Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The anal breakthrough is a key part of all animal evolution. This video starts at the beginning of the universe, and then explains how life on Earth led to human consciousness - but ONLY due to the amazing creation of a human anus. :)
Written by: Gregory Brown
Animations by: Gregory Brown
Edited by: Luka Šarlija
Resources and further learning:
Belk, et al. (2016). Biology: science for life. Fifth edition. Pearson.
Godfrey-Smith, Peter. Living On Earth: Forests, Corals, Consciousness, and the Making of the World. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024.
Godfrey-Smith, Peter. Metazoa: Animal Life and the Birth of the Mind. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2020.
Kukushkin, Nicolay (2025). One Hand Clapping: Unraveling the Mystery of the Human Mind. Prometheus Books, 2025.
Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda (2021). The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, & Dreams Deferred. Bold Type Books, 2021
The anal breakthrough is a key part of all animal evolution. This video starts at the beginning of the universe, and then explains how life on Earth led to human consciousness - but ONLY due to the amazing creation of a human anus. :)
Written by: Gregory Brown
Animations by: Gregory Brown
Edited by: Luka Šarlija
Resources and further learning:
Belk, et al. (2016). Biology: science for life. Fifth edition. Pearson.
Godfrey-Smith, Peter. Living On Earth: Forests, Corals, Consciousness, and the Making of the World. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024.
Godfrey-Smith, Peter. Metazoa: Animal Life and the Birth of the Mind. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2020.
Kukushkin, Nicolay (2025). One Hand Clapping: Unraveling the Mystery of the Human Mind. Prometheus Books, 2025.
Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda (2021). The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, & Dreams Deferred. Bold Type Books, 2021
