Thanks to our highly developed brains, sophisticated ability to communicate and use of advanced technology, it can be easy to think that we humans are separate from, and even superior to, the animals we share the Earth with.

But the truth is that animals have profoundly influenced the progress and evolution of human beings for tens of thousands of years.

In this episode, we’re joined by science writer Michael Bond to talk about his latest book, Animate – How Animals Shape the Human Mind.

He tells us what the elaborate cave paintings found across the globe can teach us about our ancient ancestors’ relationship with animals, how evolution has finetuned our brains to help us recognise animals and understand their behaviour, and what we can learn about ourselves by more deeply investigating the way we treat other living beings.

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