The Altruistic Urge

Download or read book The Altruistic Urge written by Stephanie D. Preston and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2022-05-03 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ordinary people can perform acts of astonishing selflessness, sometimes even putting their lives on the line. A pregnant woman saw a dorsal fin and blood in the water—and dove right in to pull her wounded husband to safety. Remarkably, some even leap into action to save complete strangers: one New York man jumped onto the subway tracks to rescue a boy who had fallen into the path of an oncoming train. Such behavior is not uniquely human. Researchers have found that mother rodents are highly motivated to bring newborn pups—not just their own—back to safety. What do these stories have in common, and what do they reveal about the instinct to protect others? In The Altruistic Urge, Stephanie D. Preston explores how and why we developed a surprisingly powerful drive to help the vulnerable. She argues that the neural and psychological mechanisms that evolved to safeguard offspring also motivate people to save strangers in need of immediate aid. Eye-catching dramatic rescues bear a striking similarity to how other mammals retrieve their young and help explain more mundane forms of support like donating money. Merging extensive interdisciplinary research that spans psychology, neuroscience, neurobiology, and evolutionary biology, Preston develops a groundbreaking model of altruistic responses. Her theory accounts for extraordinary feats of bravery, all-too-common apathy, and everything in between—and it can also be deployed to craft more effective appeals to assist those in need.

Download or read book The Cambridge Handbook of Evolutionary Ethics written by Michael Ruse and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-08-24 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces readers to the application of evolutionary ideas to moral thinking and justification, presenting contrasting perspectives on controversial issues.

Download or read book Self-Leadership written by Christopher P. Neck and published by SAGE Publications. This book was released on 2016-06-17 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written by the scholars who first developed the theory of self-leadership (Christopher P. Neck, Charles C. Manz, & Jeffery D. Houghton), Self-Leadership: The Definitive Guide to Personal Excellence offers powerful yet practical advice for leading yourself to personal excellence. Grounded in research, this milestone book is based on a simple yet revolutionary principle: First learn to lead yourself, and then you will be in a solid position to effectively lead others. This inclusive approach to self-motivation and self-influence equips readers with the strategies and tips they need to build a strong foundation in the study of management, as well as enhancing their own personal effectiveness.

Download or read book Strangers Drowning written by Larissa MacFarquhar and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2015 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What does it mean to devote yourself wholly to helping others? In Strangers Drowning, Larissa MacFarquhar seeks out people living lives of extreme ethical commitment and tells their deeply intimate stories; their stubborn integrity and their compromises; their bravery and their recklessness; their joys and defeats and wrenching dilemmas. A couple adopts two children in distress. But then they think: If they can change two lives, why not four? Or ten? They adopt twenty. But how do they weigh the needs of unknown children in distress against the needs of the children they already have? Another couple founds a leprosy colony in the wilderness in India, living in huts with no walls, knowing that their two small children may contract leprosy or be eaten by panthers. The children survive. But what if they hadn't? How would their parents' risk have been judged? A woman believes that if she spends money on herself, rather than donate it to buy life-saving medicine, then she's responsible for the deaths that result. She lives on a fraction of her income, but wonders: when is compromise self-indulgence and when is it essential? We honor such generosity and high ideals; but when we call people do-gooders there is skepticism in it, even hostility. Why do moral people make us uneasy? Between her stories, MacFarquhar threads a lively history of the literature, philosophy, social science, and self-help that have contributed to a deep suspicion of do-gooders in Western culture. Through its sympathetic and beautifully vivid storytelling, Strangers Drowning confronts us with fundamental questions about what it means to be human. In a world of strangers drowning in need, how much should we help, and how much can we help? Is it right to care for strangers even at the expense of those we are closest to? Moving and provocative, Strangers Drowning challenges us to think about what we value most, and why.

Download or read book The Urantia Papers written by Unknown and published by tredition. This book was released on 2022-04-27 with total page 3323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Urantia Papers - Unknown - The Urantia Papers is a spiritual and philosophical book that originated in Chicago sometime between 1924 and 1955. The authorship remains a matter of speculation. The authors introduce the word Urantia as the name of the planet Earth and state that their intent is to present enlarged concepts and advanced truth. The book aims to unite religion, science and philosophy, and its enormous amount of material about science is unique among literature claimed to be presented by celestial beings. Among other topics, the book discusses the origin and meaning of life, mankind's place in the universe, the relationship between God and people, and the life of Jesus. It has been described as a rich and complex moral narrative, equal parts Tolkien and St. Paul.

Download or read book Evolving Mind written by Robin Cooper and published by Windhorse Publications. This book was released on 2013-10-23 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A study of the evolution of consciousness from the simplest organism, through the self-aware human being, to enlightenment. Viewing recent theories from a Buddhist standpoint, the book sees evolution as a process of perpetual self-transcendence.

Download or read book The Urantia Book written by Uversa Press and published by Fifth Epochal Fellowship. This book was released on 2003-10 with total page 2194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We now include in the back of this edition, an Audio DVD of the entire content of the Urantia Book, at NO additional cost.