Why do Men confront a rival directly while Women quietly exclude them from the group? It is tempting to label one behavior aggressive and the other petty. Evolutionary psychology suggests…
Evolution
36 Articles
Blushing feels like betrayal. Just when we want to hide embarrassment, blood rushes to the face and announces it publicly. But this involuntary reaction may serve a social purpose. The…
Look sideways without turning your head. Another person can instantly see where you are looking because your dark iris moves against a bright white background. This may be a small…
Among mammals, fathers usually contribute surprisingly little to raising offspring. Humans are unusual: across many societies, fathers may provide food, protection, teaching, childcare, or resources for years. Why? One evolutionary…
Human babies are unusually costly. They grow large brains, remain dependent for years, and often have younger siblings who also require care. A mother raising several dependent children entirely alone…
A young chimpanzee becomes self-sufficient relatively quickly. A human child may remain dependent for nearly two decades. At first glance, this seems like an evolutionary disadvantage: childhood consumes enormous amounts…
From a narrow evolutionary perspective, menopause is puzzling. If natural selection favors reproduction, why do human women commonly live for decades after they can no longer bear children? The grandmother hypothesis proposes…
Open a closet in almost any home and you will probably find something familiar. A box of old cables. Clothes that haven’t been worn in years. A broken appliance that…
Look in the mirror. You might see a person with hopes, dreams, a career, and a favorite pair of shoes. But strip away the surface, step back a few million…
In 1972, a plane carrying a Uruguayan rugby team and their friends and family was flying to Chile when it crashed high in the Andes Mountains. It was October, and…