The phrase 'survival of the fittest' conjures an image of the most cutthroat individuals rising to the top. But Stefan Klein, author of the international bestseller The Science of Happiness, makes the startling assertion that the key to achieving lasting personal and societal success lies in helping others. Klein argues, altruism is in fact our defining characteristic- natural selection favoured those early humans who cooperated in groups. With survival more assured, our altruistic ancestors were free to devote brainpower to developing intelligence, language, and culture - our very humanity. As Klein puts it, 'We humans became first the friendliest and then the most intelligent apes.' To build his persuasive case for how altruistic behaviour made us human - and why it pays to get along - Klein brings together an extraordinary array of material- current research on genetics and the brain, economics, social psychology, behavioural and anthropological experiments, history, and modern culture. Ultimately, his groundbreaking findings lead him to a vexing question- if we're really hard-wired to act for one another's benefit, why aren't we all getting along? Klein believes we've learned a mistrust our generous instincts because success is so often attributed to selfish ambition. In Survival of the Nicest, he invites us to rethink what it means to be the 'fittest' as he shows how caring for others can protect us from loneliness and depression, make us happier and healthier, reward us economically, and even extend our lives. 'This eloquent and persuasive book shows why in life, like in the movies, the nice guy always wins.' Stephen Cave, author of Immortality 'A scholarly tour de force about why generosity makes good sense, Survival of the Nicest is also compulsively readable.' Elizabeth Svoboda, author of What Makes a Hero?
Author Biography
Stefan Klein, considered one of the most influential science writers in Europe, has written for many of Germany's leading newspapers and magazines. He was science editor of _Der Spiegel_, a leading German news magazine, from 1996-1999, a staff writer with _Geomagazine_ from 1999-2000, and is now a freelance writer in Berlin. He has interviewed many of the world's most prominent scientists, including Antonio Damasio, Stephen Jay Gould, V.S. Ramachandran, Craig Venter, Ian Wilmut, and E.O. Wilson. In 1998 he won the Georg von Holtzbrink Prize for Scientific Journalism. He studied physics and philosophy at the universities of Munich and Grenoble and completed his PhD in biophysics in Freiburg.He is also the author of the international bestseller _The Science of Happiness_ which has been published in more than twenty-eight countries. He lives in Berlin and can be found online at www.stefanklein.info.
