Guest Thinkers — May 23, 2010

Me, Tarzan

Anthropologist David Puts explains biological and behavioral differences between men and women in terms of evolutionary competition to win the best mate.

bigthinkeditor

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Anthropologist David Puts explains biological and behavioral differences between men and women in terms of evolutionary competition to win the best mate. “When two drunken men fight over a woman, alcohol and stupidity may not be the only things at work. Sadly, evolution may have shaped men to behave this way.”

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Stylized illustration of a person holding a chess piece, with a digital glitch effect and horizontal lines creating a blue-toned, distorted appearance.

High Culture

“Pantheon” creator Craig Silverstein on uploading our brains to the internet

How the cult hit sci-fi show imagines a “techno-realist” future.

A close-up of an oiled muscular arm flexing on the left and a vibrant peacock feather with blue and green hues, symbolizing sexual selection, on the right, both set against a stark black background.

Life

Seduction of the hottest: How sexual selection shaped birds and human brains

Science writer Matt Ridley joins us to discuss how “Darwin’s strangest idea” makes us all a bit feather-brained (in a good way).

Gloved hands hold an open book titled "The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection" by Charles Darwin, a seminal work exploring the origin of life, published in London by John Murray, 1859.

High Culture

5 books that changed our understanding of the origin of life

These books helped build the empirical case that life’s origins differ from those described in myths and legends.

The letters "AI" appear with a glitch effect in multicolored pixels against a black background.

The Present

AI skeptic Gary Marcus on AI’s moral and technical shortcomings

The cognitive scientist argues the current AI environment is failing us as consumers and a society. But it’s not too late to change course.

Two young children with curly hair in striped sweaters enjoy lollipops, showcasing the whimsical nature of genes and behavior. The black-and-white photo gives a nostalgic feel.

Neuropsych

Blaming our genes: The heritability of behavior

When it comes to behavior, genetics may play a larger role than you think.

Up Next

Politics & Current Affairs

Political Theatre

When memory mixes with desire, politicians exaggerate their personalities, says Maureen Dowd who absolves politicians of their lies by giving them the benefit of the doubt.