Image by 'smil.As we enter the festive season (Christmas, Hanukkah, winter solstice, etc) my mind turned to the act of gift giving and I was reminded of a piece I presented on Einstein a Go Go about altruism. Altruism can be defined as aselfless concern for the wellbeing of others. This implies that to show altruism, one needs to aware of self (and presumably that which is non-self). Only a few organisms show evidence of self-awareness, and we know that humans are one of these animals.

The meaning of life is to live long enough to pass on your genes as many times as possible. Staying alive, however is not easy, so this does not simply mean being selfish. More . . .