• A
  • A
  • A
  • АБВ
  • АБВ
  • АБВ
  • A
  • A
  • A
  • A
  • A
Обычная версия сайта
  • RU
  • EN
  • HSE University
  • Publications
  • Articles
  • Rise of the war machines: Charting the evolution of military technologies from the Neolithic to the Industrial Revolution
  • RU
  • EN
Расширенный поиск
Высшая школа экономики
Национальный исследовательский университет
Priority areas
  • business informatics
  • economics
  • engineering science
  • humanitarian
  • IT and mathematics
  • law
  • management
  • mathematics
  • sociology
  • state and public administration
by year
  • 2027
  • 2026
  • 2025
  • 2024
  • 2023
  • 2022
  • 2021
  • 2020
  • 2019
  • 2018
  • 2017
  • 2016
  • 2015
  • 2014
  • 2013
  • 2012
  • 2011
  • 2010
  • 2009
  • 2008
  • 2007
  • 2006
  • 2005
  • 2004
  • 2003
  • 2002
  • 2001
  • 2000
  • 1999
  • 1998
  • 1997
  • 1996
  • 1995
  • 1994
  • 1993
  • 1992
  • 1991
  • 1990
  • 1989
  • 1988
  • 1987
  • 1986
  • 1985
  • 1984
  • 1983
  • 1982
  • 1981
  • 1980
  • 1979
  • 1978
  • 1977
  • 1976
  • 1975
  • 1974
  • 1973
  • 1972
  • 1971
  • 1970
  • 1969
  • 1968
  • 1967
  • 1966
  • 1965
  • 1964
  • 1963
  • 1958
  • More
Subject
News
July 24, 2026
‘I Like Self-Fulfilling Prophecies
Andrey Vorchik studies happiness, delivers popular science lectures, and believes that science should address social issues as well. In an interview for the Young Scientists of HSE University project, he spoke about how emotions influence decision-making, the Bermuda Triangle formed by the bathroom, refrigerator, and bed, and the ideal formula for education.
July 24, 2026
'Physics Is What the World Is Literally Built On'
Physicist Nina Dzhanayeva, recipient of a Vladimir Potanin Foundation scholarship, focuses her research on nanophotonics. In this interview for the HSE Young Scientists project, she discusses nanowells, scientific intuition, and how physics can help in making frangipane cream puffs.
July 20, 2026
Scientists Create Open Dataset for Studying Concentration
A team of Russian researchers, including scientists from HSE University–St Petersburg, has developed the first open multimodal dataset containing recordings of brain activity, heart function, and video observations to help researchers understand what happens in the human brain during deep concentration. In the future, the dataset could accelerate the development of neural interfaces, rehabilitation technologies, and AI systems. The article has been published in Scientific Data.

 

Have you spotted a typo?
Highlight it, click Ctrl+Enter and send us a message. Thank you for your help!

Publications
  • Books
  • Articles
  • Chapters of books
  • Working papers
  • Report a publication
  • Research at HSE

?

Rise of the war machines: Charting the evolution of military technologies from the Neolithic to the Industrial Revolution

Plos One. 2021. Vol. 16. No. 10. Article e0258161.
Turchin P., Hoyer D., Korotayev A., Kradin N., Nefedov S., Feinman G., Levine J., Whitehouse H.

What have been the causes and consequences of technological evolution in world history? In particular, what propels innovation and diffusion of military technologies, details of which are comparatively well preserved and which are often seen as drivers of broad socio-cultural processes? Here we analyze the evolution of key military technologies in a sample of pre-industrial societies world-wide covering almost 10,000 years of history using Seshat: Global History Databank. We empirically test previously speculative theories that proposed world population size, connectivity between geographical areas of innovation and adoption, and critical enabling technological advances, such as iron metallurgy and horse riding, as central drivers of military technological evolution. We find that all of these factors are strong predictors of change in military technology, whereas state-level factors such as polity population, territorial size, or governance sophistication play no major role. We discuss how our approach can be extended to explore technological change more generally, and how our results carry important ramifications for understanding major drivers of evolution of social complexity.

Research target: Mathematics Computer Science Sociology (including Demography and Anthropology Political Science, International Relations, and Public Administration Other social sciences History and Archeology
Language: English
Full text
DOI
Text on another site
Keywords: evolutioncomplexitysocial complexitysocial evolution world historycliodynamicsmilitary technologiestechnological evolution
Similar publications
WWW '23 Companion: Companion Proceedings of the ACM Web Conference 2023
Фирсанова В. И., ACM, 2026.
The inclusion of autistic people can be augmented by a mobile app that provides information without a human mediator making information perception more liberating for people in the spectrum. This paper is an overview of a doctoral work dedicated to the development of a web-based mobile tool for supporting the inclusion of people on the ...
Added: August 4, 2026
Joint Proceedings of the ESWC 2025 Workshops and Tutorials co-located with 22nd Extended Semantic Web Conference (ESWC 2025), Portorož, Slovenia, June 1-2, 2025.
Фирсанова В. И., Хлусова Я. К., CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 2025.
Knowledge graphs are widely used in Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) and Explainable AI (XAI), since they can illustrate semantic relationships generated by Large Language Models (LLMs). Recent studies focus on generating knowledge graphs from unstructured data to improve RAG performance; however, they do not explain the underlying graph structure. The analysis of synthetic graphs behind ...
Added: August 4, 2026
From hyperbolic to complex Euler integrals
Spiridonov V. P., Belousov N. M., Sarkissian G. A., Analysis and Mathematical Physics 2026 Vol. 16 Article 96
Hyperbolic hypergeometric integrals are defined as Barnes-type integrals of products of hyperbolic gamma functions. Their reduction to ordinary hypergeometric functions is well known. We study in detail their degeneration to complex hypergeometric functions. Namely, using uniform bounds on the integrands, we prove that the univariate hyperbolic beta integral and the conical function degenerate to two-dimensional ...
Added: August 4, 2026
Flexibility criterion for affine horospherical varieties
Gayfullin S., Kikteva V., Results in Mathematics 2026 Vol. 81 No. 5 Article 146
In this paper we obtain a criterion of flexibility for an affine complexity-zero horospherical variety. This result generalizes previously known results on flexibility of normal horospherical varieties, horospherical varieties with an action of a semisimple group, and non-normal toric varieties. ...
Added: August 3, 2026
О полуортогональных разложениях производных категорий диаграммных схем
Lunts V., Функциональный анализ и его приложения 2026 Т. 60 № 3 С. 127–129
Доказано, что канонические полуортогональные разложения производной категории диаграммной схемы индуцируют аналогичные разложения подкатегории совершенных комплексов. ...
Added: August 3, 2026
Mathematical methods of reinforcement learning
Belomestny D., Gasnikov A., Gladin E. et al., Russian Mathematical Surveys 2026 Vol. 81 No. 4(490) P. 3–90
Reinforcement learning (RL) is increasingly grounded in tools from probability, optimization, and operator theory. This survey organizes the mathematical structures that underpin the design and analysis of modern algorithms in RL. We begin from Markov decision processes (MDPs) and the Bellman operators, emphasizing contraction mappings, monotonicity, and fixed-point theory that yield convergence guarantees and rates ...
Added: August 3, 2026
Низовое цифровое волонтерство в условиях кризиса: сети взаимопомощи, платформенные логики и последствия для социальной политики
Брюхно А. С., Telitsyna A., Journal of Social Policy Studies 2026 Vol. 24 No. 1 P. 143–158
This article examines grassroots digital volunteerism as a form of civic self-organization in the context of s large-scale socio-economic disruption, using the 2022 refugee crisis in Russia as an empirical case study. It focuses on the mutual aid networks that emerged on the VKontakte social network and the Telegram messenger, analyzing their organizational characteristics, modes ...
Added: August 1, 2026
Чеповский А.М. Анализ корпусов текстов на естественных языках. Математические методы. Учебное пособие – М.: Мастерская Печати Идей, 2026. – 274 с.: илл.
Chepovskiy A., Мастерская Печати Идей, 2026.
The textbook presents methods and algoгithms for automatic analysis of соrроrа of texts in natural languages. It is intended fоr sfudenБ of methods of processing texts in паtчrаl languages and creating training arays of texts. Fоr students, graduate students and researchers studying methods of computational linguistics and word processing. ...
Added: August 1, 2026
Sums Related to Euler's Totient Function
A. Radomskii, Mathematical notes 2026 Vol. 119 No. 6 P. 1136–1147
We obtain an upper bound for the sum $\sum_{n\leq N} (a_{n}/\varphi (a_{n}))^{s}$, where $\varphi$ is Euler's totient function, $s\in\mathbb{N}$, and $a_{1},\ldots, a_{N}$ are positive integers (not necessarily distinct) with some restrictions. As applications, for any $t>0$, we obtain an upper bound for the number of $n\in [1,N]$ such that $a_{n}/ \varphi (a_{n})> t$. ...
Added: July 31, 2026
Cambodia's Policy on the Artificial Intelligence: Determinants, Directions, Interim Outcomes
Kanaev E., Southeast Asia: Actual Problems of Development 2026 Vol. 1 No. 1(70) P. 153–163
The article aims to specify the degree of success Cambodia has been able to achieve in developing its Artificial Intelligence (AI) ecosystem seen through the prism of the state of the country’s non-digital assets as an outcome of its economic modernization, as well as of its digital projects and initiatives. Outlining the specifics of Cambodia’s ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Сотрудничество между АСЕАН и Россией в цифровой сфере: взгляд реалиста
Kanaev E., Юго-Восточная Азия: актуальные проблемы развития 2026 Т. 1 № 1(70) С. 22–36
The article aims to specify possibilities and system constraints of cooperation between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Russian Federation (RF) in the digital field, as well as assess its most promising directions. The nature and specifics of ASEAN’s policy in the digital field from the perspective of implementation of its initiatives ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Vietnam and the RCEP: a Digital Perspective
Evgeny A. Kanaev, Berezhnaya A., Southeast Asia: Actual Problems of Development 2026 Vol. 2 No. 2(71) P. 175–187
The article examines the significance and the place of the digital tools developed by the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in the priorities of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV). On tracing the RCEP’s origins, evolution, and interim outcomes obtained to date, the article proceeds with assessing the efficiency of the RCEP’s digital tools to ...
Added: July 30, 2026
ASEAN and the Resolution of the South China Sea Issue: Assessing Digital Limitations
Kanaev E., Southeast Asia: Actual Problems of Development 2026 Vol. 2 No. 2(71) P. 11–22
The author focuses on a strengthening digital component in the evolution of the South China Sea issue in the context of ASEAN’s evolving approach to the deepening contradictions and its policy in the digital field. On outlining ASEAN’s policy on the South China Sea issue, the author proceeds to exploring the digital agenda of ASEAN’s ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Европейский союз в мировой экономике: фактор БРИКС
Федеральное государственное бюджетное учреждение науки Институт Европы Российской академии наук, 2026.
This edited volume examines the place of the European Union in the global economy during the first quarter of the twenty-first century against the backdrop of an emerging global economic order in which BRICS countries are playing an increasingly important role. Particular attention is paid to the evolution of the EU’s integration strategy – its ...
Added: July 30, 2026
О куволюции. История и обоснование нового понятия
Fain E., Korotayev A., Полис. Политические исследования 2026 № 4 С. 170–183
In the 21st century, the theory of revolutions has encountered a number of theoretical and practical difficulties, the main one being the conceptualization of revolutions. At the moment, the theory needs new focuses and approaches. One potential innovation that could enrich the theory is the concept of “coupvolution”, which emerged after the Egyptian Revolution of ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Квадратичный закон взаимности и его обобщения
Абызов А. Н., Буутай П. Н., Математика и теоретические компьютерные науки 2026 Т. 4 № 2 С. 4–75
This paper is expository and methodological in nature and is devoted to the development of E.I. Zolotarev’s ideas embedded in his approach to the proof of the quadratic reciprocity law (1872). We consider extensions of Zolotarev’s approach to abstract number rings presented in the work of A. Brunyate and P.L. Clark (2015), and to finite ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Three Algorithms for Merging Hierarchical Navigable Small World Graphs
Ponomarenko A., / Series Computer Science "arxiv.org". 2025.
This paper addresses the challenge of merging hierarchical navigable small world (HNSW) graphs, a critical operation for distributed systems, incremental indexing, and database compaction. We propose three algorithms for this task: Naive Graph Merge (NGM), Intra Graph Traversal Merge (IGTM), and Cross Graph Traversal Merge (CGTM). These algorithms differ in their approach to vertex selection ...
Added: July 30, 2026
Does the pedicle exist in craniiform brachiopods?
Plandin F., Temereva E., Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 2025 Vol. 205 No. 2 Article zlaf139
Although Brachiopoda represent a relatively small phylum, they exhibit significant morphological diversity. One of the central issues in understanding the evolution of the ancestral brachiopod body plan pertains to the homologies among body compartments across the different brachiopod subphyla: Craniiformea, Linguliformea, and Rhynchonelliformea. In this context, the pedicle stands out as one of the most ...
Added: June 15, 2026
Историк перепутья: Три жизни Роберта Виппера. Рец. на: “Die drei Leben eines Historikers: Robert Vipper (1859–1954) in der russischen, lettischen und sowjetischen Geschichtsschreibung” (ed. by Jan Kusber, Ilgvars Misāns, and Maike Sach. Berlin: Peter Lang, 2025)
Beisswenger M., Россия и современный мир 2025 № 4 С. 316–325
The reviewed collection of articles presents a multifaceted study of the life and work of the outstanding Russian historian Robert Yuryevich Vipper (1859–1954). The focus is on his unique destiny as a “historian at a crossroads,” who passed through three distinct political and cultural contexts: imperial and revolutionary Russia, emigration to independent Latvia, and return ...
Added: June 1, 2026
Теория партизана. Промежуточное замечание к понятию политического. Изд. 2-е, исправ. и доп.
Шмитт К., М.: Праксис, 2026.
Классическая работа известного немецкого правоведа и политического теоретика Карла Шмитта, посвященная рассмотрению партизана как «фигуры мирового духа», начиная с его зарождения в ходе борьбы испанского народа против наполеоновских войск в 1808—1813 годах и вплоть до судьбы партизана в ходе «всемирной гражданской войны» ХХ века. Перевод с немецкого Ю. Ю. Коринца. Новая редакция перевода Т. А. Дмитриева ...
Added: May 20, 2026
Эволюция управления цепями поставок: от бизнес-логистики до SCM 4.0
Dybskaya V., Sergeyev V., РИСК: Ресурсы, информация, снабжение, конкуренция 2025 № 2 С. 11–17
The origins and importance of supply chain management (SCM) in the modern economy are analyzed. It is shown that the USP is a continuation and development of the concept of integrated business logistics. The evolution of logistics from the 1960s to the 2000s is presented. The main functionality of the ADC for business organizations is ...
Added: April 28, 2026
Карл Шмитт о всемирной истории: недетский рассказ для дочери
Kildyushov O., В кн.: Суша и море: Всемирно-историческое размышление.: М.: Ад Маргинем Пресс, 2026. С. 90–108.
В этой небольшой книге (1942) Шмитт излагает двенадцатилетней дочери свое видение всемирной истории как драматичной борьбы между земной и морской стихиями, схватки библейских чудищ Бегемота и Левиафана. На этом построена драматургия нового исторического нарратива. В его центре — судьбоносное событие решительного коллективного выбора в пользу одной из стихий. О нем свидетельствует планетарная пространственная революция XVII–XVIII веков, а также новый «номос» — основополагающий закон присвоения территорий, их дележа и последующей ...
Added: April 20, 2026
Суша и море: Всемирно-историческое размышление
Шмитт К., М.: Ад Маргинем Пресс, 2026.
В этой книге (1942) Шмитт излагает двенадцатилетней дочери свое видение всемирной истории как драматичной борьбы между земной и морской стихиями, схватки библейских чудищ Бегемота и Левиафана. На этом построена драматургия нового исторического нарратива. В его центре — судьбоносное событие решительного коллективного выбора в пользу одной из стихий. О нем свидетельствует планетарная пространственная революция XVII–XVIII веков, а также новый «номос» — основополагающий закон присвоения территорий, их дележа и последующей экономической ...
Added: April 20, 2026
Шмиттианские вариации на тему большого пространства. Рецензия на книгу: Simms B. (2023). Die Rückkehr des Grossraums? Berlin: Duncker & Humblot. — (Carl-Schmitt-Vorlesungen, Band 6). ISBN: 978-3-428-19022-5
Kildyushov O., Социологическое обозрение 2026 Т. 25 № 1 С. 364–373
Review of the book: Simms B. (2023) Die Rückkehr des Großraums? Berlin: Duncker & Humblot. — (Carl-Schmitt-Vorlesungen, Band 6). ...
Added: March 31, 2026
  • About
  • About
  • Key Figures & Facts
  • Sustainability at HSE University
  • Faculties & Departments
  • International Partnerships
  • Faculty & Staff
  • HSE Buildings
  • HSE University for Persons with Disabilities
  • Public Enquiries
  • Studies
  • Admissions
  • Programme Catalogue
  • Undergraduate
  • Graduate
  • Exchange Programmes
  • Summer University
  • Summer Schools
  • Semester in Moscow
  • Business Internship
  • Research
  • International Laboratories
  • Research Centres
  • Research Projects
  • Monitoring Studies
  • Conferences & Seminars
  • Academic Jobs
  • Yasin (April) International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development
  • Media & Resources
  • Publications by staff
  • HSE Journals
  • Publishing House
  • iq.hse.ru: commentary by HSE experts
  • Library
  • Economic & Social Data Archive
  • Video
  • HSE Repository of Socio-Economic Information
  • HSE1993–2026
  • Contacts
  • Copyright
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Map
Edit