“Essentially there has been no culture on earth that has not invented some form of what could be termed ‘meta-magical thinking'”, says Robert Sapolsky.
Why does religion seem to manifest in culture no matter what?
Fear is a motivator—often, when we’re scared, we feel that we want to leave a situation. That so-called “pull” that you feel often has more to do with wanting to be in a place of agency and control than it does, say, being scared of the dark, or flying. Actually, fear of flying is a great example for what Tali Sharot proposes. We all know that we couldn’t actually fly the plane if we were giving the controls, but we’re more-so afraid of giving up all of our perceived control. You’re three times more likely to crash in a car than crash in a plane but we all feel as if we are in control… which is why you don’t have many people scared of driving. Tali does a great job explaining the mentality behind fear, and her video here is worth a watch.
Laughing at Auschwitz The Hoecker Album
Robert Sapolsky is a professor of biology and neurology at Stanford University and the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation genius grant. He is the author of A Primate’s Memoir, The Trouble with Testosterone, Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, and Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst.
How can humans be so compassionate and altruistic — and also so brutal and violent? To understand why we do what we do, neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky looks at extreme context, examining actions on timescales from seconds to millions of years before they occurred. In this fascinating talk, he shares his cutting edge research into the biology that drives our worst and best behaviors.
Always Question Authority 