On July 3, I delivered the following presentation entitled “The Evolution of Empathy” at an Ottawa Skeptics monthly meeting. Here’s a brief summary:

Evolution can be viewed as a competition between individuals for survival, which seems at odds with the existence of altruism, cooperation, and empathy. Remarkably, the answer lies in selfish genes, game theory, and even sociopaths. Our future existence may depend on the degree to which we can extend our ability to empathize.