The other day I heard a program on NPR about George Price. Not only was he the geneticist who discovered the mathematical equation for altruism (the Price Equation), but he was a man who worked to prove his own formula wrong.
This theorem can be observed in ants--among other critters--that work to protect the lives of their relatives over the lives of those that don't share some of their genetic code. Apparently, the reason for such selflessness is selfishly motivated by the desire to preserve their genes.
While I can relate to the fact that I would be more willing to donate a kidney to my brother than a stranger, I balk at the notion that it's because I am instinctively preserving my genes for future generations. I mean, first of all, my brother has already been fruitful and multiplied, so saving him really has nothing to do with saving our family genetics--if my brother or I were adopted, and I happened to be a match, I would be willing to give my brother a kidney because he is my brother, not due to some evolutionary predisposition.
Price's mental state nonwitstanding, I'm pretty sure he would too.
