Re: Natural Selection and Fear

On Nov 28, 11:38�am, High Miles <2Blue...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
What scares you the most, a rattlesnake or a car? Most likely it's a
rattlesnake, although common sense should tell us that we're far more
likely to die from an encounter with a car than a snake.

The reason why we fear reptiles more than cars is a cornerstone of the
relatively new field of evolutionary psychology, and it helps explain
how we became who we are today. It also tells us much about ourselves
and our fears and emotions and cravings, and why, for example we can't
seem to push back from the dinner table when we've already had enough to
eat.

The mechanism that created our fear of snakes also left us with cravings
that help explain why so many folks are just too fat, experts say.

It's all in our genes, and the lives our ancestors lived a relatively
few generations ago. In fact, if they had not had many of the same
cravings we have today, we might not be here at all. But some of those
old traits are coming back to haunt us.

Are Our Genes Out of Date?

"Basically, we're living in a world that's not the world we evolved to
function in," said anthropologist Dan Fessler, director of the Center
for Behavior, Evolution and Culture at the University of California, Los
Angeles.

Fessler is a lead player in the effort to understand how the world in
which our ancestors evolved forced them to avoid some things and hoard
others just to survive, and how those ancient needs impact us today.

"The basic logic is that natural selection can shape the mind to shape
behavior," Fessler said.

Fessler's primary area of research is an emotion that we all feel from
time to time: disgust. But he sees it differently than the rest of us.
According to his research, disgust helped our ancestors reproduce in a
world filled with pathogens.

The Scientific Value of Being Grossed Out

"The emotion allowed our ancestors to survive long enough to produce
offspring, who in turn passed the same sensitivities on to us," he said.

To prove his point, Fessler has conducted a number of clever studies of
pregnant women. The experiments were designed to show how disgust can
protect a woman during her most vulnerable times, like the first
trimester of pregnancy when the woman's immune system is suppressed to
keep her from rejecting the infusion of new genetic material in her
womb. Since disease is generally passed from one person to another
through contact, Fessler reasoned that women would find some things
particularly disgusting during that critical first trimester.

I think this is a fascinating study and explains a great deal about
the connection of our genes and our emotions. I have been shifting
from nurture to nature in the nature/nurture controversy.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Natural Selection and Fear
    ... although common sense should tell us that we're far more likely to die from an encounter with a car than a snake. ... "Basically, we're living in a world that's not the world we evolved to function in," said anthropologist Dan Fessler, director of the Center for Behavior, Evolution and Culture at the University of California, Los Angeles. ... Fessler is a lead player in the effort to understand how the world in which our ancestors evolved forced them to avoid some things and hoard others just to survive, and how those ancient needs impact us today. ... disgust helped our ancestors reproduce in a world filled with pathogens. ...
    (soc.senior.issues)
  • Re: Natural Selection and Fear
    ... and the lives our ancestors lived a relatively ... function in," said anthropologist Dan Fessler, director of the Center ... time to time: disgust. ... the connection of our genes and our emotions. ...
    (soc.senior.issues)