Selfish traits not favoured by evolution, study shows

[Guest]

So the conclusion to this may just well be what we all know, that Life is one big fight for survival, and its not so un-natural to be selfish at times, especially when needs must, like some animals will eat each other or the wounded if food is scarce, its a dog eat dog world imo and a dog eat dog life, but some of us try to help others when we can cos its what we feel is right to do, so maybe we have all lost the inner voice or feelings of good telling us to be good?

 

[kefkat]

ClivetheVillan - 5/8/2013 18:54

Green Tea - 5/8/2013 12:45

The problem with scientific reports is that they tend to change month by month. One minute we are told Coffee is bad for you, next minute we are told the opposite.

Selfishness does not favour evolution?

The pecking order in the majority of all living species, could this not some how be classed as a selfishness for putting one's own survival 1st?[/QUOTE

Im not religous far from it, but even i think this scientific research is way over hyped, how can you class so many different species and how many there is living there lives and say just cos you ain't seen selfish acts in nature it doesn't exist lol

Ive seen my dog be selfish and take my sausage of my plate when i left it on the coffee table, is that not a selfish act? Also animals kill each other for food is that not a selfish act?

Your post reminded me of George Orwell Animal Farm. Have you or anyone read it?.

Isn't all this the awesomeness of our universe to talk, debate and look at how we on earth act etc.

Step out of the box and think about how non important we are in the scheme of everything. We used to believe before telescopes we were the centre of the earth.

Faith Clive (which is not what the post about so don't think I am trying to change it to that, as I am NOT) isn't seemed to be interchangeable because of it's past by the many. Yet it is as I know. Science is the same.

At 1 time people thought you could do 1 or the other, not both. It is becoming more widely known that both can intertwine.

You are right that we don't know what happens in the lives of other species however yes you can observe what to us are the same behaviors in animals.

We certainly have our survival instincts as animals do. At the very core of it in Animal Farm nothing changed except the species in the end

 

[HeathfieldRoad1874]

Plastic Villan - 6/8/2013 16:00

I probably should have read the article before posting!

:19: :19:

I think most of us have done that before, Plastic!!!! I think Dawkin's book title gives people the wrong idea. The amount of times someone has used it to prove we are all inherently selfish.

 

[OnMeHeadFred]

The usage of "selfish" is a bit dodgy.

"Self-interest" would be better, which covers the whole gamut of behaviours, from self-sacrifice to creating a society where risks and gains are shared.

It can be no surprise that primates would band together to protect food resources from rivals, and that the advantages of such would be selected for.

But what happens when the group gets too big for the food supply?

Being self-interested enough to leave the group and seek other resources would seem a good move too, so there would be a proclivity to do both, depending upon conditions.

It is certainly not a one gene suits all solution because behaviour has to be adaptive or perish.

So I would say that the case, as usual, has been over-stated by some journo with a message and a mission.

 

[HeathfieldRoad1874]

The journo says "not favoured", not "don't Exist" . I don't think that is over stated. It just means the selfish traits exist, but they are not the most dominant, as many have suggested in the past.