NOV 7

18: NOV 7

Assigned

• Dennett, Daniel. Chapter 6: "The Evolution of Open Minds" Freedom Evolves. (300) (170-193) (Dionicio/Kennedy)
• Henrich, Joe. "The Dark Matter of History" The WEIRDEST People on Earth. (469-489) (Erik/Scott)

Dennett, Daniel. Chapter 6: "The Evolution of Open Minds" Freedom Evolves

• Offers a "circa 2003" account of cultural transmission. We will update this a bit with Henrich.

• New leaf preference for butterfly can be "imprinted" Point: transmissable trait without genetic change.

• Alludes to "phenotypic selection" . In recent gene/culture theories, this is more central (Sapolsky). "Unibrow example"

• Considers various mechanisms by which nature "outsources" traits that promote transmission: prolonged parent-offspring contact, attentional biases of babies and children to parents. (My examples: recent research on "thinking your child is special" and judgements of beauty in partners.)

• Primate examples of transmission of learning. Culturally specific norms 173.

• Transmission independent of language, but human language makes a huge diff. A "virtual machine" in our heads that extends the self. Language makes possible memes.

• Memes -- theoretical concept for modelling cultural "variants". Odd image of the lancet fluke. Henrich will give us a more updated way of thinking about this.

• Memes do nicely modelled the paralled process of genetic mutations.

• Memes like other can be parasites, commensals, or mutualist. examples 177.

• Important point here. You don't have to assume that we create memes intentionally with a clear idea of why they might be good for us. As we'll see in Henrich, when cultural variation produces viral memes, even intentionally, the distant consequences (secular society) might not have been intended at all!

• To question about "meme science" on 178. No, probably mostly an imagination stretcher.

• Back to the Fluke! Interesting to think of how memes "capture" our minds. 179 fanatacism.

• The concept of the "extended self" -- review. What is that's where the freedom is? In the virtual machine that we are running in our heads, through language and culture, to connect ourselves to each other, partially, through shared memes.

• Memes as "pure information" haven't survived in the theoretical discussion. Better though of as automatic processes (recall examples from above) and automatic inferences (intuitions).

• Religion as cultural system. One reason for Henrich is that he's not preoccupied, as Dennett is, with the range of possibilities for theorizing religion.

• Religion likely an example of "convergent evolution".
• Reasonable to ask whether a religion is serving the human good or not. Rapa Nui. Radicalized forms of religion.

• Last section (186): quote.

• Idea of Darwinian evolution as "substrate neutral" (hence, it could be instantiated in a virtual machine, or network of virtual machines, processing memes. Society!

Henrich, Joe. "The Dark Matter of History" The WEIRDEST People on Earth.

• This chapter summarizes The WEIRDest People in the World by J. Henrich.

• "The cultural evolution of psychology is the dark matter that flows behind the scenes throughout history."

• Basic story: kin-based institutions emerge from sedentary agriculuture (clans, cousin marriage, corporate ownership, patrilocal residence, ancestor worship). With the emergence of cities, universalizing religions created "variations" in social life that favored the emergence of WEIRD psychology, modern market morality and penal institutions.

• Church's "marriage and family plan" was a hit! Some features of it relevant to MR and FW:

• Individualism, self-focus
• Impartial rules and principles
• Intentional morality (focus on guilt and responsibility)
• Guilt culture over shame culture (also and internalization of morality).
• Individual centered law (no family guilt for crimes).

• Connection with Jared Diamond and "biogeography" - Diamond explains global inequality up to 1,0000 - 1,200ad, but effects of early ag diminish after that. Henrich thinks the effects of emerging WEIRD cultural start to kick in by then.

• Diffusion of WEIRD culture: examples of cultures that copied more easily than others. Japan, S. Korea, and China vs. Egypt, Iran, and Iraq (which have more developed kin based institutions).

• Affluence & Psychology - little reason to think wealth was a driver of change.

• Genetic change vs. Cultural Change (psychology and behavior)

• gene/culture coevolution (example of lactase production) - cultural selection pressure.
• Example of genes going one way, memes another -

• Natural selection seems to be reducing genes that would predict schooling (by 8 months), while cultural selection drove up schooling by 25 months and raised IQs.
• Urban graveyard effect - urban life reduced fitness, but culture drove us to cities. Only recently did urban life predict better life outcomes.

• Interesting point: A WEIRD world favors learning from cultural peers rather than genetic parents.

• Colonialism as a "mismatch" between WEIRD and non-WEIRD cultures.