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Conversations With Coleman

The Evolution of Culture with Joseph Henrich [S2 Ep.20]

Jun 26, 2021
Listen to Joseph Henrich, Professor of Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University, discuss how cultural practices shape human biology, the dominance of humans over the animal kingdom, tribal traditions, lactose intolerance, WEIRD cultures, and the policy implications of cultural research.
01:00:45

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Culture is the main reason why humans dominate over the animal kingdom.
  • Cultural learning involves selectivity and children imitate those who are successful and prestigious.

Deep dives

The Power of Culture: Influence on Human Behavior and Biology

This podcast episode featuring Joseph Henrich, a professor of evolutionary biology at Harvard University, explores the influence of culture on human biology and behavior. The discussion highlights how cultural practices have shaped human biology and why culture is the main reason humans dominate over the animal kingdom. The episode delves into the implicit wisdom found in tribal cultural traditions, the interaction between culture and genetics in areas such as lactose intolerance, and the measurable psychological differences between groups with different cultural backgrounds. The concept of "weird" populations (Western Educated Industrialized Rich and Democratic) is introduced, emphasizing their unique psychological traits compared to non-weird populations. Examples are provided to demonstrate how culture shapes human experiences, including the detoxification process of Manioc in South America and the consequences of not following cultural practices.

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