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Quotation of the Day for March 19, 2013"Five core social instincts, I have argued, gave structure and strength to our primeval herds. They kept us safely codependent with our fellow clan members, assigned us a rank in the pecking order, made sure we all did our chores, discouraged us from offending others, and removed us from this social coil when we became a drag on shared resources. "Thus could our ancient forebears cooperate, prosper, multiply -- and pass along their DNA to later generations. "But then, these same lifesaving social instincts didn't readily lend themselves to exploration, artistic expression, romance, inventiveness and experimentation -- the other human drives that make for a vibrant civilization. "To free up those, we needed something that would suppress the rigid social codes that kept our clans safe and alive. We needed something that, on occasion, would let us break free from our biological herd imperative -- or at least let us suppress our angst when we did. "We needed beer." - Jeffrey P. Kahn, professor of psychiatry and author of Angst: Origins of Anxiety and Depression. [http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/opinion/sunday/how-beer-gave-us-civilization.html?_r=0] Submitted by: Mike Krawchuk Mar. 18, 2013  |
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