Humans have been on the move for millennia. They have done so slowly as well as quickly, sometimes involuntarily, sometimes transported by force, often relocated at great cost in lives, but they have always moved. Over the centuries, improved transportation has eased the movement, even in the face of man-made or natural obstacles. But in modern times, migration has accelerated and its reach has become truly global.Whether it is Turkish gastarbeiter in Germany, Japanese Nisei in Seattle, Filipinos in Kuwait, or Haitians in Brooklyn, the costs and benefits of human mobility on...

Robert Clark delves into 100 millennia of human history to create a unified and consistent explanation for humankind's inner need to spread itself across the globe. He examines key events from different eras, such as the voyages of the Chinese treasure fleet, the shaping of the Aztec's trade system in MesoAmerica, the role of steam-powered transport in the supply of an English city, the rise of the gas-powered engine, and the digitization of information in the computer age, melding them together to form a framework for understanding the process of globalization.Drawing on a variety of...