Born to be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life

Google Tech Talk December 9, 2009 ABSTRACT. Presented by Dacher Keltner. Prof. Keltner will be presenting work related to his recent book "Born to be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life": "In this talk I will survey the latest evolutionary and neuroscience that aligns with Charles Darwin's thesis that sympathy is our strongest instinct, or that we are born to be good. I will take the audience on a tour of recent evolutionary thought, which suggests that our hyper vulnerable offspring rearranged our brains, genes, and social structures. I will detail new research on the vagus nerve and oxytocin, branches of the nervous system that have evolved to enable cooperation, trust, and caretaking. I detail new signaling systems - tactile communication and vocalization - which are critical to the transmission of prosociality across individuals. Throughout the talk I integrate the latest science with the wisdom found in Eastern thought." Dr. Dacher Keltner is a professor of psychology at UC Berkeley, and Director for Greater Good Science Center.