Rationality: not a strong trait in humans

Introduction

• You need only observe the traffic on any road to see irrational behaviour; few people drive in a way that is efficient in fuel use, conservative in wear on their vehicle and its components, and maximises safety. Young men, in particular, often drive with the subconscious aim of achieving adrenalin rushes.
• Our use of tobacco and many illicit drugs is harmful to our health, often damaging to society, and produces no net benefits to anyone (apart from the tobacco companies and organised crime).
• Poker machines are designed to make money for their owners and for the owners of the premises that house the machines; it is absolutely impossible for regular players to do anything other than loose a substantial part of the money that they put into the machines; yet there are many who love to 'play' the pokies. It would make as much sense to take the money from your bank account and burn every fifth note.
• Economists and governments refuse to recognise that growth cannot continue for ever; both believe that the economy must grow if a nation is to be 'successful'. A growing economy generally means a growing amount of consumption and a growing rate of depletion of natural resources; things that are not sustainable.
• Religion is perhaps the most widespread and important human irrationality; the majority of the world's people subscribe to one or another conflicting and disparate sets of beliefs on which they largely base their lives, but for which there is absolutely no evidence.

It is ironical that we can be sufficiently intellitent to see this, to be able to understand the ways in which the Earth is changing, the consequences of our actions and our inactions, but not the rationality to make the necessary changes to our behaviours. Is it that some of us are rational, but many are not; some are governed by their intelligence, others largely by emotions?

Why? Why are the great majority of people willing to do nothing while our governments allow climate change to gradually destroy the world that we know and love.

Our greatest irrationalities seem often to be associated with short-sighted thinking. Climate change is a long-term threat, driving (rather than walking or riding a bicycle) to the shop is a short-term activity. We seem unable, individually or collectively, to change our short-term behaviour for the sake of our long-term survival. Many of our day-to-day activities need to change for us to control climate change.

Our use of antibiotics is another example of short-sited thinking harming our long-term welfare. Our farmers feed antibiotics to their animals because it slightly increases the growth rates – at the same time as training bacteria to live successfully in the presence of antibiotics.

Intelligent life on Earth has been one of nature's greatest experiments in this wonderful Universe. It seems a shame that it appears to have failed because of an insufficiency of rationality.

A list of things that can be done to reduce greenhouse impact is given on another page; many of them would also save money. Why are we not doing them?

Why? People must be somehow 'hard-wired' to keep these irrational hours. I don't understand this behaviour, I've never read an explanation, and can't even guess why it is so common. I'd be interested to hear if someone has a reasonable explanation for it.

I live in an area with a long, hot summer (Mid-North South Australia). Many days in summer are hot enough so that most people try to avoid going out during the hottest part of the day. On these hot days I rise at or before daylight so that I can use the best part of the day; the period during morning twilight and the first few hours after sunrise when the temperatures are pleasant, or at least tolerable; but I see few others out and about then.

The evenings on these hot days are a little cooler than near the middle of the day, but of course temperatures typically decline from sunset until around sunrise of the next day, so the mornings are normally cooler than the evenings.

It is irrational to sleep during that part of the day that is most pleasant to be out, and then try to be active in some less pleasant part of the day. Surely we can all easily learn to go to bed and sleep earlier in the evening and then rise earlier too?

References

Michael Shermer has made statements along the same lines.

Index