Why did European and its successor Euro-Atlantic civilizations achieve the greatest successes in the history of mankind? Why did Europe, first on its own and later with the United States of America, create the world we live in now? What predetermined the world hegemony of the European worldview - industry, the power of weapons or something else? And what influence does the environment have on the worldview of not only an individual, but also entire peoples and even races? Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "Collapse" Jared Diamond discusses all this and more in his book.