Category Archives: Evolution and Psychology
American Inequality and Cultural Strategies Theory. By Bo and Ben Winegard.
This is a theoretical snippet that my brother, Ben Winegard, and I worked on to (partially) explain the sundry problems that result from gross amounts of economic and social inequality. Inequality has increased dramatically in the United States since the … Continue reading
HBES 2012 Roundup 3: Kissing Petri Dishes & Staring at Gross Things to Get all Hot & Bothered
The highlight of Saturday’s talks was my slowly growing consciousness of this new theoretical paradigm called the “behavioral immune system” that I’ve written about in the past & will write about again in the future but the scope (& name) … Continue reading
HBES 2012 Roundup 2: Brian Hare’s Chimp/Bonobo Cognition Plenary, Mommy Brain Fogs, & Baba Brinkman Evolution Raps
Friday’s HBES meetings started with a plenary by anthropologist Brian Hare from Duke. Let me just say that I like the starting days with plenaries. No presenters have to “pay dues” with crappy earlier spots that everyone sleeps through. People … Continue reading
Evolution Triggers the “Oh Shit!” Circuit
Jonah Lehrer discusses the new Gallup poll numbers on the (non)acceptance of evolutionary theory versus creationist beliefs in his New Yorker blog post “Why We Don’t Believe in Science.” He cites a study by Andrew Shtulman in Cognition that finds … Continue reading
Penis Diversity is our Business
Actually, penis diversity is not our business. In fact, one of the student evaluations for the Anthropology of Sex course I taught this past semester said I talked too much about animal diversity & not enough about humans. I’m not sure … Continue reading
Issues & Questions: Cultural Knowledge (& Self-Deception) & Mating Success
First, thank you to all who participated in our recent “Pop Culture & Mating Success” survey. Frankly, I am stunned at our success in collecting over 1000 responses in just over one week. As an anthropologist, I don’t often rely … Continue reading
Patrick Clarkin’s Humans are (blank)-ogamous Series
The image Patrick Clarkin uses in his 6th installment of the “Humans are (Blank) -ogamous” is so excellent that I have to repost it & give props to Patrick, a biological anthropologist at UMass Boston. In this series, he explores … Continue reading
Pop Culture & Mating Success Study
Please participate in an internet-based survey of cultural knowledge and mating success of adults 18 years and older. The survey takes about 15 minutes and asks some personal questions of a sexual nature. Follow this link to the survey if … Continue reading
May is National Masturbation Month
My students asked for more masturbation & here is the resource. In student evaluation of the Anthropology of Sex course I taught last semester, several students indicated that future iterations of the course should include more discussion of masturbation. Somehow, … Continue reading
Towards a Bottom-Up Approach to Self-Deception
As I read John Hartung’s 1988 chapter on “self-deceiving down,” I am further convinced of the nonsense of arguing about theoretical distinctions & that we are considering the issue at too high a conceptual level to understand the influence of … Continue reading