X-Message-Number: 33021
Subject: Re: Gateway president
From: David Stodolsky <>
Date: Tue, 2 Nov 2010 20:12:26 +0100
References: <>

On 2 Nov 2010, at 10:00 AM, CryoNet wrote:
> 
> On Mon, Nov 1, 2010 at 2:00 AM, David Stodolsky <> wrote:
> 
> snip
> 
>> "Work" is a modern concept
> 
> Replace "work" with the effort (or time) required to gather, hunt or
> farm sufficient to subsist.  This can be measured across cultures.

Many people do the above as a type of free-time activity - play. 

Modern work is mostly pushing paper. Prove that I am not working, if I am 
reading a novel. May not be true, if I am a lit. prof. 


> 

>> and as such could not have served as a factor in the Early Environment of 
Adaptation (EEA),
> 
> Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness is the usual meaning of EEA in
> an evolutionary psychology context.
> http://www.anth.ucsb.edu/projects/human/epfaq/eea.html

Various renderings are available in the literature.


> 

>> which is the overwhelming source of genetic determination in Man. Regardless 
of popular science nonsense, such as the "Selfish Gene," humans and most animals
manifest a group survival instinct, as well as an individual survival instinct.
In fact, in most evolving systems it is possible to identify adaptations at the
cellular, bodily, group, and ecosystem levels.
> 
> I think you violate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor when
> all of these levels can be understood as simple consequences of genes.


To quote A. Einstein, "Everything should be as simple as possible, but no 
simpler." 


> You do have to include Hamilton's rule, i.e., inclusive fitness but
> that just says that a gene can affect the survival of its copies
> without being in the same body.

You are out of date with this argument. 

Read "Unto others" for a total refutation on an intro. level.

For a more advanced treatment, see for example:

http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100825/full/news.2010.427.html

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v466/n7310/full/nature09205.html



This is the beginning of the end for the suppression of group selection theory. 
That ideological crusade supported the super-individualistic neo-liberal 
economic theories that have led to the current economic crisis. 


Richard "Selfish Gene" Dawkins was one of the leading fanatics. He developed a 
following of libertarians pushing social darwinism as their religion. The social
instability following from these socio-economic trends has contributed to the 
growth of religion in general. The CryoCare fiasco showed how this nonsense 
played out in the cryonics community.


The growth of religion, economic collapse, and the failure to mobilize group 
survival instincts in marketing have all contributed to the current stagnation 
in sign ups. For a cryonicist to support this nonsense is suicidal. 



dss


David Stodolsky
  Skype: davidstodolsky

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