[extropy-chat] Affective computing: Candy bars for the soul

[Robin Hanson]

On 12/21/2003, Mark Walker wrote:
> > Probably the biggest
> > way in which our minds have been misled, relative to the ancient
> > problems they were designed to solve, is whatever it is that causes
> > the demographic transition, causing rich societies to have far fewer
> > children than evolution could possibly have "intended."  I wish we
> > understood this better; it might give us a better clue about the other
> > problems.
>
>... I wonder why the "simple" answer is not correct. ... evolution "wants"
>us to have as many viable offspring as possible. Until very recently
>evolution was able to achieve this "desired" end by us wanting to have sex
>and wanting to raise our own children. Evolution never had to "worry" about
>us not wanting children but now with birth control this is possible. ...

The demographic transition is the phenomena whereby the birthrate falls
dramatically when nations get richer.  This phenomena is *not* driven
primarily by birth control.  It happened before birth control, and poor
nations now have high birth rates after cheap birth control.  Also any of
you who have ever been around a woman whose biological clock went "bing"
will know that we often have strong desires for children, not just sex.



Robin Hanson  rhanson at gmu.edu  http://hanson.gmu.edu
Assistant Professor of Economics, George Mason University
MSN 1D3, Carow Hall, Fairfax VA 22030-4444
703-993-2326  FAX: 703-993-2323