Matt Ridley, bestselling author of The Red Queen, Nature via Nurture, and other books, tells the story of human cultural and economic evolution in his latest work, The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves. Combining the best of economics and biology, he explains both the "how" and "why" of the amazing (and recent) explosion in worldwide human well-being. Against the pessimism of many of today's intellectuals and commentators, Ridley presents a compelling case for why progress will continue, but only if cultural evolution is allowed to develop in the direction of more contact, trade, and openness between people.

At this event, held at the Mercatus Center, Ridley discusses his book and answers questions from the audience.