

The Dissenter
Ricardo Lopes
My name is Ricardo Lopes, and I’m from Portugal. Thank you for visiting my podcast.
Over the past few years, I have conducted and released more than 900 interviews and talks with experts and academics from a variety of areas and disciplines, ranging from the Arts and Philosophy to the Social Sciences and Biology. You will certainly find a subject of your interest covered here.
New interviews are released on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays.
Over the past few years, I have conducted and released more than 900 interviews and talks with experts and academics from a variety of areas and disciplines, ranging from the Arts and Philosophy to the Social Sciences and Biology. You will certainly find a subject of your interest covered here.
New interviews are released on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 19, 2019 • 1h 9min
Leda Cosmides Part 2: How to Think About Evolutionary Psychology
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Part 2 of the conversation with Dr. Leda Cosmides: How to Think About Evolutionary Psychology.
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 18, 2019 • 1h 12min
Leda Cosmides Part 1: Basic Concepts of Evolutionary Psychology
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PayPal: paypal.me/thedissenter
------------------Follow me on---------------------
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDissenterYT
Part 1 of the conversation with Dr. Leda Cosmides: Basic Concepts of Evolutionary Psychology.
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 18, 2019 • 55min
#152 Erica van de Waal: Social Cognition And Culture in Primates
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Dr. Erica van de Waal is Professor of Primatology at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland. She is also Director of the Inkawu Vervet Project, at the Mawana Game Reserve, in South Africa, an experimental field site with a study population of over 200 wild vervet monkeys, and a Branco Weiss Fellow of the Society in Science at the University of Zurich. She is interested in the evolution of primate social behaviors with a main focus on cultural transmission and cognition.
In this episode, we talk about the evolutionary/biological bases of culture in primate species. First, we define culture, and also talk about the cognitive tools that primate species need to develop culture, with a few examples of species that have it. We also refer to the ways we can compare humans to other primates in terms of social cognition and cultural behavior. We also touch on theory of mind, and if it’s really necessary to have it to imitate the behavior of others. We then discuss if there are primates, apart from humans, that show teaching behavior and how they communicate. Finally, we go through the parts of the cognition of vervet monkeys that Dr. van de Wall studies, including how their philopatric behavior (philopatry refers to the behavior of staying in the group that individuals are born in, instead of migrating to other groups. That can be done by males or females, and thus we can have male or female philopatry) influences how their culture is developed and transmitted.
Time Links:
00:51 What is culture?
03:29 Culture as a social phenomenon
07:09 The types of information primates pay attention to
14:50 Primate species that exhibit cultural behavior
17:42 How to compare humans to other primates
21:25 Do other primates have theory of mind? And do they need it to imitate others?
26:27 Do other primates have teaching behavior?
31:24 The importance of communication and language
35:52 Dr. van de Waal’s work with vervet monkeys
39:22 The trouble with studying primates in the wild vs studying them in the lab
43:42 How philopatry might affect how culture gets acquired and transmitted
50:13 Do tolerance, altruism, and levels of competition and cooperation matter in the evolution of culture?
52:15 Follow Dr. van de Waal’s work!
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Follow Dr. van de Waal’s work:
Faculty page: https://tinyurl.com/y7rhq36b
Inkawu Vervet Project: https://tinyurl.com/y9ogkqgz
Articles on Researchgate: https://tin

Mar 16, 2019 • 1h 1min
#34 Azar Gat: War and Terrorism, from the Hunter-Gatherers to the Long Peace
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Dr. Azar Gat is the Ezer Weizman Professor of National Security and Chair of the Department of Political Science at Tel Aviv University, in Israel. He is the founder and head of the University's Executive Master’s Program in Diplomacy and Security. He’s also the author of books like A History of Military Thought, War in Human Civilization, and Nations.
Here, we talk about the evolutionary underpinnings of war in human society; the history and evolution of war, and how war manifests itself in pre-state and state societies, in hunter-gatherer, pastoralist, and agricultural societies; the influence of nationalism and religion; the Long Peace and the New Peace; the deterrence role of nuclear weapons; historical trends in war; the possible reasons for the obsolescence of war among the most developed countries and the great powers; the role of terrorism and terrorist attacks; and the possible future of war.
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O Dr. Azar Gat é o Ezer Weizman Professor of National Security e o Presidente do Departamento de Ciência Política da Universidade de Tel Aviv, em Israel. É o fundador e o coordenador do Executive Master’s Program in Diplomacy and Security da Universidade. E é também o autor de livros como A History of Military Thought, War in Human Civilization, e Nations.
Aqui, falamos sobre as bases evolucionistas da guerra na sociedade humana; a história e evolução da guerra, e como a guerra se manifesta em sociedades pré-estatais e estatais, em sociedades de caçadores-recoletores, pastoralistas, e agrícolas; a influência do nacionalismo e da religião; a Long Peace e a New Peace; o papel de dissuasão das armas nucleares; tendências históricas da guerra; as possíveis razões para a obsolescência da guerra entre os países mais desenvolvidos e as grandes potências; o papel do terrorismo e dos ataques terroristas; e o possível futuro da guerra.
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Follow Dr. Gat’s work:
Faculty page: https://secdip.tau.ac.il/azargat
Books: https://www.amazon.com/Azar-Gat/e/B001IQZAOG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1525019759&sr=1-2-ent
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A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 15, 2019 • 56min
#151 Richard Wrangham: The Goodness Paradox, Human Self-Domestication and Aggression
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Anchor (podcast): https://anchor.fm/thedissenter
Dr. Richard Wrangham is Ruth B. Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University and founded the Kibale Chimpanzee Project in 1987. He has conducted extensive research on primate ecology, nutrition, and social behavior. He is best known for his work on the evolution of human warfare, described in the book Demonic Males, and on the role of cooking in human evolution, described in the book Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human. Together with Elizabeth Ross, he co-founded the Kasiisi Project in 1997, and serves as a patron of the Great Apes Survival Partnership (GRASP). He has also recently published the book The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution (2019).
In this episode, we focus on the main topics of Dr. Wrangham’s latest book, The Goodness Paradox. We talk about the differences between reactive aggression and proactive aggression, comparing ourselves to other primates, and also evidence that comes from studies with hunter-gatherers, horticulturalists and other traditional human societies. Then, we discuss self-domestication, starting with the changes that usually occur both at the physical and the behavioral levels in domesticated species, and also some aspects of our sociality that might have favored self-domestication in our species, with focus on the role that capital punishment has played. Finally, we talk about group selection at the genetic and cultural levels, and also speculate a bit on the possibility of some gene-culture coevolution processes that were set in place after the advent of agriculture having contributed for the further reduction of reactive aggression in humans.
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Follow Dr. Wrangham’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/2TpMSZP
Articles of Researchgate: https://bit.ly/2NKQC1K
Books: https://amzn.to/2NSWdDr
The Goodness Paradox: https://amzn.to/2ER2JHH
Kibale Chimpazee Project: https://bit.ly/2H42OKq
Referenced books:
Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human: https://amzn.to/2TjSODn
Demonic Males: Apes and the Origins of Human Violence: https://amzn.to/2ERDGEu
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined: https://amzn.to/2aY25WF
Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress: https://amzn.to/2FRJrj5
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, HANS FREDRIK SUNDE, BRIAN RIVERA, ADRIANO ANDRADE, YEVHEN BODRENKO, SERGIU CODREANU, ADAM BJERRE, JUSTIN WATERS, AND ŁUKASZ STAFINIAK!
A SPECIAL THANKS TO MY FIRST PRODUCER, Yzar Wehbe!

Mar 15, 2019 • 1h 1min
#33 Richard Lippa: Sex Differences in Cognition and Interests
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Dr. Richard Lippa is a Professor of Psychology at California State University. He’s the author of books like Introduction to Social Psychology, and Gender, Nature, and Nurture.
Here, we talk about the controversies surrounding the study of human sex differences; the sources we draw from while establishing the sex differences as scientific facts; the use of sex and gender as scientific terms; the role of biology in psychological and behavioral sex differences; some of the main sex differences, in aggression, sexual behavior, cognitive abilities, and interests; the role of endocrinology, and the sex hormones; how studying the psychological traits of homosexual people allow for a better understanding of sex differences; the prosocial role of testosterone; and the possible influence of sociocultural factors.
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O Dr. Richard Lippa é um Professor de Psicologia da California State University. É o autor de livros como Introduction to Social Psychology, e Gender, Nature, and Nurture.
Aqui, falamos sobre os controvérsias em redor do estudo de diferenças sexuais humanas; as fontes das quais colhemos dados na tentativa de estabelecer as diferenças entre os sexos como factos científicos; o uso de sexo e género como termos científicos; o papel da biologia nas diferenças psicológicas e comportamentais; algumas das principais diferenças, em termos de agressão, comportamento sexual, habilidades cognitivas, e interesses; o papel da endocrinologia, e das hormonas sexuais; como o estudo de pessoas homossexuais permite uma melhor entendimento das diferenças entre os sexos; o papel prossocial da testosterona; e a possível influência de fatores socioculturais.
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Follow Dr. Lippa’s work:
Faculty page: http://psych.fullerton.edu/rlippa/
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 14, 2019 • 1h 14min
#150 Steve Stewart-Williams: The Ape That Understood The Universe, Biology and Human Culture
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Dr. Steve Stewart-Williams is Associate Professor of Psychology at Nottingham University Malaysia Campus. His research revolves around the idea that theories from evolutionary biology can shed light on human psychology. In particular, he’s interested in the evolutionary origins of altruistic behavior and human sex differences. He also has a long-standing interest in the philosophical implications of evolutionary theory. He’s also the author of the books Darwin, God and the Meaning of Life (2010) and The Ape That Understood the Universe (2018).
In this episode, our conversation centers on some of the main topics of Dr. Stewart-Williams’ most recent book, The Ape That Understood the Universe. We first go through some of the basics of modern evolutionary theory and evolutionary biology, like units and levels of selection, and sexual selection, and also establish the relationship between biology and culture at the same time. Then, we discuss the origins of sex differences, and psychological traits as part of our phenotype. We also refer to the problem with using the term “gender” in science. We then talk about the model MMC (Mutual Mate Choice) in human sexual selection, and if there is any preferred mating system in human societies, like monogamy or polygamy. Toward the end, we talk about the evolutionary mismatch between our ancestral environments and our modern industrialized scientific societies, and how to approach the study of religion from a biological/evolutionary standpoint.
Time Links:
00:55 Units and levels of selection in evolution
09:39 Biological and cultural evolution
13:09 How to think about culture
23:19 Sexual selection
27:29 Where to start off from to understand the origins of sex differences
34:59 The problem with the term “gender”
42:30 The flaws with pure sociological or sociocultural approaches to psychological sex differences
45:17 Cultures do not vary randomly
48:05 About the MCFC (Males Compete Females Choose) and MMC (Mutual Mate Choice) models of sexual selection
52:14 Is there any preferred mating system in human societies (monogamy, polygamy)?
55:55 Evolutionary mismatch between our ancestral environments and the modern ones
1:00:35 How to properly study religion as a human phenomenon
1:09:31 “Culture might influence our behavior a bit, but it never conjures things up, nor is the origin of them”
1:11:05 Follow Dr. Stewart-Williams’ work!
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Follow Dr. Stewart-Williams’ work:
Faculty page: https://tinyurl.com/yda

Mar 13, 2019 • 45min
#31 Samuel Andreyev: Music Across Times and Cultures
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------------------Follow me on---------------------
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDissenterYT
Samuel Andreyev is a Canadian composer and writer residing in France.
Here, we talk about his work, and his Youtube channel; the differences between classical and modern music compositions; what are the universal traits of music across cultures and times, and may have a connection with innate aesthetics predispositions for music appreciation; how deaf people create music; the differences between music for the elites and music for the people, throughout history; and the role played by the music industry in promoting what is now popular music.
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O Samuel Andreyev é um compositor e escritor canadiano residente em França.
Aqui, falamos sobre o seu trabalho, e o seu canal do Youtube; as diferenças entre composições musicais clássicas e modernas; quais as características universais da música que atravessam as diferentes culturas e tempos, e que podem ter uma conexão com predisposições estéticas inatas para apreciação musical; as diferenças entre música para as elites e música para as pessoas, ao longo da história; e o papel da indústria musical na promoção do que é agora a música popular.
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Follow Samuel’s work:
His personal website: http://www.samuelandreyev.com/
His Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI_dcH8Zr2UqNT1EqvMNgTg
Twitter handle: @SamuelAndreyev
Support Samuel’s work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuelandreyev
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 12, 2019 • 53min
#30 David C. Geary: Folk Cognition, Sex Differences in Vulnerability, Children's Learning
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PayPal: paypal.me/thedissenter
------------------Follow me on---------------------
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedissenteryt/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDissenterYT
Dr. David C. Geary is a cognitive developmental and evolutionary psychologist. He is currently a Curators’ Professor and Thomas Jefferson Fellow in the Department of Psychological Sciences and Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. He’s the author of several books including Children's Mathematical Development, Male, Female: The Evolution of Human Sex Differences, and Evolution of vulnerability: Implications For Sex Differences in Health and Development.
Here, we talk about the cognitive modules of folk psychology, folk biology and folk physics; the book Evolution of Vulnerability, and how the study of vulnerability gives strength to the research on human sex differences; the differences between biologically primary and secondary information; in what ways is the knowledge about these modules important for us to devise better ways for children to learn and to be educated; the difficulty in learning Mathematics; the role play plays in children’s development and the acquisition of social and academic knowledge; how sex differences affect the acquisition of academic knowledge for boys and girls, and the possibility of segregated schooling; Peter Gray and the Sudbury Valley School experiment.
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O Dr. David C. Geary é um psicólogo cognitivo do desenvolvimento e evolutivo. É atualmente o Curators’ Professor e Thomas Jefferson Fellow do Department of Psychological Sciences and Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program na Universidade de Missouri. É o autor de vários livros, incluindo Children’s Mathematical Development, Male, Female: The Evolution of Human Sex Differences, e Evolution of vulnerability: Implications For Sex Differences in Health and Development.
Aqui, falamos sobre os módulos cognitivos de “folk psychology”, “folk biology”, e “folk physics”; o livro Evolution of Vulnerability e como o estudo da vulnerabilidade dá força à investigação em redor de diferenças entre os sexos; as diferenças entre informação biológica primária e secundária; de que maneiras o conhecimento sobre estes módulos é importante para concebermos melhores formas para as crianças aprenderem e serem educadas; a dificuldades em aprender matemática; o papel que a brincadeira tem no desenvolvimento da criança e na aquisição de conhecimento social e académico; como as diferenças entre os sexos afetam a aquisição de conhecimento académico para meninos e meninas, e a possibilidade de ensino segregado; Peter Gray e a experiência na Sudbury Valley School.
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Follow Dr. Geary’s work:
Faculty page: http://web.missouri.edu/~gearyd/
--
A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!
I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:
https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo
And check out my playlists on:
PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km
PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p
ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

Mar 11, 2019 • 1h 30min
#149 Martin Daly: Evolution, Inequality, Violence And Homicide
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Dr. Martin Daly is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University, Canada. His areas of interest are human violence (especially homicide), family relations, and evolutionary psychology. He is a founding member and past-president (1991-1993) of the Human Behavior & Evolution Society (HBES), and with his late wife Margo Wilson, he served as co-editor-in-chief of the society's journal Evolution & Human Behaviour for its first decade. In 1998, Dr. Daly was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. They also co-authored three books: Sex, Evolution and Behavior (1978, 1983), Homicide (1988), and The Truth about Cinderella (1998). Dr. Daly’s latest book (July, 2016) is entitled Killing the Competition: Economic Inequality and Homicide.
In this episode, the conversation revolves around violence and homicide, and the main topics of the books Homicide and Killing the Competition. First, we talk about the evolutionary bases of violent behavior, as a means of controlling other people’s behavior and regulating relationships. We also go through the evolved sex differences in aggressiveness, as a result of intrasexual and intersexual competition. Then, we talk specifically about homicide, and why it might also happen in familial conflicts, even though it is quite rare. We also refer to the potential problems with having an approach that favors pathologizing all types of violent and deviant behavior. Finally, we talk about the relationship between economic inequality and homicide, as explored in Killing the Competition, and how it affects primarily young men, and the environmental and social circumstances that trigger it. Toward the end, we also refer to the importance of the State having the monopoly over violence and its relationship with social stability, and the benefits that we get from economic redistribution.
Time Links:
02:03 The evolved function of violence
07:28 The evolutionary costs and benefits of violence
12:42 Sex differences in aggressiveness and violent behavior
15:50 Intrasexual and intersexual competition
24:21 About homicide
28:25 Familial violence and homicide
34:04 Is the best approach to pathologize violent behavior?
44:47 Killing the Competition, and the relationship between economic inequality and homicide
54:49 Inequality, disadvantaged young men, violence and reproductive success
1:01:19 Killing and waging war to gain access to sexual resources
1:11:34 Violence in criminal gangs
1:15:42 Hobbes, the Leviathan, and State monopoly over violence
1:17:51 Could education on th


