About this episode

Robinson and Richard discuss the evolutionary significance of fire control and cooking in human development.

Richard Wrangham is the Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology, Emeritus, at Harvard University. A primatologist and biological anthropologist, he has studied wild chimpanzees in Uganda since 1987 and is known for his work on human evolution, the origins of violence, and the role of cooking in shaping our species. In this episode, Robinson and Richard discuss how humans diverged from our primate ancestors and the evolutionary importance of learning to control fire. More particularly, they talk about Richard’s cooking hypothesis, how cooking may have transformed the human brain and body, the relationship between fire and culture, and what chimpanzee behavior can teach us about the origins of human violence. Richard’s books include Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human, Demonic Males: Apes and the Origins of Human Violence, and The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution.Richard’s Harvard Profile: https://heb.fas.harvard.edu/people/richard-w-wranghamCatching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human: https://a.co/d/0iaxEBhyOUTLINE00:00 Puzzles Posed by Human Beings09:32 The Cooking Hypothesis17:54 Cooking and the Brain22:12…

People in this episode

Host: Robinson Erhardt

Guest: Richard Wrangham

Topics covered

• human evolution
• cooking hypothesis
• chimpanzee behavior
• violence origins
• fire control
• cultural development

Keywords

• human evolution
• cooking
• fire
• chimpanzees
• violence
• biological anthropology
• Richard Wrangham

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Harvard University

Books & works: Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human, Demonic Males: Apes and the Origins of Human Violence, The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution

More episodes of Robinson's Podcast

• 289 - Joe Henrich: How Culture Made Humans Weird · September 6, 2026 · 1h 1m
• 287: Daniel Lieberman: Evolution and the Human Diet · August 23, 2026 · 1h 12m
• 286: Adam Mockler: Trump, Newsom, and the Dark Future of American Politics · August 16, 2026 · 1h 2m
• 285 - Richard Wolff & Michael Hudson: The Destruction of Modern Nations · August 9, 2026 · 1h 59m
• 284 - Steve Keen: The Economics of Global Warfare · August 1, 2026 · 2h 3m

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Robinson's Podcast podcast page.