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I am a former middle and high school science teacher pursuing a doctorate in Science Ed. at George Mason University, with a concentration in cognitive science and the evolution of cognition and learning. Postings on this blog represent my own views, not those of my employer or school. All writing displayed on this page is original work unless otherwise noted, and thus copyrighted.

24 April 2010

Evidence?

     I spend so much time tearing into other people's ludicrous claims on here that I thought I'd espouse some of my own; these are to some degree a tongue in cheek stab at the less scientific aspects of evolutionary psychology, while also being an unsupported hypothesis of my own.



       Humans are much like lemmings. Not in the sense that we're small rodents, but in the sense that we are the animals in the urban legend about creatures that are so blindly obedient to their programming as to follow one another over a cliff edge. We're so enamoured with disaster (see a large portion of what is put out as entertainment by Hollywood) that we sidle closer to whatever the disaster is with a curious expression on our faces. Humans are the ones who hear an odd noise in the night, and rather than hiding sensibly, we go to investigate it only to be shot by the person who merely wanted to make off with the silverware. We slow down to sneak a peek at the carnage at the scene of a car accident, sometimes causing another in our distraction. People escalate what should be mild disagreements over things like, oh, putting our glass in the wrong spot in the bar or flirting with someone's significant other (often without knowing that he or she is attached) into a life and death struggle, or at least what would be without the intervention of people paid to do so. Our territorial pissings and petty jealousies are part of our programming, as much as the lemmings' programming (in urban legend at least) is to follow the same ancient migration routes without regard for where they actually lead now.
        Now, while this is based on simple observation, one can promote a hypothesis from the ideas above. Perhaps people are so stupid as to stand around the burning building that has a fair chance of exploding not out of curiosity, but because we are all imbued with the propensity to ignore danger because it helps the rest of the species when some of us act that stupidly. This is naive group selection at its finest, but doesn't require that there are different behaviours programmed in us, rather that we all share that tendency from a distant common ancestor, and that it has prevented human overpopulation in times of famine, climate change, etc.
    Take it with a grain, nay a shaker, of salt.

3 comments:

  1. Interesting. I would argue that the reason some tend to act on what others observe to be obvious nonsensical impulses is our obsession with our own self importance.

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  2. In the animal world survival is the basis of why each creature acts the way they do. Whereas have evolved to a point where survival isn't our main focus anymore. We are too involved with ourselves to take the safe route and hide rather than investigate for a possible intruder because our pride and sense of possession trumps our survival instincts. Regardless of whether this is some deep rooted sub-conscience way to preserve the stronger of our species, it certainly does have that effect. Good blog.

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  3. In the animal world survival is the basis of why each creature acts the way they do. Whereas have evolved to a point where survival isn't our main focus anymore.
    I have to call BS on the second portion of that. The end-all of natural selection is reproduction, not necessarily survival (although death while of reproductive age is certainly not conducive to reproducing), and we certainly aren't immune to either of those aspects. Investigating an intruder in our homes because we value our "stuff", I'll give you that. However, that also falls under the category of defending territory and resources, which all life does vigorously. We still back down in the face of superior force, although not to the point of abandoning our homes (the existence of societal controls like police helps with that). That would seem to knock a fair-sized hole in my hypothesis as well, however.
    Regardless of whether this is some deep rooted sub-conscience way to preserve the stronger of our species, it certainly does have that effect.
    Selection, even when group selection can be invoked, doesn't work like that. Each individual attempts, to the best of their abilities, to promote their own genes above others. Pure altruism is a myth.
    Good blog. Thanks.

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