Is utopia possible or do human brains preclude it? with Paul Bloom

Would a utopia be possible? Or does our innate tribalism and jealousy make perfect societies difficult to achieve? Do we secretly love hierarchies? Why are primate brains such excellent detectors of unfairness? Why do things become more desirable when we’re told we can’t have them? Did the church’s disavowal of first-cousin marriage lead to better politics? This week Eagleman talks with psychologist Paul Bloom about the (im)possibility of achieving societal utopias.

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More Information:

Bostrom N. Deep Utopia: Life and Meaning in a Solved World. 2024 Mar 27. Ideapress Publishing: Washington DC.

Eagleman D, Vaughn D. Does your brain care about other people? It depends. The Economist. 2019.

Muzafer Sherif et al (1956). The Robbers Cave Experiment: Intergroup Conflict and Cooperation. (Orig. pub. as Intergroup Conflict and Group Relations)

Brosnan SF, De Waal FB. Monkeys reject unequal pay. Nature. 2003 Sep 18;425(6955):297-9.

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