complex, individuals’ understanding will continue to shrink, and—as we discussed—the stakes will continue to rise. While it’s unrealistic for individuals to try to close their knowledge gaps, the best they can do is to acknowledge their ignorance and act with humility.

Humans’ Sense of Justice Is Outdated

Like morality and ethics,...

...

1. Corporations: Big businesses create stories to sell their products. For example, Coca-Cola fills its ads with images of young, healthy, vibrant Coke drinkers to weave a story that Coca-Cola is linked to youth and vitality, even though drinking soda leads to obesity and other health issues.

In order for these stories to be effective, they can’t be too far-fetched—otherwise, people will dismiss them. On the other hand, they can’t be too close to the truth, because the truth typically lacks the power to inspire and motivate people. Additionally, effective stories don’t have to entirely pull the wool over people’s eyes: People are often willing to believe something enough to act on it, even though, at their core, they know the story is fiction. For example, money is a human invention, and it has no inherent value beyond the paper and metal it’s made from. Most people understand this if they stop and think about it, but that doesn’t make them any less upset when they lose a $100 bill.

Humans’ willingness to swallow fiction doesn’t erase the truth, and people should still seek the truth—especially when believing and perpetuating the fiction causes harm. **Everyone has a...

...

Third, schools currently put too much emphasis on teaching students skills, such as coding and solving math equations. In the past, such skills prepared students for future jobs. However, at a time when the future job market is a mystery, this model is likely to waste students’ and teachers’ time on tasks that will ultimately be performed by robots. Instead, experts suggest teaching students “the four Cs”—communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity. Additionally, schools should teach fewer technical skills and more life skills, such as how to learn new things, cope with change, and maintain mental balance amid instability.

The only thing that’s certain about the rest of the 21st century is that it will be filled with constant change and uncertainty. Historically, the first part of a person’s life was a period of learning and building an identity, and the rest of her life was spent working and fine-tuning her identity. As the 21st century progresses, this clean division will be replaced by ongoing learning and adapting. As we discussed in Chapter 2, future workers should be prepared to switch careers every decade or so, as their previous professions...

...

Each of these explanations has logical holes in it. For example, if you believe that you are part of an eternal circle of life, have you taken into account the fact that eternity will stretch far past human existence? What will the meaning of life be when there are no people around? Or, if you’re a Zionist and your meaning-of-life story begins with Judaism and the Jewish people, was there no meaning to life during the nearly 2 million years of human existence prior? Ultimately, it doesn’t matter to most people if their version of the meaning of life is incomplete—the story just needs to have two features:

1. It gives you a function in the world.
2. It extends beyond your life. The story doesn’t have to be infinite, as long as it places your life into a larger scope.

People Find Meaning Through Legacies and Love

Many people believe that, as long as they leave behind some kind of legacy, their life will have meaning. Legacies can be:

• Cultural, like a work of art
• Biological, as in children and future descendants
• Intangible, such as acts of kindness and efforts to improve the world

This explanation gives people the comfort of believing that, as...

...

Currently, there are only two ways to study the mind:

1. Ask people to report on their subjective experiences, though secondhand accounts are always subject to distortions.
2. Have researchers observe their own minds, which is difficult to do objectively.

In order to take useful notes of the workings of their own minds, scientists need methodical strategies. There are few modern methods for self-observation of the mind, so researchers could turn to meditation techniques, which were developed to help people observe their minds and bodies methodically and objectively.

Increasingly, scientists are studying the brains of experienced meditators—but this approach only goes so far. When researchers scan a meditator’s brain, they gain information about how meditation affects the brain, which is valuable, but they don’t gain any insight about the mind. In order to truly observe the mind, scientists would need to practice meditation themselves. This approach requires time and dedication, because when most people begin meditating, they struggle to concentrate for more than a few seconds at a time. Scientists would have to train for months or years, as astronauts do, to finally be...

...

Despite the huge challenges the world faces in the 21st century, humans have many powerful tools in their collective arsenal. These tools give humankind the power to make things much worse or much better—it all depends upon how we educate ourselves about the issues we face, and how well we can address them as a global civilization.