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Since the dawn of social science, theorists have debated how and why societies appear to change, develop and evolve. Today, this question is pursued by scholars across many different disciplines and our understanding of these dynamics has grown markedly. Yet, there remain important areas of disagreement and debate: what is the difference between societal change, development and evolution? What specific aspects of cultures change, develop or evolve and why? Do societies change, develop or evolve in particular ways, perhaps according to cycles, or stages or in response to survival necessities? How do different disciplines \\u2014 from sociology to anthropology to psychology and economics \\u2014 approach these questions? After 10,000 years of history, what does the future hold for culture and society?

Shermer and McCaffree discuss: McCaffree\\u2019s experience being trained as a cop, his research on crime, and his thoughts on the recent spike in crime and violence \\u2022 Is there any way to solve the problem of gun violence? \\u2022 how sociologists think about human and social action \\u2022 diversity, equity, and inclusion \\u2022 Is the current political polarization really worse than it\\u2019s been? \\u2022 cultural evolution vs. biological evolution \\u2022 horizontal/equalitarian vs. vertical/hierarchical societies \\u2022 human selfishness and the problem of altruism \\u2022 between-group and within-group competition and cooperation \\u2022 fission-fusion in primate bands \\u2022 Oscillation-Infrastructural Theory of Cultural Evolution \\u2022 and what the future holds for humanity and society, and more\\u2026

Dr. Kevin McCaffree is a professor of sociology at the University of North Texas. He is the author or co-author of five books, co-editor of Theoretical Sociology: The Future of a Disciplinary Foundation and series co-editor (with Jonathan H. Turner) of Evolutionary Analysis in the Social Sciences. In addition to these works, he has authored or co-authored numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and handbook chapters on a variety of topics ranging from cultural evolution to criminology to the sociology of empathy. His two books include Cultural Evolution: The Empirical and Theoretical Landscape, and The Dance of Innovation: Infrastructure, Social Oscillation, and the Evolution of Societies. Along with Anondah Saide, he is one of the two chief researchers for the Skeptic Research Center, and Michael Shermer had the honor of serving on his dissertation committee for his Ph.D. thesis on the rise of the Nones \\u2014 those who hold no religious affiliation.