One of the traits that distinguishes us from our nearest ancestors is our curiosity about the origins of our species. In this text, Ian Tattersall discusses human uniqueness, investigating the origins of those characteristics and processes that so distinguish human beings, such as creativity, language, and consciousness. Travelling in France to see 30,000-year-old cave paintings, in Africa to see where our earliest ancestors left their bones, and in remote forests to spy on our closest relatives, the great apes, Tattersall uncovers what it is that makes us really different and what the future might hold for our species.