Thursday, February 26, 2009

Immorality a Lot Like Rotten Food


Immorality a Lot Like Rotten Food | Wired Science from Wired.com

Immorality is literally disgusting: it appears to provoke an ancient brain system designed to identify rotten food.

Disgust was observed in test subjects who, given an unfair offer in a money-splitting game, literally turned up their noses. The response was the same as to foul-tasting drinks and disgusting pictures.

"Our idea is that morality builds upon an old mental reflex," said study co-author Adam Anderson, a University of Toronto psychologist. "The brain had already discovered a system for rejecting things that are bad for it. Then it co-opted this and attached it to conditions much removed from something tasting or smelling bad."



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