By Will Collette
Part of what makes
humans human is self-awareness. So it follows that researchers will devote
careers trying to understand behavioral traits, especially those behaviors that
exceed the norm or cause alarm.
I keep waiting for a
caravan of researchers to arrive and set up shop in Charlestown, especially
after the recent Westerly Sun editorial that worried aloud that perhaps Charlestownians
get just a little too emotional and excited about politics.
That's certainly worth considering
as we roll on through one crisis after the other here in town, whether it’s the
use (or abuse) of taxpayer funds, fair taxation policies, the use of Ninigret
Park, policies toward children and working families, the fitness of our Town
Administrator, charges of five-year conspiracies, claims of cover-ups and
duplicity, and the wind.
Yep, here in Charlestown , we are a
bunch of excitable boys and girls.
One reason might be the
close proximity of the Westerly Wal-Mart, just over our western border.
Researchers
from Penn State , New Mexico
State and Michigan
State recently
collaborated on a study cited in LiveScience.com. According to the researchers, there is statistically significant data showing the presence of a
Wal-Mart store was a more important marker of heightened participation in hate
groups than high unemployment and crime or low educational levels.
The researchers noted
that Wal-Mart (and perhaps other Big Box stores) usually kill off smaller local merchants, leading to a diminished sense of community. While they
studied Wal-Mart, the researchers admit their findings could apply to other
stores as well.
"We're not trying to pick on Wal-Mart," said one researcher. "In this study, Wal-Mart is really serving as a proxy for any type of large retailer."
Maybe Wal-Mart is the reason there is so little cooperation among Charlestown citizens . You hear how new and controversial plans are brought
forward without cooperation among the various Town bodies that should be working together. The Planning Commission is frequently mentioned as acting without consultation on subjects
that are part of other commission’s portfolios. There are also complaints about the way that Planning
also ignores the advice and input they get from other groups.
That
can cost more than just the town’s harmony, according to researchers at the Trinity College Dublin’s Theoretical Ecology Research Groupin the UK.
They report complex social interactions, especially
cooperation, are the key to intelligence.
Since it’s impractical
to experiment directly on human brains and to expect to monitor evolutionary
changes except over many generations, the researchers crafted a digital model
to simulate human interactions over 50,000 generations.
They introduced social
games into the model where the two main options for “winning” the game were
cooperating or cheating. Their results were that when their digital societies
employed cooperation, this led to “mutations” that increased the size and
complexity of intelligence, while cheating doesn't.
The researchers warned that cooperation does not always lead to greater intelligence (citing the examples of social insects such as bees, wasps and ants), Nor does it necessarily lead to a better society, as evidenced by the cooperation needed in cultures that use cooperation to unite their populace to oppress or conquer other cultures.
Two other recent
stories caught my eye. Though they are not about scientific studies on human behavior, they do
serve, I believe, as interesting social commentary.
One comes from the Indianapolis Star about a heated political battle in Johnson County , Indiana
over an upcoming referendum on a $30 million library construction
project.
Naturally, there is
organized activity both for and against the new library, but it was the recent
campaign finance report filed by the anti-library group that raised eyebrows. Supporters
of the library project cited the group’s gaffe as all the more reason the
community needed to invest in the library. See the heading of their campaign disclosure
report at right.
Finally, there’s a report about new municipal rules in the villageof La Toba, Spain. La Toba has a new “courtesy charter”
that sets out 65 rules of conduct that may well provide the Charlestown Planning
Commission with ideas for lots of new ordinances.
LaToba Mayor Julian Atienza Garcia issued the charter which forbids,
slurping, burping, something called “parping,” farting, coughing without
covering your mouth, nose-picking, touching certain parts of the body while in
public (remember the old Bill Cosby routine?).
It forbids yawning,
talking while eating, requires people to say “please” and “thank you,” and to
wash their hands after using the toilet.
Though all of these
rules are standard etiquette, it is unusual to see them codified into law. But
isn’t it nice when you have the power – or at least think you do – to make your
pet peeves and life’s annoyances unlawful?