Greed is good. War is inevitable. Whether in political theory or popular culture, human nature is often portrayed as selfish and power hungry. UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner challenges this notion of human nature and seeks to better understand why we evolved pro-social emotions like empathy, compassion and gratitude.

We've all heard the phrase 'survival of the fittest', born from the Darwinian theory of natural selection. Keltner adds nuance to this concept by delving deeper into Darwin's idea that sympathy is one of the strongest human instincts — sometimes stronger than self-interest.

FEATURING: Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology and founding faculty director of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley
siftbotsays...

Promoting this video and sending it back into the queue for one more try; last queued Friday, December 26th, 2014 9:23am PST - promote requested by eric3579.

bareboards2says...

This is why I can never watch those Fail videos where people are being hurt. I feel ill and have to stop watching.

Can't understand why they are entertaining.

I'M ONE BIG VAGUS NERVE!!!

Paybacksays...

Schadenfreude has more to do with sadism than a lack of sympathy or of empathy.

bareboards2said:

This is why I can never watch those Fail videos where people are being hurt. I feel ill and have to stop watching.

Can't understand why they are entertaining.

I'M ONE BIG VAGUS NERVE!!!

billpayersays...

Couldn't make it through. This should be obvious.
We have flourished because we are SOCIAL.
Look at any modern city. We are strong as a SOCIETY. And weak individually.
Yes, Wall st is ignorant as fuck and has cherry picked the meaning of evolution. Just like Ayn Rand and other psychotic morons.
Capitalism is just a cover for modern slavery. That is why all we hear in the U.S. is socialism is evil.

A10anissays...

Interesting, but surely, a part of the brain "lighting" up, having been given certain stimuli, does not necessarily explain root cause. eg;- Why does the light work when it is switched on? A neurological answer would simply attribute it to the necessary connections being made. But we know it is WAY more complicated. The correct bulb must be used, the correct voltage, the connection cannot be broken, the switch must be operable, etc. Any one of these not in place = no light. Similarly with neurology. The light is on, but myriad reasons could account for it. Nature, nurture, peer pressure, obligation, and much more dictate what/who we are. A sadists pleasure neurons light up witnessing pain, but may also light up when helping someone. So which is the true reaction, or are they both, though contradictory, true? I respect science immensely, but trying to map the brain as if it were totally predictable in any given circumstance seems - unless we are all identically cloned have identical experiences, identical parents, and identical hopes and dreams - futile.

MaxWildersays...

People always talk about the traditions of the rich to hold big charity fundraisers. I've always maintained that those are nothing more than a variation of conspicuous consumption. Certainly there are people like Gates and Buffett who seem sincere, but the average 1%er is simply showing up to be seen throwing cash away with their heart displayed proudly on their sleeve. And carefully preserving the receipt for tax time.

Paybacksays...

You're both wrong. It's a salve for their conscience. They help 1 poor schmuck to absolve themselves from fucking over 1000s.

billpayersaid:

@MaxWilder Agreed. Philanthropy is bullshit, like driving a rolls royce, it's just to impress other rich fucks. Society cannot survive off hand outs from ruthless robber barons.

Reefiesays...

My own personal belief is that greed and jealousy are traits almost all people have naturally, and it is through mental growth and maturity that we learn to quell those less desirable qualities of what it is to be human. Well, most of us do!

TheFreaksaid:

Greed is an illness, aberrant behavior and it needs to be cured.

coolhundsays...

If something like that interest you, you should watch the first part of Zeitgeist - Moving Forward. It goes on where this short clip stops and explains that we are never born bad.
The whole documentary is very good.

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