The Truth About Human Nature

This post has little to do with my EU Project, except for the fact that it has a lot to do with decision sciences, and economics is in reality a decision science. It stems from a discussion I had with my girlfriend's parents yesterday that didn't get finished. Hopefully I can finish it here.

I would like to preface my discussion by informing my audience that everything I say here is a fact. I have not made anything up. I am not inserting my opinion (political or otherwise) into anything that follows. I am not going to provide sources in this paper, but they are widely available, and I can and will if someone wants me to do so. If you don't believe what I'm saying, find experts in the fields of biology, sociology, decision sciences, or economics, and they will tell you that what I am saying is undeniable truth. I can put you in touch with authors, professors, or experts if that’s what you’re looking for. I've been going to school for a long time studying this material, and I've read a lot of books - if you'll pardon my language, I know what the fuck I'm talking about.

What is a human? A human is nothing but an animal that displays above-average intelligence. Let us compare a human to a rat and in that comparison distinguish the differences. Humans, like rats, are born, increase in size and physical maturity, mate, raise children, and die. Like rats, we must consume energy in the form of food and oxygen and we must purge ourselves by consuming water and excreting waste. Humans are animals, but we are a different sort of animal. It has been shown that humans as a species differ from other animals in three (and only three) extremely important ways.

First, we are the only species that makes war upon itself. No other species on the planet kills itself in the meticulously planned manner that we do. Yes, hyena cubs fight and sometimes accidentally kill each other. Yes, the female praying mantis does kill her male partner after mating. These are behaviors that have been genetically programmed into these species, respectively, for the greater good of that species. I am not enough of a biologist to explain why, exactly, the death of the male praying mantis is better for the species, but I know that it is. Why? Because animals do not evolve traits that are not successful - any individual member of a species that happens to mutate into an unsuccessful entity quickly dies. That is how evolution works. I'm sure someone can explain why this strange mating practice is a successful one, but I cannot - all I know is that it must be, because I know how evolution works. I do not think you will find anyone that can tell me that World War II was for the greater good of our species.

Second, we are the only species that practices totalitarian agriculture. Totalitarian agriculture means that we create the maximum amount of food in the minimum amount of space by any means necessary. In order to do this, we must kill the species that compete for this food, or deny them access to this food. We put up fences around our gardens, shoot the rabbits that dig under them, and spray insecticide on our plants. When we create food, we are the only species allowed to eat it. This is totalitarian agriculture. No other species on the planet practices this behavior. Consider that both the lion and the hyena compete for the same food - the gazelle. But the lion never kills the hyena so that he can control his share of the gazelle. To speak in a "green" sense, the lion does not interrupt the circle of life by killing species that he will not eat - he is an agriculturalist in that he tends his garden of gazelle as they move around the Serengeti. But the hyena is always allowed to eat the gazelle, too - the lion is not a totalitarianist. Consider if a human were hunting a gazelle and realized that there was a hyena in the brush next to him hunting the same gazelle. The human, without a doubt, would kill the hyena to end this competition. The lion would never do this. The human is a totalitarian agriculturalist.

Third, humans are the only species with the ability to imagine. This trait has developed for us because of our intelligence. We are the only species with the ability to grasp the concept of "future". Whales do not migrate because they perceive that it will grow cold soon and that they should plan ahead for the future. If a bear could talk, he would not tell you that he is fattening up for hibernation because he knows it will be cold in a few months. He would tell you that he is fattening up because that's what his instinct tells him to do. More on instincts later.

So what's the point of these three differences? Perhaps the most important point I'm trying to make here is that humans are more like animals than many of us like to admit. Consider all of the behaviors of a given species - there are hundreds if not hundreds of thousands of intricate characteristics. But humans differ from all other animal species on this planet in only three ways. If we assume that the average simple mammal has 1000 different describable aspects to their behavior, then humans are only 0.003% different in their behavior than a standard subway rat. That’s not very much of a difference.

So humans are animals and behave like animals, except for the three aforementioned ways in which we differ. Now consider that an animal will always act in the best interest of its species. How do we know this is true? Because we are educated and we believe in the process of evolution, and as previously stated, animals that do not act in the best interest of their species are quickly eliminated as mutations. And because animals always act in the best interest of their species, and they cannot imagine a different possibility, they will always act in exactly the same way. A mother bear will always defend her cubs when presented with a threat. A spider will always spin his web in the exact same direction. A fly will always fly away when it senses danger. These are the instincts of the animal, programmed into that species through evolution.

Before I continue, I must sidetrack and point out a very basic biological fact that few people like to admit. People don’t like to admit this fact because it’s a cold fact, and it takes away a lot of the romance of the human spirit. All the same, it is a fact so beyond question that I need not even give credentials for it or even explain it - if you don't believe me, find a high school biology student and they'll tell you it's true. The goal of every species on this planet is to propagate additional members of that species. Every single species on the planet, without exception, behaves in this way. Every single species - animal, plant, and human.

How do I know that this is the goal of all life? Because it’s all animals do, and every animal does it, without exception. Animals don’t build skyscrapers, or paint murals, or write novels. They don’t spend their time farming, or watching television, or running for presidential nomination. They eat to stay alive, and mate to reproduce. For millions and millions of years, this strategy worked. Eat and mate. Eat and mate. Unless you are prepared to argue that the earth (and, basically, the universe) exists simply so that humans can exist in it, it is undeniable that the goal of all life is self-propagation. And if you do choose to argue that point, I have plenty to say about theology, too.

Back to the point.

In reality, instinct is a system of incentives that animal species develop over time. When the mother bear is confronted with danger, she is in reality presented with two choices, each with their own incentive. She can stay and defend her cubs, or she can run away. In a split second, subconsciously, the mother bear weighs the incentives. Defending her cubs means that they survive and her species is propagated, and that sounds like a good idea to her because that is the ultimate goal of her species. But running away means that she might live, and might have more cubs in the future. The bear doesn't know that she's making this choice, but she is - in effect, evolution has made the choice for her. While bears were evolving over millions of years, there were probably some mutations for whom the incentive was higher to run away...but these bears died or failed to propagate their species. So over millions of years, the runners died off - running away from danger was obviously a failed evolutionary strategy, so that instinct was eliminated. Now, all bears have a greater incentive to stay and defend their young than to run away - every single bear on the planet.

You may be saying to yourself, "But Drew, you're not a biologist! What do you know about this kind of stuff? I don't believe you, anyway!" Well, here's the part I've been studying for four years and have read more books about than I would care to recall. Humans are no different than animals in this system of incentives, except for the fact that we are able to imagine the future. Because we are able to think about what might happen in the future, we are able to mentally travel down the road and see what kinds of consequences each of our decisions will have. I can imagine that if I work on my economics project this afternoon, I will learn more, be better educated, and maybe get a better job when I'm older. On the other hand, I can also imagine that if I go and lay out in the sun for two hours, I will enjoy the pleasure of the sun on my face and get a really awesome tan. I'm faced with a decision here, and the way I'm going to make that decision is to think about what my incentives are - what will I get for making each decision? On the one hand, I'll have a better job in the future. On the other hand, I'll have an awesome tan.

The beautiful thing about humans is that because we can imagine, not all of us have the same animal instinct. Mother bears, as stated, will always defend their young, because it is in the best interest of their species. But not everyone will go outside and get an awesome tan like I will. Some people, in my position, would choose to stay in and work on their economics project. What that means, simply, is that we have different imaginations - we have imagined different incentives for ourselves. It is obviously more important to me that I get a tan today than it is to have a great job in the future. The most important thing that I say in this piece is right here: Just like animals follow their instincts, humans are programmed to behave in their own best interest.

Here's the part where people start to get angry, and rightfully so. It's not an easy thing to admit or realize that humans are basic, uncomplicated animals - it's cynical, horribly cynical. It's an unromantic, bleached look into the center of humanity - but it's true. Just as the mother bear will always behave in her own best interest, so too will humans always behave in their own best interest. Always.

Think about every conceivable "selfless" act that you can imagine. Donating to the needy or homeless. Going to Africa on a missionary trip to help the poor and indigent. Loving unconditionally without expectation of reciprocation or reward. These are all wonderful things that humans do - I love humanity because we do them. But every single one of these things is motivated by personal incentive. Why don't animals do things that are "selfless"? Simply put, because they do not have the ability to imagine that their behavior will have a positive impact on another member of their species.

It makes me feel good inside to donate to the homeless, because I am a human and I can imagine that the people I donate to will be happier if I help them. And I can imagine that if they are happier, perhaps they will be more successful, and they will get a job and raise a family and have kids. And because I'm an animal and the ultimate goal of life is to propagate more life, my animal instinct is rewarded. If I perceived that donating to the homeless would hurt them, make them unhappy, or decrease their chance of reproduction, I would stop doing it instantly.

Do you want something, really, really cynical? Something that's going to make you really mad? When I choose to donate anonymously, I make that decision because it makes me feel good for the aforementioned reasons. But what about when I do it publicly, rather than anonymously?

When I choose to not donate anonymously, I am aware that other people see me donating. They think that I am a good person, and more importantly that I am a generous person. Perhaps word will get around that I'm a generous guy. Why do I care that people think I'm generous? Well, females are biologically programmed to find generosity and caring attractive, because if I am generous to the homeless, I will probably be generous to my offspring, which will probably help my offspring to survive. If they are subconsciously aware that I am generous, they are more likely to choose me as a mate. This has absolutely nothing to do with me "getting laid" or manipulating women to sleep with me - but I'm biologically programmed to attempt to appear attractive. The more attractive I appear (physically or otherwise) the greater the chance that my genes will be passed on. This is evolution in action - if I am unattractive, I will not have offspring and my genes will not be passed on. Since the ultimate goal of my species is to reproduce, that would be really bad for me. So just like any other species, humans have evolved to appear as attractive to the opposite sex as possible. The male peacock does exactly the same thing, except he flares his tail feathers and gobbles seductively instead of shelling out to the Red Cross.

Humans behave in different ways because each human imagines things slightly differently – the beauty of mutation. But the one constant in human behavior is that they will always pursue the action for which they have the highest incentive, just like animals do with their instincts. This is decision science - this is fact. Let me give you a non-selfless example. I put you into a room in which there are two baskets. In one basket there is a cookie. In the other basket there are 100 cookies. I tell you that you can have the contents of one and only one basket. What will you choose?

Perhaps you will choose the 100 because you love the taste of cookies and you want as many as you can get your hands on. I bet you can’t wait to tell me that you wouldn’t choose that basket for whatever reason, but I’ve already prepared for that. Perhaps you will consider that if you eat 100 cookies, you will gain weight and people will consider you unattractive. Perhaps you will consider that you are being watched, and if you take 100 cookies I will consider you to be a pig who eats too much. Perhaps you would like to demonstrate that you are strong-willed and can survive on little, so you will take the basket with one cookie. Perhaps you know that I want you to take the basket with 100 cookies, and it makes you happy to prove me wrong, so you will take the basket with only one cookie specifically for that reason. Perhaps you think you'd get full after five cookies, and you don't want to be wasteful, so you'll just take the one.

But what if I were able to eliminate all of those pressures that I would call “societal?” What if no one was watching, and you wouldn't gain weight, and there was nobody to prove wrong, and you knew for a fact that it was impossible to be wasteful because there was an infinite supply of cookies that materialized out of thin air? Here you are, alone and weightless, with 100 cookies. You'd eat them - or at least as many as you wanted to eat until the pleasure gained from one cookie could no longer outweigh the displeasure gained from feeling full and/or sick of cookies. You'd behave this way every time, no question. I could run the experiment a million times with a million different people, and I can guarantee that they would choose the basket with 100 cookies every single time.

Even people who are considered "insane" still behave according to their incentives - it's just that we "sane" people often have a hard time understanding what their incentives are.

People often throw around the statistic that humans only use 10% of their brains, but this is false. Humans only use 10% of their brain for normal, everyday conscious thought. Ninety percent of the human brain is dedicated to the subconscious decision-making process, which goes on twenty-four hours a day and requires almost ten percent of the body's daily caloric intake. This is, in short, why human brains are so much bigger than the brains of primate or mammal counterparts. All mammals share very similar conscious-thought and sense structures - things like vision, taste, the perception of the difference between danger and safety, etc. But our subconscious structures are comically oversized by comparison.

So what's the point of all of this? A few simple sentences will wrap this up, I hope.

Humans are animals. Humans behave like animals except for three specific behaviors that humans exhibit, the most important of which is the ability to imagine the future. Both humans and animals make decisions based on incentives, with the ultimate goal of all life being reproduction. Animals make decisions subconsciously by using a series of pre-programmed evolutionarily-stable and time-tested incentives. Humans make decisions consciously by imagining the future and weighing personal incentives and consequences in real time. Both humans and animals behave in their own best interest all the time, every time. Acts that are considered "selfless" are wonderful acts, but they are motivated by personal self-interest. Every human action can be explained by examining the incentives of the human in question.

These are the basics. You have probably thought of one hundred different ways to poke holes in this argument while you’ve been reading – and I’m glad for that, because it shows you’ve been thinking. But I assure you, every argument that you could present has been presented before, and can be explained away. What about homosexuality? What about art and music and theatre? What about philosophy and theology? What incentive could a soldier possibly have to go to war? I can explain all of these things, but I think if you really understand the material in this piece, you can explain them yourself.