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The Science of Good and Evil

Skeptics & Atheists

In The Science of Good and Evil: Why People Cheat, Gossip, Share, Care, and Follow the Golden Rule (Henry Holt/Times Books, 2004) - the third volume of his trilogy on the power of belief - science historian Michael Shermer contends that the source of ethics is solely evolutionary. "Evolution," he writes, "generated the moral sentiments out of a need for a system to maximize the benefits of living in small bands and tribes. Evolution created and culture honed moral principles out of an additional need to curb the passions of the body and mind. And culture, primarily through organized religion, codified those principles into moral rules and precepts.

He spoke with editorial writer Linda Seebach. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Morality seen as a byproduct of evolution