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Europe is having a 500 year drought. bbc.com/news/world-eur…
This may result in us seeing warnings from our ancestors long ago, in a particular manifestation of cultural transmission that has always amazed me. #BLUEPRINTbook 1/
This may result in us seeing warnings from our ancestors long ago, in a particular manifestation of cultural transmission that has always amazed me. #BLUEPRINTbook 1/
In #BLUEPRINTbook (amazon.com/Blueprint-Evol…), I talk about very old warnings regarding low-water marks in European rivers. For instance, the Elbe is dotted with “hunger stones” commemorating old droughts, with inscriptions like IF YOU SEE ME, WEEP, going back 500 years. 2/
These hunger stones written on rocks deep in rivers by our ancestors -- both to commemorate their own suffering and to warn us -- are sure to be visible again given conditions in Europe today. There is so little water. 3/
A systematic study of a complete sample of 20 shipwrecks (that involved >19 people stranded for >2 months) out of >9,000 wrecks between 1500AD and 1900AD reveals crucial factors in social order relevant to survival. amazon.com/Blueprint-Evol… #BLUEPRINTbook 
Crucial factors in surviving shipwrecks in the period 1500-1900AD?
No alcohol in the salvage.
Ability to make a bellows.
But, most important:
Ability to cooperate.
Ability to teach each other things.
And mild hierarchy.
#BLUEPRINTbook
No alcohol in the salvage.
Ability to make a bellows.
But, most important:
Ability to cooperate.
Ability to teach each other things.
And mild hierarchy.
#BLUEPRINTbook
In 1864, two ships wrecked on opposite ends of Auckland Island, near Antarctica -- in a riveting natural experiment. The Grafton crew survived, even thrived, and the Invercauld crew fell upon itself (nearly all died). Learn why in #BLUEPRINTbook
Love at first sight is such a fascinating scientific (and not just literary) phenomenon. cnn.com/travel/article… It's possible to imagine evolutionary origins for this experience. Its often reciprocated nature is an important clue.
Here is another recent example in the news (among many "Woodstock" couples; here Judy and Jerry Griffin): people.com/human-interest…
I think there are important environmental triggers to the love-at-first-sight phenomenon (including a heightened sense of expectation), and not just biological underpinnings, of course.
People have been talking about the Joe Rogan Experience #JRE podcast @joerogan, which I am happy to have been on twice. I think Joe is a first-rate interviewer, a great and genuinely curious conversationalist. And the breadth of the guests is astonishing, and to his credit. 1/
The breadth of his *listeners* and his reach are also astonishing and to his credit.
Here is a short personal illustration: After my first appearance, in March of 2019, I left my apartment in New Haven @yale the next morning to walk to work. 2/
Here is a short personal illustration: After my first appearance, in March of 2019, I left my apartment in New Haven @yale the next morning to walk to work. 2/
The African-American doorman in my building, a man in his 50's with whom I have had countless warm conversations about many topics, told me he had heard me the preceding day and that he really enjoyed our conversation and "learned so much." 3/
Various experiments of ours (e.g., pnas.org/content/108/48… via @PNASNews & nature.com/articles/ncomm… via @NatureComms ) and in a prior book (#BLUEPRINTbook), I discuss how the ability to cut and form ties affects our ability to cooperate. @ApollosArrowChat 1/
The ability to form groups is crucial to the human capacity to cooperate. But the SARS-CoV-2 virus exploits this very tendency to spread among us. Hence, we spread out to reduce contagion. Your question is a good one. 2/
As I argue in #ApollosArrow, 'the spread of germs is the price we pay for the spread of ideas,' which means that we evolved to live together to derive the benefits from living socially, but we thus also place ourselves at risk of contagious pathogens. 3/
While spontaneous yawning is common across all vertebrate classes, *contagious* yawning is less common and has been observed only in a few species of *social* animals.
But, sweetly, elephants yawn when we do. 1/
But, sweetly, elephants yawn when we do. 1/
A 2018 review of functions of yawning: sciencedirect.com/science/articl…
A 1999 review of *evolution* of yawning: link.springer.com/article/10.100… 2/
A 1999 review of *evolution* of yawning: link.springer.com/article/10.100… 2/
Elephants were shown to yawn in 2017. frontiersin.org/articles/10.33… 3/
