Daily Archives: July 20, 2009

Fox Guards Hen House: New FDA Food Watchdog in Monsanto’s Back Pocket

Posted on July 20, 2009 by bfialindathieman

Fox Guards Hen House: New FDA Food Watchdog in Monsanto's Back Pocket by Tom Philpott, Grist.orgMonsanto’s Man Taylor Returns to FDA in Food-czar RoleThe FDA [has] announced that Michael Taylor, a former Monsanto executive, had joined the agency as “senior … Continue reading →

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The altruism in economics

Posted on July 20, 2009 by bfiacarolinevernon

The Altruism in Economics


Standard economic theory states that people are interested only in
their own material gain. But new insights from behavioral economics
show that altruism rather than avarice is our primary motivation.

Jeremy Mercer –  http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=3716


It was evolutionary biologists, with their penchant for field
observation, who started to explore the question in an empirical
manner. It began with Charles Darwin, who was amazed by the cooperation
among bees; moved to William Hamilton, who studied altruism among
rabbits; and went on to include Robert Trivers’ work on sharing among
vampire bats. Once altruism was established in the natural world, the
same analytical eye inevitably turned toward the human sphere.


In 1973, a landmark experiment was conducted at blood banks in Kansas
City and Denver. It was inspired by the “crowding out” theory of
British social researcher Richard Titmuss, the idea that people perform
certain tasks, such as donating blood, for the common good, but that
their motivation would be “crowded out” if they were offered a
financial reward. The two blood banks were ideal testing grounds
because both had “willing” files bearing the names of previous donors.
For the experiment, a control group was sent the typical letter
… Continue reading →

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