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Traditional views of human nature focus on the supernatural, defining us as creatures with souls, minds, and spirits that transcend our physical attributes. In this provocative book, distinguished scientist and historian Elof Axel Carlson argues for a different understanding of ourselves based on our biology—cellular organization, genetics, life cycle, evolution, and our origins as a species. This interpretation does not negate our capacity for imagination, spiritual and emotional yearnings, or aesthetic appreciation for art, music, and literature. Carlson challenges educators, the media, and public policy makers to integrate the evidence from science more fully into our understanding of ourselves.

Contents

 

Preface

1. Introduction

 

PART I: HUMANITY IN A PRESCIENTIFIC UNIVERSE

2. Living on Automatic Pilot

3. Between Gods and Beasts

4. Our Negative Image of Our Animal Self

5. Mind, Souls, Ideals, and the Ephemeral

 

PART II: CONFRONTING AND RECOGNIZING OUR BIOLOGY

6. Biology Becomes Mechanistic and Emerges as a Science

7. The Human Body Is Composed of Cells

8. The Body Evolves

9. Most Human Traits Are Determined by Genes, Which Are Composed of DNA

10. We Have a Life Cycle and Sexuality That Is Genetically Programmed

11. Neurobiology Reveals How the Brain Works

 

PART III: HOW SHOULD WE PERCEIVE HUMANITY IN THE THIRD MILLENNIUM?

12. The Blank Slate, the Human Nature, and the Biological Determinism Fallacies

13. Human Nature as Potentials for Forming Communities

14. Science Enriches Our Appreciation of the Arts and Humanities

15. Moral Values Bind a Community

16. The Human Condition and Our World View Change Every Generation

17. Rethinking Science Teaching

18. A Human Outlook for the Third Millennium

Index