Being Human. The Inside Story of What It Means to Be One of Us

132 Pages·2015·19.134 MB·English

VOL TWO / ISSUE THREE
B E I N G
H U M A N
THE INSIDE STORY OF WHAT
IT MEANS TO BE ONE OF US
MIND / BODY / SELF / EMOTIONS / RELATIONSHIPS / POSSESSIONS
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THE COLLECTION
Welcome to the
handbook of you
VOL TWO/ISSUETHREE IFYOU’REreadingthis,thenyoumustbea theabilitytopersuadehavebeen
BEINGHUMAN humanbeing.Andbeinghuman,youmay instrumentalinoursuccessasaspecies.
thinkyouknoweverythingthereistoknow Chapter5homesinonourpossessions.Our
aboutit.Butdoyou?Doyouknow,for obsessionwithstuffhasdeepevolutionary
example,whypeoplehavesexinprivate, andpsychologicalroots.Possessionsarenot
NEWSCIENTIST
THECOLLECTION whywecan’ttickleourselves,orwhyweyawn, justuseful,theyalsohavemeaningforus–
Tower2,475VictoriaAvenue, itchandhiccup?Haveyouanyideahow andthere’sadarksidetoo,leadingto
Chatswood,NSW2067
[phone] manypairsofshoesorunderarmdeodorants behaviourslikehoardingandcompulsive
[email protected] you’llgetthroughinyourlifetime?Doyou shopping.Canwemovebeyondownership
Editor-in-chiefGrahamLawton reallyknowwhatmakesyouunique,what toapost-consumeristculture?
EditorKateDouglas yourbodylanguagesaysaboutyou,whywe Chapter6isaboutrelationships.Whydowe
ArteditorCraigMackie
PictureeditorPrueWaller arecapableofevilandhowwereadother havefriendsandhowmanydoweneed?Are
SubeditorRichardLim people’sminds? maleandfemalefriendshipsdifferent?Has
GraphicsDaveJohnston
ProductioneditorMickO’Hare Ifyoufindyouneedanswerstoany theinternetchangedfriendship?Thenthere’s
ProjectmanagerHenryGomm ofthese,thisissueofNewScientist:The kin,andquestionsofhowyourfamilyand
PublisherJohnMacFarlane
Collectionisforyou.Acompilationofclassic yourplacewithinitinfluenceyourcharacter
©2015ReedBusiness articlesfromNewScientist,ittakesastepback andwell-being.
InformationLtd,England
NewScientistTheCollectionis fromtheeverydaychoresofbeinghumanto Chapter7dealswithemotions,asyou’ve
publishedfourtimesperyearbyReed tacklethebig–andsmall–questionsabout neverseenthembefore.Hereyou’lldiscover
BusinessInformationLtd
ISSN1032-1233 ournature,behaviourandexistence.Along whatitfeelsliketolivewithoutfear,howto
thewaywedelveintomind,body,selfand useangertoyouradvantage,thehidden
Newsstand
NetworkServices emotions,yourtalentsandshortcomings, powerofdisgust,whyrejectionfeels
Tel[phone](Australiaonly) yourrelationshipsandpossessions,andhow physicallypainful,andthestrangeemotions
NetlinkDistributionCompany
Tel[phone] youcanmakethemostofyourself. attheouterlimitsofourfeelings.
Chapter1examineshumannature.Homo Finally,Chapter8revealshowwecanallget
PrintedinAustraliabyOffsetAlpine
Printing,42BooreaSt,Lidcombe, sapiensisananimallikenoother,butwhat moreoutofbeinghuman.Itwillhelpyouto
NSW2141 characteristicsreallysetusapart?Whyare identifyyourhiddentalentsandbemore
Displayadvertising
[phone] humanssonice–andnasty?Andwhatmakes charismatic.You’llevendiscoverthesecrets
[email protected] eachofusunique? ofsuccess – or at least what success means to
Chapter2exploresoursenseofself.Efforts you, and how to achieve it. Being human is a
Cover image tocreateaself-awarerobotarestartingto privilege. Make the most of it.
Darren Hopes
revealitsbuildingblocks.Butwearemore
thanindividuals.Infact,weareso Kate Douglas, Editor
interconnecteditmaybemoreaccurateto
thinkofourselvesaspartofasuperorganism.
Chapter 3 gets corporeal. It takes a tour of
your body and its curiosities, exploring how
humans got to be the shape we are and what
your body reveals about you.
In Chapter 4 we delve into the human mind,
exploring how imagination, mind reading and
Being Human | NewScientist: The Collection | 1
CONTENTS
THE COLLECTION
VOLUME TWO /
CONTRIBUTORS
Sally Adee
is a features editor at New Scientist ISSUE THREE
Christie Aschwanden
BEING
is a writer based in Colorado, US
Chris Baraniuk
is a writer based in London, UK HUMAN
Michael Bond
is a consultant for New Scientist
Catherine Brahic
is a feature editor at New Scientist
Lauren Brent
is at the University of Exeter, UK
Julia Brown
is a senior subeditor at New Scientist
Catherine de Lange
is a feature editor at New Scientist 1
Kate Douglas
is a feature editor at New Scientist
Robin Dunbar
is at the University of Oxford, UK
Lesley Evans Ogden
is a writer based in Vancouver, Canada
Linda Geddes
is a writer based in Bristol, UK
Alison George
is an opinion editor at New Scientist
Jessica Griggs
is deputy news editor at New Scientist
Jessica Hamzelou Human nature
is a news reporter at New Scientist
Bob Holmes
is a consultant for New Scientist
Dan Jones
is a writer based in Brighton, UK 6 The nature of the beast
Graham Lawton 12 One and only you
is deputy editor of New Scientist
16 Homo virtuous?
Geoffrey Miller
is at the University of New Mexico, US
Tiffany O’Callaghan
is a senior opinion editor at New Scientist
Alex Pentland
is at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US
Helen Pilcher
is a writer based in the UK
Tony Prescott
is at the University of Sheffield, UK
Robert R. Provine
is at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, US
Lisa Raffensperger
is a writer based in Milwaukee, US
Laura Spinney
is a writer based in Paris, France
Kirsten Weir
is a writer based in Minneapolis, US
Caroline Williams
is a writer based in Surrey, UK
Emma Young 2
is a writer based in Sheffield, UK
The self
The articles here were first published
in New Scientist between January 20 Meinthemachine
2010 and March 2015. They have 24 The death of individuality
been updated and revised.
2 | NewScientist: The Collection | Being Human
3 7
The body Emotions
26 The body 94 Thecuriouslivesofthepeople who feel no fear
36 Funny feet 5 98 Dogetmad
40 Lost in translation 103Wordscanneverhurtme?
44 Voice almighty 106Theyuckfactor
110Strangefeelings
Possessions
64 Stuff
66 Huntersandgatherers
4 69 Thebarenecessities 8
71 Myprecious
74 Thingstocome
The mind Making the
most of life
48 Daydream believers
54 Inside job
59 The argumentative ape 6 114 The secret of success
119 What’s your superpower?
124 Charm school
Friends
and family
76 Foreverfriends
86 Luck of the draw
90 Beyond nature and nurture
Being Human | NewScientist: The Collection | 3

BRAIN CANCER
KILLS MORE CHILDREN THAN ANY OTHER DISEASE
Yet90%ofAustraliansareunawareofthisfact
Brain cancer kills more Australians
*SOURCE CURE BRAIN CANCER RESEARCH OF 1,010 NATIONALLY REPRESENTATIVE AUSTRALIAN ADULTS AGED 18+ JULY 2014 under 40 than any other cancer.
150 117 55 51 49
*SOURCE AIHW NATIONAL CANCER STATISTICS
Brain cancer costs more
Brain Leukaemia Heart Heart Thyroid per patient than
Cancer Disease Defect Cancer
any other cancer
Numberofdeathsbetween2008-2012
*SOURCEAUSTRALIANBUREAUOFSTATISTICS(2010–2014),3303.0CAUSESOFDEATH,AUSTRALIA(2008–2012)TABLE1.3:UNDERLYING
CAUSEOFDEATH,SELECTEDCAUSESBYAGEATDEATH,NUMBERSANDRATES,AUSTRALIA(2008–2012)
Brain cancer is deadly, survival rates are low
90% 90% 20% COLOR- LEUKA- STLOIVMEARCH
BREAST BLADDER ECTAL KIDNEY EMIA PANCREAS LUNG BRAIN
OFCHILDRENSURVIVE OFPEOPLESURVIVE OFPEOPLESURVIVE
LEUKAEMIA BREASTCANCER BRAINCANCER Indexoflifetimecostper patient
*SOURCETHECOSTOFCANCERNSW–REPORTBYACCESSECONOMICS,AUSTRALIAWIDE,APRIL 2007
*SOURCEAIHWNATIONALCANCERSTATISTICS
5%
It gets worse. for some forms,
Yetitrecievesjust3%ofNHMRC/
such as Glioblastoma or DIPG,
GovernmentCancerResearchFunding
survival is much lower.
OFPEOPLESURVIVE
GLIOBLASTOMA
*SOURCENHMRCGRANTAPPLICATIONROUND 2009-2013
*SOURCE(OSTROM,Q,GITTLEMAN,H,FARAH,P,ONDRACEK,A,CHEN,Y,WOLINSKY,Y,STROUP,N.E,KRUCHKO,C&BARNHOLTZ-SLOAN,J.S,
(2013).CBTRUSSTATISTICALREPORT:PRIMARYBRAINANDCENTRALNERVOUSSYSTEMTUMOURSDIAGNOSISINTHEUNITEDSTATESIN
2006-2010.NEURO-ONCOLOGY,P50-51.
We need a huge increase
34% 19% 18% 17% 2% in research funding to
accelerate new treatments
Prostate Cancer Bowel Breast Brain and improve survival
*SOURCE:INCREASEINSURVIVALRATES1982-2010.AIHWNATIONALCANCERSTATISTICS
Don’t let children fight brain cancer alone
Help Cure Brain Cancer in their mission to increase
five-year survival to 50% within 10 years.
FIND OUT MORE & DONATE
curebraincancer.org.au
or 1300 362 965
C H A P T E R O N E
HUMAN NATURE
HATsortofcreatureisthehuman?
W
Theobviousanswerisasmart,
talkative,uprightapewitha
penchantformaterialpossessions.Butwhat
aboutthemoresubtleconceptofhuman
nature?Thatismorecontroversial.Somedeny
itexists,preferringtobelievethatwecanbe
anythingwewanttobe.Theycannotberight.
Althoughweexhibitlotsofindividualand
culturalvariations,humansareanimals,and
likeallanimalswehaveidiosyncrasies,quirks
andcharacteristicsthatdistinguishusasa
species.Aninvadingalienwouldhaveno
troublecategorisingusbut,beingsocloseto
oursubjectmatter,westruggletopindown
theessenceofhumanness.Nevertheless,the
taskmaynotbebeyondus.Anthropologists
haveidentifiedmany“humanuniversals”–
characteristicssharedbyallpeople
everywhere,whichconstituteasortofparts
listofourspecies.Whatifweweretousethese
toexaminethehumananimalinthesame
waywewouldstudyanyother?
Asthefollowingpagesreveal,whatemerges
isasuiteofcharacteristicsthatencapsulate
ournature– and a rather peculiar one it proves
to be. If you thought you knew what humans
were like, then think again.
The nature
of the beast
Being one yourself, you might think you know what people
are like. Think again, say Kate Douglas and Bob Holmes
6 | NewScientist The Collection | Being Human
N
NSO
WILKI
HARD
RIC
Playful
(adj) Full of high spirits and fun
Humans are not nature’s only funsters. All mammals “We’re a playful species,” says primatologist “Play is a sort of
play, as do some birds and a few other animals. Frans de Waal at Emory University in Atlanta,
simulator that allows
But no other species pursues such a wide variety Georgia, and we retain our juvenile sense of fun
of entertainment or spends so much time enjoying right into adulthood. The only other primate to do us to imagine and try
themselves. The list of universals includes such that is the bonobo, perhaps as a result of its relaxed
out different scenarios
diverse extracurricular pleasures as sports, music, social environment. Human society is also relatively
games, joking, hospitality, hairdressing, dancing, relaxed, de Waal notes, because we have moral with little risk”
art and tickling. What sets us apart is the fact that codes and laws that promote stability. Crucially for
we play with objects and with language, says Clive the entertainment industry, we will also happily
Wynne at Arizona State University in Tempe. We can congregate with unrelated individuals, a situation
also go beyond the literal. “What revolutionises that would leave both chimps and bonobos tearing
human play is imagination,” says Francis Steen at strips off each other. Then there’s the simple matter
the University of California, Los Angeles. of leisure time. In the wild, adult chimps spend >
Being Human | NewScientist The Collection | 7
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violence, but also appreciating slapstick humour. NAUD
But is it just opportunity that allows us to RE
indulge our playful side, or do we actually need
more entertainment than other animals? Play
isn’tsimplyforfun,notesMarcBekoffatthe
UniversityofColorado,Boulder.Heidentifies
fourprimarypurposes– physical development,
cognitive development (“eye/paw coordination”
as he calls it), social development and training
fortheunexpected.Playingisanevolutionary
adaptationforlearning,agreesSteen.Mammals
arebornineptbutcanadapt– playing helps us
do that. Noting that human social and physical
environments are particularly complex, he sees
playing as a sort of simulator that allows us to
imagine and try out different scenarios with little
risk. “In play we are most fully human,” he says.
Bekoff believes social development is the most
important purpose of play for humans, not least
because it underpins morality. “Young children
will not become properly socialised without it,”
he says. For Robin Dunbar at the University
of Oxford, playfulness is a mainstay of social
cohesion.“Playofteninvolveslaughter,which
isaverygoodbondingmechanism,”hesays.
Andphysicalplay–especiallycoordinatedteam
sports– produces feel-good endorphins. In
addition, sports provide a release for competitive
urges, says de Waal. “If people watch others
playing, that actually improves their own skills,”
adds Steen. Even entertainment for sheer
pleasure has benefits. “It’s fun, so it’s really
good for mental health,” says Bekoff.
Scientific
(adj) Inclined to the methodical study of the material world
“What sets us apart Fromearliestinfancy,humansareconstantly why. Daniel Povinelli at the University of
sortingtheworldintocategories,predicting Louisiana in Lafayette taught both children
from other animals?
howthingswork,andtestingthosepredictions. and chimps to stand an L-shaped block on its
One likely candidate is Suchthinking,whichistheessenceofscience, end, then secretly substituted an apparently
isevidentinarangeofhumanuniversalsfrom identical block that would not stand up. The
our drive to ask why”
time,calendarsandcosmologytofamily chimps just kept trying, he says. “But the kids
namesandmeasuring.“Scienceisbasically would stop and turn the block upside down
workingatunderstandingtheworldaround and feel the bottom of it. They’d shake the
us,”saysEdwardWassermanattheUniversity block, try to figure out what was inside it. They
ofIowainIowaCity.Anditisnotconfinedto would do all kinds of things in an attempt to
humans–allanimalsneedscientificthinking diagnose why it wouldn’t stand up”.
tosurvive.“It’sinourjobdescription,”hesays. Another possibly unique feature of humans
Pigeons,forexample,canlearntodiscriminate is our ability to grasp abstract concepts.
betweencarsandchairs.Dogscanassociatethe Chimps struggle with this. For example, while
soundofabellwithfood,andwhenchimpstry they quickly learn that heavy rocks are better
toextractanutfromatube,theyare for smashing nuts, when it comes to a general
performingasimpleexperiment. understanding of weight, they falter. “If they
Clearly,nootheranimaldoessciencetothe hear two objects drop and one goes ‘bam!’ and
extentthatwedo,though.Sowhatsetsus the other goes ‘click’ they can’t infer that one
apart?Onelikelycandidateisourdrivetoask of those objects will be good for cracking a nut
8|NewScientistTheCollection|BeingHuman