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How bad mood ensures the survival of the species

July 29, 2022

Animals and humans have a built-in alarm system: the hormone cortisol. Animals may stray away from their family to get some food, freedom, or sunshine. The sun increases the brain hormone serotonin which is responsible for a joyful feeling. After a while, before an unseen predator attacks, cortisol rises to make them feel anxious, restless, generally feeling bad and not knowing why. At this point, the animal would rush back to its family or herd. In the company of those we love, like or trust, the brain chemical oxytocin shoots up. Oxytocin gives us a good feeling. Anxiety and fear make animals and humans irritable and even hostile. But avoiding trouble is the response if the threat is too big. Evolutionary scientists noted that animals who were not easily scared were the first to die. Humans also try to displace the cortisol surge by getting angry. We kick the trash can, curse someone, or unfriend people on social media. Some deal with it by praying or meditating. When we are having

How Earthquakes Sustain Life on Earth

July 27, 2022

First of all, I recognize the sorrow of the victims and survivors of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis. I pray that measures and alert systems in the future will keep us safe because earthquakes will keep coming if life on earth must survive. Earthquakes are how we feel plate tectonics. They’re the movement of rock plates on the crust of the earth and the mantle below it. It is our planet’s recycling system and always-charged battery. 1. Shakes happen when blocks of earth slip past one another. Gradually, cold slabs of rocks fall into the earth’s underground oven while freshly-baked plates rise to warm the seafloor. Without this cycle, oceans will freeze. 2. The sinking rocks pull carbon dioxide down with them. Carbon dioxide is good for earthly life but too much of it can make the planet overheat. 3. When rocks sink, they also bring with them dead organisms. They are recycled and returned to the surface as nutrients to feed marine life and to maintain the chemical composi

Democracy is Dangerous. What Should We Do?

July 27, 2022

In Georgias, Plato warned that the populace is easy prey for charming politicians with hidden agenda. He argued that democracy can collapse into tyranny. Plato was validated. In the book How Democracies Die, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt recalled that many dictators “ascended the despotic throne” riding on popular vote. In the past two centuries, many countries widened the base of people allowed to vote. It was a clear attempt to make societies more egalitarian but had risks and tradeoffs. Harvard professor Jennifer L. Horschild commented that decision-making in terms of tackling issues and choosing leaders have “become of lower quality” as a result of expanded suffrage. I wish not to put down the lower classes. But it’s true that lack of education and lack of access to the right information can make people become easy victims of liars, especially in the era of fake news. Even today, mass education has not ensured a better-informed electorate. In the book Too Dumb for Democracy, D

Explain Nation: Why and how bad politicians entice people with low self-esteem

July 27, 2021

A psychoanalyst named Roger Money-Kyrle attended a political meeting in which both Adolf Hitler and his chief propagandist Joseph Goebbels gave a speech. He observed that the speakers first made the audience feel depressed and humiliated. He wrote, “The monster seemed to indulge in an orgy of self-pity.” Then Hitler vented on the scapegoat: the Jews. “Self-pity gave place to hate, and the monster seemed on the point of becoming homicidal.” Finally, they turned to self-praise, a call for unity, and a promise of paradise but “only for true Germans and true Nazis.” Hitler’s rise to power was actually bolstered by the German people’s desire to bring back the national pride they lost after the defeat in World War 1. So, Hitler promised a new world order in which the Germans would be superior to all. This was also pointed out by Jean Lipman-Blumen, a professor of public policy and an expert in leadership, in her book The Allure of Toxic Leaders . She said there are always people who think t

Explain Nation: Why some dieters can be grumpy, and how they can feel better

July 27, 2021

I have a friend who was jolly when he was obese. After a very successful workout, he looked like a model from Vogue but he had the temper of a chef from Hell’s Kitchen. My staff in the office came up with the trick to give me sugary food before they presented their concepts. They told me that the tactic always raised the probability of me approving their work. Here are reasons why it’s not just a joke, not just a myth, that people who eat less can be in a bad mood. 1. Cortisol rising. This is the brain hormone that prepares the body for battle. When cortisol rises, more blood is pumped into body parts we need for fighting or running away. The heart beats faster and breathing becomes more rapid. Cortisol is triggered whenever the body senses danger. If we don’t eat enough, the brain may interpret it as a threat to our survival. So, the rise in cortisol may make us easily triggered by anyone or anything annoying. 2. Sugar changes everything. Sweet food makes us happy because in the ear

Explain Nation: The Origins of Bias

May 01, 2021

Bias was and still is meant for the survival of our genes. In the beginning, our ancestor animals knew there were a million ways to die. When looking for food or just enjoying the sunshine, they looked like meals to a tiger. Later on in evolution, tribes often competed for food and killed each other. So, people learned to trust only those from their own family and village. Most mammals lived with “family” and in herds. People lived with family and tribes in villages. When with trusted ones, the brain produced oxytocin, the brain chemical that made them feel good and relaxed. When animals and people strayed away from their circle of trust, oxytocin dropped and the hormone cortisol would rise to give them a bad feeling. They would then be compelled to go back to the herd or family for that nice oxytocin fix again. That’s how the survival mechanism worked. We have inherited the instinct. Up to now, we have a predictive brain. It makes us feel uncomfortable when with people or in a situati

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