Category Archives: Evolution and Psychology
How Evolutionary Psychology Can Help You on a First Date
“Are we doomed?” & “Oh, you must be using me as your case study!” These are the two comments I get the most at work. Did I mention I’m a bartender? By day, I study evolutionary psychology. But by … Continue reading
Struggling with a big decision? Your body knows the answer.
Got a heavy decision to make? Ask your body. I’m horrible at decision-making. Always have been. I don’t know why I struggle, but I will mull over my options for ages before I eventually settle with the cobb salad…. After … Continue reading
Reflections on the Costs of Evolved Self-Awareness: Comparing Trajectories of Davids—Foster Wallace & Insurgent
I’m going to be writing on the costly implications of self-awareness in a forthcoming book & was walking around listening to Reagan Youth on Spotify & David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest on Audible when some parallels occurred to me. I’ll … Continue reading
Darwin’s Daily & Hourly Dharma
I’m just going to leave this right here… Yes, I know, I should explain, but my mind is reeling a bit right now. Ever have those experiences when you stumble across a literature that advances a model that runs parallel to … Continue reading
You Can Minor in Evolutionary Studies & Start as an Assistant Professor in a Business School at $150k per Year
After that little bombshell, I just sort of zoned out & walked thru the rest of the day in a dissociative fugue, wondering about how different it would have been had I known that 15 years ago. I would love … Continue reading
Baba does Bama
Hip hop evolutionist & playwright Baba Brinkman performed for the Bama ALLELE series last night. He got one of the best turnouts we’ve had, & I think it was one of our better efforts at promoting evolution education. Unlike many … Continue reading
Milking Gorillas
I will do a more thorough summary from the Human Biology Association & American Association of Physical Anthropology annual joint conferences in the near future based on my rabid tweeting from sessions, but a few posters & talks are just … Continue reading
More on “Angst,” a New Book on Evolutionary Psychopathology
A couple months ago, I mentioned a new book of interest to those who like clinical psychology and evolution. It’s called Angst: Origins of Anxiety and Depression by Jeffrey P. Kahn, M.D., a psychiatrist at Weill Cornell Medical College who … Continue reading
I Turned into a Werewolf: Flickering Firelight & the Strange-Face-in-the-Mirror Illusion
When I did the strange-face-in-the-mirror illusion, I turned into a frickin’ werewolf! How cool is that? I should back up, right? I teach a course called “Primate Religion & Human Consciousness” & require students to come up with activities to … Continue reading