Book Review: The Explorers Gene

 

Photo credit: Mariner Books

The Explorer's Gene is a 2025 book by Alex Hutchinson, known for his previous book Endure. The book examines why humans seek novelty, the uncharted, accomplishing difficult things simply because they are difficult. A combination of descriptions of scientific research on the topic along with examples of explorers from throughout history, the book attempts to answer the question of "why?" people sought out these challenges.

Was there a practical purpose for the exploration? Or simply a desire to see something new, learn about what is out there? One example in the book is the people who settled the Polynesian islands, who kept moving east along the island chain. The book examines whether there was a rationale for this or whether they wanted to discover what other lands existed. For many decades, the commonly held belief was that the Polynesians wandered aimlessly and discovered land by accident, that navigation by sea was impossible without instruments. In subsequent years, this perspective has been proven incorrect, people have demonstrated this is indeed possible and their exploration was likely intentional.

The lesson here is that it is never a good idea to underestimate what humans are capable of. The book identifies a specific gene which is linked to a desire for novelty and exploration. This gene is present in people with ADHD, people with this diagnosis have the gene at a higher rate than the general population. The specific gene variant seems to have appeared approximately 40-50,000 years ago, at the same time humans began exploring the world more broadly. The author theorizes that this gene variant led to humans settling the planet.  

This book is a fascinating mix of wild adventure stories along with descriptions of research studies attempting to explain why people do those things, and why others enjoy hearing about them. The book describes 2 purposes of exploration, a practical purpose such as survival, expansion of trade routes, or seeking resources. The other is personal gratification, exploration as seeking purpose in life. Human exploration has been driven by both, and even when we appear to be running out of places to explore, the desire remains. Which is why we look to other planets, the seafloor, and other areas which previous explorers have been unable or unwilling to reach. A key insight from the book is that reaching the goal does not matter as much as the quest to get there.  “..the most challenging paths often turn out to be the most meaningful – not in spite of the effort required, but because of it.”