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Have you ever heard the argument that the transition to agriculture was a catastrophic mistake for humanity? It goes like this: around 12,000 years ago, our ancestors gave up their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, which had been egalitarian and sustainable for hundreds of thousands of years, in favor of cultivating crops. The consequences? Poor health, limited diets, new diseases, and unsustainable practices leading to climate change and the ongoing sixth mass extinction.
This narrative has gained popularity…