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Evolving brains, emerging gods: early humans and the origins of Religion

Autor Edwin Fuller Torrey

Editorial COLUMBIA UNIV. PRESS

Evolving brains, emerging gods: early humans and the origins of Religion
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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,

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  • Editorial COLUMBIA UNIV. PRESS
  • ISBN13 9780231183369
  • ISBN10 0231183364
  • Tipo LIBRO
  • Páginas 291
  • Año de Edición 2017
  • Idioma Inglés
  • Encuadernación Rústica con solapas

Evolving brains, emerging gods: early humans and the origins of Religion

Autor Edwin Fuller Torrey

Editorial COLUMBIA UNIV. PRESS

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,

-5% dto.    34,95€
33,21€
Ahorra 1,75€
No disponible, consulte disponibilidad
Envío gratis
España peninsular

Detalles del libro

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.

E. Fuller Torrey is associate director for research at the Stanley Medical Research Institute and the founder of the Treatment Advocacy Center. His books include The Roots of Treason: Ezra Pound and the Secret of St. Elizabeths (1984); The Insanity Offense: How America's Failure to Treat the Seriously Mentally Ill Endangers Its Citizens (2008); Surviving Schizophrenia: A Family Manual, 6th ed. (2013); and American Psychosis: How the Federal Government Destroyed the Mental Illness Treatment System (2013).