This blog maintains that the emergence of humans six million years ago represented a rare biological “transition” to collective function similar to “eusocial” insects, mainly ants, bees and termites. For the first time, there has been a reliable estimate of how many ants are on earth. This paper illustrates that collective function has propelled both …
Or are we undergoing a progressive awakening to our tribe’s ancient mission to transform the power of aggression into the bounty of communion
CREDITS: (GRAPHIC) A. CUADRA/SCIENCE; EUROPE’S LOST FRONTIERS PROJECT/EUROPEAN RESEARCH COUNCIL; (PHOTOS, LEFT TO RIGHT) NATIONAL MUSEUM OF ANTIQUITIES (ROM) LEIDEN (1); MANON BRUININGA Article by Andrew Curry, Science 31 Jan 2020: Vol. 367, Issue 6477, pp. 499-503
The fundamental unit of behavior in a hierarchy consists of a political triangle: two attempting to intimidate a third. When four possible political triangles between four individuals socially interact, the individual with the most alliances ends up at the apex of a stable social pyramid in which all four members are bound together by bonds …
During the decade in which I was actively engaged in marital therapy, I became convinced that hidden beneath more superficial reasons that people marry each other is an evolved instinct to re-balance their respective temperaments. Temperament is the component of personality that is derived exclusively from genes and is comprised of blends of paired social …
Every once in a while, an article captures my imagination. Such is the case with one written by Axel Timmermann & Tobias Friedrich entitled “Late Pleistocene climate drivers of early human Migration” (Nature, Vol. 538: 6 Oct. 2016). This is big data applied to a most fascinating topic. Here is the abstract: On the basis …
I am reminded of the movies about aliens from other planets living among us by a remarkable article by Elizabeth Pennisi in the November 18 issue of Science entitled “An Evolutionary Classic.” Excerpts from the article: An army ant colony does not welcome outsiders. Not only are the ants notoriously fierce, but they specialize in …
