Harari's Sapiens has been a bestseller, and for a reason. There's something captivating and informative in every chapter. I do not want to spoil the story, but there were some parts where I did not totally agree with him.
History of capitalism and science: Harari points out that economic booms owe their success to scientific/technical development. Thus, if scientists get no resources, forward-looking investment will stall because there won't be new products that companies can sell. This is a bit of a simplification. Companies do not normally sell innovations straight out of research labs. Rather they sell stuff created by their R&D departments (and sometimes probably marketing department).
The impossibility of predictions: Harari uses the Arab spring as a great example. Suppose some intelligence company told (former Egyptian) president Mubarak that next year there is going to be a revolution. He would have certainly lowered taxes, distributed free food and started other PR campaigns to improve his image. Thus no revolution and no credit to the intelligence company. It's certainly the case that the Arab spring was a surprise. However, many researchers have mentioned that one factor in the Syrian civil war was a drought.
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