Sentience

January 11, 2021 - Forbes

Social Distancing Is Wearying — For Humans, And Maybe Even For Fish

During this time of COVID-19 pandemic, some people claim to thoroughly enjoy the coronavirus-avoidance strategy of staying home and alone.

If that isn’t a universal feeling, that may be because, like all primates, humans are social animals. Group life sometimes has troubling costs — like conflict and even violence, just for starters. Even so, it has helped ensure the survival of the human species and that of many other primates, as well. Living in groups provides protection from predators (we can plot against them and gang up on them) and from starvation (we can share resources). Living socially eases the search for a mate. It allows us to learn from each other. It affords us the pleasure and comfort that we experience when a hormone rush results from a friendly or loving touch.

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