Episode One: Born To Survive
Our instincts to survive are honed for a primitive world that was far riskier than our own. They live on, even in our own safer world, which is why we all crave food that?s high in calories, even though it?s not always good for us and why a baby knows just how loud to scream to get what it wants. Humans react to primeval dangers like snakes, foods that can poisonous us and disease carriers, before even thinking about why. But when unexpectedly faced with a life or death situation our instincts to survive mean we are capable of extraordinary feats.
Episode Two: Deepest Desires
One of the strongest human urges is to procreate, to have sex and create the next generation in our own likeness. The different biology of men and women has shaped radically different instincts to make this happen. Some of those instincts guide us in ways we are only too aware of. At other times our instincts are in the driving seat without us even knowing it - the partner who smells sweetest is the one whose genes are most compatible and will help make the healthiest baby. Our instincts act as a temptation towards adultery ? with the right person at the right time.Episode Three: The Will To Win
Every single human is a winner ? descendants over hundreds of thousands of generations of grandparents that competed for survival in the tough terrain of our distant past. And their competing instincts live on in us all. Our bodies push us to compete out of all proportion to the prize on offer, by making winning feel wonderful and losing terrible. We compete with our mothers in the womb for nutrients, with our siblings, and to establish ourselves in hierarchies, without even being aware of it.Episode Four: Natural Born Heroes
Our instincts protect us and guard our interests in ways we are barely aware of. But what explains the extraordinary human instinct to risk our lives for others, for a parent to risk life and limb to save a child, or to save a complete stranger. Science is only just beginning to understand why humans are capable of acts of supreme heroism.Promo Banner