Sublime

But the only way to know for sure is to make your own active choices.

Values, ethics, fears, and goals are often significant factors in decision-making.

Like bees, our ancestors were (1) territorial creatures with a fondness for defensible nests (such as caves) who (2) gave birth to needy offspring that required enormous amounts of care, which had to be given while (3) the group was under threat from neighboring groups. For hundreds of thousands of years, therefore, conditions were in place that pu

the fit between his micro-motives and the financial, cultural, and social opportunities of Boston would provide him with a better shot of achieving fulfillment.

kind of brute reflex, very often at odds with our rationality. The primitive part of your brain wants you to tell your boss he’s an idiot, but your deliberative side knows that doing so would get you fired, so you restrain yourself. This kind of internal battle between emotion and reason is one of the great narratives of Western civilization. It he

The gang members of a bygone era also had their leaders, bullies, jokers, and nerds. Each individual had taken up a position in the superorganism’s unfolding structure. And each had shaped his personality to fit the spot in which he landed.

like the expert firefighters who suddenly make poor choices when faced with a fire in an unfamiliar structure. Chris

seducing a man away from his obligations, social role, or sense of personal boundaries.