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Evolving brains, emerging gods : early humans and the origins of religion / E. Fuller Torrey.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Columbia University Press, [2017]Copyright date: ©2017Description: 1 online resource (xv, 291 pages) : illustrationsContent type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9780231544863
  • 0231544863
  • 9780231183369
  • 0231183364
Other title:
  • Early humans and the origins of religion [Portion of title]
Subject(s): Additional physical formats: Print version:: Evolving brains, emerging gods.DDC classification:
  • 200.1 23
LOC classification:
  • BL51
NLM classification:
  • BL 51
Other classification:
  • online - EBSCO
Online resources:
Contents:
Introduction : the brain, home of the gods -- 1. Homo habilis : a smarter self -- 2. Homo erectus : an aware self -- 3. Archaic Homo sapiens (Neandertals) : an empathic self -- 4. Early Homo sapiens : an introspective self -- 5. Modern Homo sapiens : a temporal self -- 6. Ancestors and agriculture : a spiritual self -- 7. Governments and gods : a theistic self -- 8. Other theories of the origins of gods -- Appendix A: The evolution of the brain -- Appendix B: Dreams as proof of the existence of a spirit world and land of the dead
Summary: "Religions and mythologies from around the world teach that God or gods created humans. Atheist, humanist, and materialist critics, meanwhile, have attempted to turn theology on its head, claiming that religion is a human invention. In this book, E. Fuller Torrey draws on cutting-edge neuroscience research to propose a startling answer to the ultimate question. Evolving Brains, Emerging Gods locates the origin of gods within the human brain, arguing that religious belief is a by-product of evolution. Based on an idea originally proposed by Charles Darwin, Torrey marshals evidence that the emergence of gods was an incidental consequence of several evolutionary factors. Using data ranging from ancient skulls and artifacts to brain imaging, primatology, and child development studies, this book traces how new cognitive abilities gave rise to new behaviors. For instance, autobiographical memory, the ability to project ourselves backward and forward in time, gave Homo sapiens a competitive advantage. However, it also led to comprehension of mortality, spurring belief in an alternative to death. Torrey details the neurobiological sequence that explains why the gods appeared when they did, connecting archaeological findings including clothing, art, farming, and urbanization to cognitive developments. This book does not dismiss belief but rather presents religious belief as an inevitable outcome of brain evolution. Providing clear and accessible explanations of evolutionary neuroscience, Evolving Brains, Emerging Gods will shed new light on the mechanics of our deepest mysteries"-- Book jacket
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number URL Status Notes Barcode
eBook eBook Biblioteca "Angelicum" Pont. Univ. S.Tommaso d'Aquino Nuvola online online - EBSCO (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Online access Not for loan (Accesso limitato) Accesso per gli utenti autorizzati / Access for authorized users (ebsco)1628791

Includes bibliographical references (pages 239-277) and index

Introduction : the brain, home of the gods -- 1. Homo habilis : a smarter self -- 2. Homo erectus : an aware self -- 3. Archaic Homo sapiens (Neandertals) : an empathic self -- 4. Early Homo sapiens : an introspective self -- 5. Modern Homo sapiens : a temporal self -- 6. Ancestors and agriculture : a spiritual self -- 7. Governments and gods : a theistic self -- 8. Other theories of the origins of gods -- Appendix A: The evolution of the brain -- Appendix B: Dreams as proof of the existence of a spirit world and land of the dead

"Religions and mythologies from around the world teach that God or gods created humans. Atheist, humanist, and materialist critics, meanwhile, have attempted to turn theology on its head, claiming that religion is a human invention. In this book, E. Fuller Torrey draws on cutting-edge neuroscience research to propose a startling answer to the ultimate question. Evolving Brains, Emerging Gods locates the origin of gods within the human brain, arguing that religious belief is a by-product of evolution. Based on an idea originally proposed by Charles Darwin, Torrey marshals evidence that the emergence of gods was an incidental consequence of several evolutionary factors. Using data ranging from ancient skulls and artifacts to brain imaging, primatology, and child development studies, this book traces how new cognitive abilities gave rise to new behaviors. For instance, autobiographical memory, the ability to project ourselves backward and forward in time, gave Homo sapiens a competitive advantage. However, it also led to comprehension of mortality, spurring belief in an alternative to death. Torrey details the neurobiological sequence that explains why the gods appeared when they did, connecting archaeological findings including clothing, art, farming, and urbanization to cognitive developments. This book does not dismiss belief but rather presents religious belief as an inevitable outcome of brain evolution. Providing clear and accessible explanations of evolutionary neuroscience, Evolving Brains, Emerging Gods will shed new light on the mechanics of our deepest mysteries"-- Book jacket

Online resource; title from PDF title page (ProQuest Ebook Central, viewed March 15, 2021)