What makes us Human - Kate Adie

Kindness and cooperation are survival strategies for many mammals, especially apes and humans where group living gives us security against outside threats and uncertainty. Together we are stronger!

I saw this posted on Facebook earlier today:

If we could look into each other’s hearts and understand the unique challenges each of us faces, I think we would treat each other much more gently, with more love, patience, tolerance and care.

Says everything really. I’d say it should go for the virtual world of GN as well.

Yes. Wouldn't it be lovely for this to reach the dizzy lengths some of the other GN topics have, in a kind way of course

I think it’ll not receive much attention. I do wonder whether certain permanently grouchy posters use this site to exercise their ill will about whatever is wrong with their life.
I smile when writing something kind. I don’t when I allow myself to get trapped in argument. This week I’m trying to resist everything but kindness.

1% of our DNA.

Otherwise we'd be chimps.

callistemon
Whats 1% of our DNA please

what's 1% of our DNA please

Would you like the long explanation or the short precis, May7?

The 1% of the DNA I refer to is the 1% that we do not share with chimpanzees and with bonobos, that is the difference which makes us human.

However, it is a lot more complicated than that.

Callistemon ok thanks for that quick reply

What makes us human? We have a soul.

Empathy ... the ability to sense other people's emotions, coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling.

Sadly, it's seriously lacking amongst some people. All too often, when someone is feeling down/upset/stressed about something, and they come here looking for a bit of advice/reassurance/support, there's always someone eager to make them feel worse than they already do, without a single thought as to what effect it will have on the person asking for advice.

Nansnet?

I don't think that empathy is totally exclusive to humans though.

we have a soul
If you are religious you may believe that. However, we don't know that for certain, neither do we know that animals don't have souls.

The ability to cry tears of emotion.

Much as I agree with the sentiment I don't think it is exclusively human. All of our dogs and a few cats have noticed when one of the family is sad or unwell then made a fuss of the sufferer.

Don’t elephants cry too ?

I think it’s something to do with the ability to overthink and not just accept . (Clumsily put I know)

It is reported that animals shed tears but not through emotion, more for lubrication.

Although there was a case of an elephant which apparently shed a tear when he was rescued. It could have been coincidence.
Certainly animals, notably elephants, mourn their dead.

Yes, dogs seem to have empathy threexnanny, in my experience. And sometimes a weird sixth sense.

youtu.be/CQCOHUXmEZg

I love this.

We human think we're superior to animals - is that what makes us human?
A feeling of superiority?

I would be interested in a definition of "soul."

I was talking to vicar the other day as she is presiding at my OH's funeral on Wednesday. She defined god as the essence of goodness in the world, rather than a specific being. I resisted the temptation to ask how this essence could have a son to send, or was able to choose to answer prayers, or should be worshipped etc.

But essentially I agreed with her - there is a spirit of goodness present which we can choose to latch on to or not- I said I was happy to accept that and that I thought the most important thing was simply to be as kind as we can - nothing else really matters.

But I do think that animals can be kind - and not necessarily purely as a survival mechanism.

I think what I got from Kate Adies thoughts were that even though we as humans commit atrocities there is a potential in all humans to be kind and if we look around we will see the kindness of strangers everywhere. The what makes us human broadcast is not really about comparing us to animals it's just meant to be thought provoking and maybe change our behaviour. If you listen to it you may well interpret it differently though

We have the potential to change the world with kindness.
I'm not sure we'll ever reach that potential, though.

Still, we can have a go at changing our little part of it.

Misdventure ditto