Patchwork behavior

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We are a patchwork of evolved, sufficiently adaptive survival functions. The functions exist at the level of molecules, spinal reflexes, midbrain organismic regulation systems, cognitive faculties (the ability to plan on long time scales), social patterns, as well as conscious experience. This patchwork was “assembled” ad hoc and not always nor necessarily selected for universal internal consistency. For example, We are wired to find sweetness very salient and attractive, but we are also cognitively aware that it may not serve well over the long term. Thus, we can have mind-body conflict (I use this as catchy shorthand to represent the fact that any survival function on any level may have opposing drives to any other function on any other level). 

Understanding the biological bases of behavior and how they are arranged is critical, on both the general / population level and on the individual / interpersonal level. We are social primates that evolved on the African savannah to cursorial hunt, in tribes of about 150 people (dunbar’s number). We have the same biological hardware now as then even though society and technology have drastically changed. We are not evolutionarily adapted to cities and worldwide society. 

If we know how we are “put together” biologically (how these components contribute to behavior on the organism and social levels), and how we are likely to react under certain circumstances, we can then begin to engineer our environment to promote the behaviors and mental contents we desire Of course, we need to have a dynamic system of checks and updates to this model and the goals to which we aim. One might consider such a project the moral landscape, which we can use science to navigate. 

Science can integrate our subjective experience navigating this landscape, it should not ignore this, in fact, individual and collective well-being is predicated on subjective experience. We can develop finely detailed values (models of what we want), integrated from the innate survival instincts up through multigenerational time horizons 

What if we use science to engineer an environment that promotes childhood development, both within a physical school and the community in which that school serves?

  1. great reference! the great carl is almost always appropriate. thanks for reading. any place this doesn’t jive with your understandings,…

  2. “If you want to bake an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe” Thanks for this Keevin!