How selfish are we really? - Jo Brand, Matti Wilks and Steve Jones

The Infinite Monkey Cage

BBC

Comedy, Science

4.7 • 9.4K Ratings

🗓️ 26 February 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Brian Cox and Robin Ince kindly open the door for each other as they step into understanding altruism asking why humans have evolved to help each. Joining them to explore the human tendency to be kind is evolutionary biologist Steve Jones, psychologist Matti Wilks and comedian Jo Brand.

Starting with the animal kingdom we probe the biological underpinnings of why organisms might act to help others at an energetic cost to themselves and where this fits alongside the theory of evolution. We explore how the development of human societies has necessitated altruistic behaviours and how these manifest in our modern lives. Matti introduces the idea of moral circles as we ask why are we more generous to some people than others. We explore how children feel about being kind to those close and far away with some surprising recent findings and finally consider what can encourage more altruistic behaviour.

Producer: Melanie Brown Exec Producer: Alexandra Feachem Assistant Producer: Olivia Jani

Transcript

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0:00.0	he was one of the most enigmatic owners in football
0:04.4	can you describe Vladimir Romanoff in one word mysterious
0:07.7	his roller coaster reign of hearts had incredible highs
0:11.7	heart made by Wengold O'Nell and remarkable lows
0:15.4	he fires the coach right there on the bus in front of all the team
0:19.1	so who was Vladimir Romanov?
0:21.8	And where is he now?
0:22.9	If you gave this storyline to a Hollywood filmmaker,
0:25.8	get rejected too incredulous.
0:28.3	I'm Martin Geisler,
0:29.6	and this is Romanov, Tsar of Hearts.
0:32.4	Listen on BBC Sounds.
0:35.9	BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:39.5	You're about to listen to The Infinite Monkey Cage.
0:42.3	Episodes will be released on Wednesdays wherever you get your podcast from.
0:46.1	But if you're in the UK, the full series is available right now, first on BBC Sounds.
0:52.6	Hello, I'm Brian Cox.
0:54.0	I'm Robinx, and this is the Infinite Monkey Cage.
0:56.9	Now, today we're discussing the science of altruism,
0:59.5	a concept first explored in detail by the French philosopher Augustus Comte.
1:03.7	Scientifically, not only was Comte actually a philosopher,
1:07.4	he was also a cheesemaker.
	...

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