1 00:00:01,480 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you Should Know, a production of I 2 00:00:04,360 --> 00:00:13,560 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark. 3 00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: There's Charles w. Cute as a button Bryant, and there's 4 00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:22,480 Speaker 1: Jerry squee rolland and this is stuff you should know 5 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:27,040 Speaker 1: of the podcast. A cute addition, that's right, the science 6 00:00:27,080 --> 00:00:29,960 Speaker 1: a cute. Yeah, I'm excited about this when I've been 7 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,519 Speaker 1: wanting to do it for a while. I remember, like 8 00:00:32,800 --> 00:00:34,160 Speaker 1: that was one of the first things you ever said 9 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: to me when we met in the office, how cute 10 00:00:37,720 --> 00:00:40,240 Speaker 1: you are? Well? No, we were in the break room 11 00:00:40,280 --> 00:00:44,440 Speaker 1: and I saw a picture of a baby panda and 12 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:48,720 Speaker 1: I just started to melt, and you went, hey, jerk, 13 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:52,879 Speaker 1: you ever wonder why you think things are cute? I 14 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 1: bet there's science behind that. Maybe we should talk about 15 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:59,440 Speaker 1: it one day, and look here we are. What was that, 16 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:04,959 Speaker 1: well thirteen years ago almost man, you really responded to 17 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:12,400 Speaker 1: that aggression into so chuck. Have you ever heard of 18 00:01:12,720 --> 00:01:18,759 Speaker 1: Mickey Mouse? Oh? I know several mice, but I've never 19 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:21,120 Speaker 1: heard of Mickey Mouse. You've only heard of Modeled Muck 20 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:26,120 Speaker 1: and Ricky Rouse. Um, well, let me tell you about 21 00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:28,959 Speaker 1: Mickey Mouse. He's actually the mascot of a very large 22 00:01:29,120 --> 00:01:34,520 Speaker 1: entertainment corporation called Disney. Uh. They own Walt Disney World, 23 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:39,320 Speaker 1: Walt Disneyland. I think ABC owns them. They're they're affiliated 24 00:01:39,319 --> 00:01:42,839 Speaker 1: with ESPN. They're very, very big. But they have this mascot. 25 00:01:43,000 --> 00:01:47,200 Speaker 1: It's a mouse and his name's Mickey. He's he's kind 26 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:51,320 Speaker 1: of big, especially abroad. Um. But if you look at 27 00:01:51,360 --> 00:01:54,320 Speaker 1: Mickey today, you think, wow, that's a really cute mouse. 28 00:01:54,440 --> 00:01:56,639 Speaker 1: Doesn't really look like a mouse. He's black and white 29 00:01:56,680 --> 00:01:59,960 Speaker 1: basically are brownish and black. Um. But also his few 30 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:03,640 Speaker 1: teachers are very much not mouse like. But if you 31 00:02:03,680 --> 00:02:06,680 Speaker 1: were to go back and look at the beginning of Mickey, 32 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:10,080 Speaker 1: I think he's from the nine twenties, like nineteen twenties. 33 00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:14,560 Speaker 1: In his earliest cartoons, he looked a lot more mousey 34 00:02:14,760 --> 00:02:18,040 Speaker 1: like cartoon mouse, but he had, you know, his pointed features, 35 00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:20,880 Speaker 1: not nearly as cute. But then if you fast forward 36 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:24,920 Speaker 1: about ten years later, by the time rolls around and 37 00:02:24,919 --> 00:02:27,720 Speaker 1: he's in something called The Brave Taylor that was one 38 00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:31,160 Speaker 1: of his shorts, UM where I think he defeats a 39 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:34,560 Speaker 1: giant or something like that. Um, he looks full blown 40 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:37,720 Speaker 1: Mickey Mouse, but he looks way cuter and they had 41 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:39,600 Speaker 1: done a few things to him. They had like made 42 00:02:39,600 --> 00:02:43,320 Speaker 1: his eyes bigger, they've made his features rounder less pointed. Um, 43 00:02:43,400 --> 00:02:46,800 Speaker 1: he had big gloves and big shoes. Now he's kind 44 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:50,880 Speaker 1: of plump and oversized features, and he had gotten cute. 45 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:55,640 Speaker 1: And the scientist Stephen Jay Gould, who really deserves his 46 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: own episode like Carl Sagan does, Um, just a really 47 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:04,720 Speaker 1: interesting dude. Um. He said that Disney and his animators 48 00:03:04,919 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 1: had stumbled upon something that the zoologists and mythologist Conrad 49 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:14,760 Speaker 1: Lawrence UM termed can can schema. I think I got 50 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:20,239 Speaker 1: that right right. Uh yeah, can can schema very nice. Um. 51 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:24,440 Speaker 1: But like years before Conrad Lawrence ever did that, they 52 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:27,040 Speaker 1: had just kind of naturally figured out like, oh, this 53 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:30,079 Speaker 1: can be way more appealing if we if we exaggerate 54 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:32,639 Speaker 1: these particular features. And it turns out what they had 55 00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:37,800 Speaker 1: done is make him literally cut by the very scientific 56 00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:42,839 Speaker 1: definition of cuteness. Yeah. So Lawrence was an Austrian scientist 57 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: and in the forties came up with this. And this 58 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 1: made me feel quite good about myself actually looking over 59 00:03:47,840 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 1: this list about physical qualities that um, and it's not 60 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:55,680 Speaker 1: just a person came me an animal. As we'll see 61 00:03:55,680 --> 00:03:58,640 Speaker 1: a lot of this is animal based. But these things, 62 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,160 Speaker 1: these traits that would evoke a positive response, a very 63 00:04:02,160 --> 00:04:08,440 Speaker 1: strong positive response, and they are large head. M that's me, um, 64 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:12,320 Speaker 1: high protruding forehead. I've always said you have a five head. 65 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:16,800 Speaker 1: If any, it's it's average, large eyes, sort of average, 66 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:21,400 Speaker 1: chubby cheeks bingo. Oh, you should make the cheeks make 67 00:04:21,440 --> 00:04:25,840 Speaker 1: a sonic appearance. Very nice. It's been years, still as 68 00:04:25,839 --> 00:04:29,960 Speaker 1: moist as ever. Sorry, everyone. Uh, chubby cheeks, small nose, 69 00:04:30,080 --> 00:04:33,320 Speaker 1: I'm an average nose, small mouth, and chin I'd say 70 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:38,160 Speaker 1: average short, thick extremities, actually have sort of skinny legs. 71 00:04:38,200 --> 00:04:40,440 Speaker 1: I'll carry my weight between my chin and my belt. 72 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:46,159 Speaker 1: Plump body shape. Bingo. So I am scientifically half cute. 73 00:04:46,440 --> 00:04:49,720 Speaker 1: You are very cute. I mean that's definitely. It's not 74 00:04:49,760 --> 00:04:52,640 Speaker 1: even up for debate. Really, I used to get called 75 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:55,640 Speaker 1: cute by the ladies. Not handsome, but cute. There's definitely 76 00:04:56,160 --> 00:04:59,760 Speaker 1: I saw that. Um. Paul McCartney hated being known as 77 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:02,800 Speaker 1: the cute beetle, probably for the same you know, the 78 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:07,160 Speaker 1: same differences that you just mentioned, probably, but the the 79 00:05:07,240 --> 00:05:09,240 Speaker 1: like what you just said, this list you just you 80 00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:14,360 Speaker 1: just um you rattled off. That is Lawrence's kinkin schema 81 00:05:14,880 --> 00:05:17,279 Speaker 1: or baby schema or baby nous, which is basically like, 82 00:05:17,320 --> 00:05:19,520 Speaker 1: if you put all these things together, you have what 83 00:05:19,600 --> 00:05:24,200 Speaker 1: amounts to what we humans consider cute, and you can extrapolate, 84 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:27,400 Speaker 1: like you were saying, not just onto babies, but onto 85 00:05:27,600 --> 00:05:32,480 Speaker 1: other animals and even onto like cartoon characters. Yeah, you 86 00:05:32,520 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 1: either have these things and you're regarded as cute, or 87 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:37,640 Speaker 1: you don't and you're not exactly. Yeah, that's a really 88 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:40,880 Speaker 1: good point that you can you can not only have this, 89 00:05:40,960 --> 00:05:44,120 Speaker 1: you can also lack it, and that that has that 90 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:48,560 Speaker 1: modulates our response to whatever that thing is. Yeah, and 91 00:05:48,560 --> 00:05:50,840 Speaker 1: it's also important to point out that this is these 92 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:54,960 Speaker 1: are guidelines, scientific sort of guidelines and truisms, but not 93 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:58,120 Speaker 1: across the board like some people. Beauty is in the 94 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:00,600 Speaker 1: eye of the beholder and cuteness is sure, So some 95 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:04,040 Speaker 1: people might look at a baby, I don't know, just 96 00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:06,719 Speaker 1: some sort of weird reptilian thing that has none of 97 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:10,960 Speaker 1: these traits and think it's super cute as well. Right, Yeah, yeah, 98 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,640 Speaker 1: it is kind of subjective, but there does seem to 99 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:22,520 Speaker 1: be um if not universal or widely tapped into sense 100 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:26,320 Speaker 1: of what's cute and what's not. You know what, I mean, yeah, still, 101 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:28,440 Speaker 1: let me rephrase that the person that thinks the baby 102 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:31,240 Speaker 1: lizard that has none of these traits is cute, they 103 00:06:31,279 --> 00:06:34,160 Speaker 1: probably also think the panda is cute, right, you know 104 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:36,720 Speaker 1: what I'm saying, Right, Yeah, they're probably not disgusted or 105 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:42,279 Speaker 1: just totally turn off that dirty, ugly baby kitten. And 106 00:06:42,400 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: so so Lawrence was um. He compiled this list based 107 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:48,360 Speaker 1: on his observations, and I guess from what I read, 108 00:06:49,200 --> 00:06:52,600 Speaker 1: like this whole study of cuteness is pretty young as 109 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:55,560 Speaker 1: far as scientific investigation goes, So you know that we're 110 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:58,159 Speaker 1: still figuring it out. It's still developing as it goes along. 111 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:02,400 Speaker 1: Some of the study is involved or fairly suspect, but 112 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:09,040 Speaker 1: there seems to be this this kind of general acceptance 113 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:13,200 Speaker 1: of Lawrenz's k Kinkin schema, which is that it was 114 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:18,240 Speaker 1: just it's so it's so obviously correct that from what 115 00:07:18,320 --> 00:07:21,880 Speaker 1: I read, some people just haven't even investigated, which is 116 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:26,440 Speaker 1: good and bad. Um. Lawrence was a behaviorist and he 117 00:07:26,480 --> 00:07:29,520 Speaker 1: actually we met him first in our animal imprinting episode, 118 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:33,080 Speaker 1: which was a really good one, but he studied that, um. 119 00:07:33,120 --> 00:07:35,400 Speaker 1: But he put this all together to study behaviors, and 120 00:07:35,440 --> 00:07:40,360 Speaker 1: what he was studying is exactly how babies UM get 121 00:07:40,760 --> 00:07:44,360 Speaker 1: adult humans who may not even be their parents to 122 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:47,680 Speaker 1: respond to them in a way that um, that adult 123 00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:51,520 Speaker 1: wants to take care of that baby. And what he 124 00:07:51,720 --> 00:07:55,720 Speaker 1: what he came up with was this kinkin schema cuteness. Uh. 125 00:07:55,760 --> 00:08:00,720 Speaker 1: What he said unlocks um innate instincts in humans that 126 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:06,000 Speaker 1: basically triggers like automatic behaviors like oh, I want to 127 00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:07,760 Speaker 1: make sure that you stay alive, so I'm going to 128 00:08:07,880 --> 00:08:10,600 Speaker 1: go find you some food that kind of stuff. Yeah, 129 00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:14,600 Speaker 1: And it corresponds to helplessness at birth. There's a direct 130 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:20,200 Speaker 1: correlation between um, how cute you look and how how 131 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:22,120 Speaker 1: little you can get buy in your own In the 132 00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:28,120 Speaker 1: animal kingdom, um, most mammals are born very small, very helpless. 133 00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:32,400 Speaker 1: Uh many months sometimes weeks, sometimes months, sometimes years of 134 00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:34,080 Speaker 1: care before they can go off and kind of do 135 00:08:34,120 --> 00:08:38,160 Speaker 1: their own thing. That's called altricial. What to take to 136 00:08:38,280 --> 00:08:42,400 Speaker 1: being born helpless? You're altricial. Yeah, so if you're altricial, 137 00:08:42,960 --> 00:08:48,959 Speaker 1: you're probably almost more cute than an animal that is 138 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 1: born that can kind of run right out and do 139 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:55,880 Speaker 1: things on their own, probably not as cute. That's precociale 140 00:08:56,040 --> 00:09:00,280 Speaker 1: altricial and precocial, right, and and the thing is is like, 141 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:03,560 Speaker 1: if you step back, like it's just so easy to 142 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:05,560 Speaker 1: just overlook this, and if you really start to think 143 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:10,760 Speaker 1: about this, cuteness has been this adaptive, I guess, evolutionary 144 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:13,920 Speaker 1: trait that's just been hiding and plain sight until Lawrence 145 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:16,400 Speaker 1: really put his finger on it. But if you step 146 00:09:16,440 --> 00:09:20,280 Speaker 1: back and think about it, there's no there's no innate 147 00:09:21,440 --> 00:09:24,400 Speaker 1: or there's no reason that a baby has in and 148 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:28,840 Speaker 1: of itself to evoke a response and a human even 149 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:32,520 Speaker 1: its parents, um to want to take care of it, 150 00:09:32,559 --> 00:09:35,319 Speaker 1: but it needs that because it is an altricial species. 151 00:09:35,400 --> 00:09:39,080 Speaker 1: Humans are an altricial species. They'll they'll just die out 152 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:41,400 Speaker 1: if you don't take care of a baby, and if 153 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:44,440 Speaker 1: enough babies die out, eventually humanity dies out, the species 154 00:09:44,440 --> 00:09:50,040 Speaker 1: dies out. So it's an adaptation to make somebody want 155 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:53,280 Speaker 1: to take care of you. And that is what Lawrence 156 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:57,400 Speaker 1: figured out. That cuteness is that trigger that we find 157 00:09:57,520 --> 00:10:01,040 Speaker 1: babies cute and it makes us want to take care 158 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:03,040 Speaker 1: of them. And that is one of the most mind 159 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:05,839 Speaker 1: blowing things I know. Yeah, I mean if you look 160 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:10,840 Speaker 1: at human babies. Human babies are born pretty early in 161 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:15,439 Speaker 1: their development, like if um all things being equal. Human 162 00:10:15,440 --> 00:10:18,959 Speaker 1: babies should probably be born six months later than they are, 163 00:10:20,240 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 1: but they're not. Human babies come out very early. They 164 00:10:23,559 --> 00:10:27,439 Speaker 1: come out before their little fontanelles are even formed, and 165 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:34,760 Speaker 1: they need a lot of care and uh, they're they're 166 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:38,800 Speaker 1: born that Like, human babies are small so they can 167 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:41,760 Speaker 1: fit out of the birth canal. Their little noses are 168 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:45,080 Speaker 1: cartilage so they don't get broken on the way out. 169 00:10:45,920 --> 00:10:50,080 Speaker 1: Like you know, babies should have larger heads and should 170 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:52,640 Speaker 1: have like that should but you know what I'm saying, 171 00:10:53,320 --> 00:10:56,640 Speaker 1: fully formed like strong noses, but they wouldn't be able 172 00:10:56,679 --> 00:10:58,920 Speaker 1: to to come out of a lady if that was 173 00:10:58,960 --> 00:11:02,040 Speaker 1: the case. Yeah, because our brains are have have developed 174 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:04,720 Speaker 1: to be so big, and our craniums have developed in 175 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:09,480 Speaker 1: in response to that that like we're evolutionarily speaking or 176 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:14,160 Speaker 1: developmentally speaking, we're underdeveloped when we're born, even though we're 177 00:11:14,240 --> 00:11:16,920 Speaker 1: we would have been born at like a normal normal 178 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: gestation period for a human compared to other species. It's 179 00:11:20,679 --> 00:11:23,559 Speaker 1: like you're, this kid's out a little. This kid hasn't 180 00:11:23,559 --> 00:11:25,880 Speaker 1: baked fully, you know what I'm saying. And so that 181 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:30,120 Speaker 1: really makes human babies even among you know, other mammals 182 00:11:30,120 --> 00:11:34,559 Speaker 1: that are altricial super dependent on caregivers to make sure 183 00:11:34,600 --> 00:11:37,560 Speaker 1: that it survives. Yeah. So, like a human baby's head 184 00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:41,320 Speaker 1: is really large compared to their body. Um, and these 185 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:43,600 Speaker 1: are you know, these are some of the cuteness traits 186 00:11:43,679 --> 00:11:46,720 Speaker 1: that we mentioned early. On their eyes. You know, your 187 00:11:46,720 --> 00:11:48,760 Speaker 1: eyes don't really grow. Your eyes are about the same size. 188 00:11:49,040 --> 00:11:51,920 Speaker 1: I didn't know that, did you. Yeah, that's why when 189 00:11:51,920 --> 00:11:53,480 Speaker 1: you look at some babies and you're like, look how 190 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:55,959 Speaker 1: huge their eyes are, it's just because they're on a 191 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:58,320 Speaker 1: little tiny face. It makes sense, But I just had 192 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:02,080 Speaker 1: never known that you're born basically the size that they're 193 00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:03,760 Speaker 1: going to be when you grow up. I think if 194 00:12:03,760 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 1: you really work them out, they can beef up a 195 00:12:05,280 --> 00:12:10,160 Speaker 1: little bit. Though. We mentioned those tiny little noses super 196 00:12:10,200 --> 00:12:14,560 Speaker 1: cute and very bendy. Um, they're little baby cheeks and 197 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:17,520 Speaker 1: everything soft so you can get out of that birth canal. 198 00:12:18,440 --> 00:12:21,880 Speaker 1: And you know, formula and mother's milk keep you kind 199 00:12:21,920 --> 00:12:25,800 Speaker 1: of chunky and full. Um. You know, nobody's gonna put 200 00:12:25,840 --> 00:12:30,120 Speaker 1: a baby on a diet, no good lord, no. Um. 201 00:12:30,200 --> 00:12:33,120 Speaker 1: The skin is very loosed and soft. H. So you know, 202 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:35,760 Speaker 1: if you go through a big gross spurt, it doesn't 203 00:12:35,800 --> 00:12:40,600 Speaker 1: you know, split open sounds gross. Uh, and then you 204 00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:43,240 Speaker 1: know the way babies move, it's just just very cute there. 205 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:46,400 Speaker 1: Babies are awkward and they're clumsy, and um, they don't 206 00:12:46,440 --> 00:12:50,560 Speaker 1: like have the definition to like manipulate these these muscle 207 00:12:50,600 --> 00:12:53,640 Speaker 1: groups very well. Yet Yeah, and it's awkward and gawky 208 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:57,160 Speaker 1: and super cute. All of this stuff together is cute 209 00:12:57,160 --> 00:13:00,480 Speaker 1: to us. And it raises the question, like, did babies 210 00:13:00,559 --> 00:13:04,160 Speaker 1: evolved human babies evolved to fit our definition of cute 211 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:08,400 Speaker 1: or did our definition Actually I've seen both. I've seen both. 212 00:13:08,440 --> 00:13:11,240 Speaker 1: So it makes sense that like our definition of what's 213 00:13:11,320 --> 00:13:13,240 Speaker 1: cute and what we respond to is cute would be 214 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:17,320 Speaker 1: based on the average human baby. But you can also 215 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:22,920 Speaker 1: take an average human baby and tweak, like digitally, um, 216 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:26,520 Speaker 1: a picture of a baby and tweak it to maximum cuteness. 217 00:13:27,080 --> 00:13:30,600 Speaker 1: And so there's this other idea that Okay, maybe originally 218 00:13:30,920 --> 00:13:34,560 Speaker 1: our idea of cuteness was based on baby features, But 219 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:39,600 Speaker 1: the cutest babies would um logically get the most response 220 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:42,280 Speaker 1: and would be the most the most likely yeah, and 221 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:45,600 Speaker 1: would be the most likely to survive and thrive and 222 00:13:45,640 --> 00:13:49,000 Speaker 1: go on to reproduce. So it is entirely possible that 223 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:51,600 Speaker 1: we have a speed as a species have gotten cuter 224 00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:55,680 Speaker 1: over the over the eons because of selection of the 225 00:13:55,800 --> 00:13:59,360 Speaker 1: for the cutest babies. Well, and that's been critical to 226 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:04,280 Speaker 1: our serve bible. Um. You know it's uh when you 227 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:06,120 Speaker 1: see something like that, when you see a baby chick, 228 00:14:06,840 --> 00:14:09,640 Speaker 1: you your instinct is to pick it up and cradle 229 00:14:09,720 --> 00:14:13,600 Speaker 1: it and make sure you know that a tree branch 230 00:14:13,679 --> 00:14:16,560 Speaker 1: doesn't fall on it, right, And that's the same goes 231 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:19,040 Speaker 1: for babies. Yeah, because they share a lot of the 232 00:14:19,160 --> 00:14:23,240 Speaker 1: same similarities, the same kin kin kin schema. I wish 233 00:14:23,280 --> 00:14:25,000 Speaker 1: that ken wasn't in there. I wish it was just 234 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:28,120 Speaker 1: kin den schema. Call it that. Then. I don't want 235 00:14:28,160 --> 00:14:30,560 Speaker 1: to get things wrong all the time, and we do. 236 00:14:30,720 --> 00:14:36,040 Speaker 1: We do. It's usually not purposefully, you know, Okay, But um, 237 00:14:36,160 --> 00:14:40,640 Speaker 1: that same set of traits can apply to other animals. 238 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:42,680 Speaker 1: It was like you were saying, you know, animals that 239 00:14:42,720 --> 00:14:45,400 Speaker 1: fall into that set of traits appear cute to us, 240 00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:47,280 Speaker 1: and we want to save them, we want to take 241 00:14:47,320 --> 00:14:51,720 Speaker 1: care of them. Um. Like a little baby giraffe has 242 00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:55,000 Speaker 1: huge eyes, its features are kind of small compared to 243 00:14:55,040 --> 00:14:58,680 Speaker 1: a larger adult draft which even adult drafts are awfully cute. 244 00:14:58,960 --> 00:15:01,600 Speaker 1: But one of the things that a baby draft is 245 00:15:01,600 --> 00:15:04,680 Speaker 1: going to get you with is hobbling around trying to 246 00:15:04,720 --> 00:15:06,800 Speaker 1: stand up that first time I hit you with those 247 00:15:07,040 --> 00:15:10,160 Speaker 1: little shaky legs look out. Yeah, and that reminds us 248 00:15:10,240 --> 00:15:13,200 Speaker 1: or reminds some very ancient part of our brain of 249 00:15:13,800 --> 00:15:17,560 Speaker 1: human infant, you know, like developing its motor skill. So 250 00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:21,560 Speaker 1: it seems like it's not like our brains are confused, 251 00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:24,400 Speaker 1: like you're not looking at a baby giraffe, like, look 252 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:27,520 Speaker 1: at that baby human. I love it. It's just it 253 00:15:27,760 --> 00:15:32,000 Speaker 1: triggers the same part of the brain that seeing a 254 00:15:32,320 --> 00:15:37,400 Speaker 1: human infant does, um, because of that same set of characteristics. Yeah, Like, 255 00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:39,480 Speaker 1: there was a study I found on mental flaws from 256 00:15:39,480 --> 00:15:44,680 Speaker 1: two thousand nine where scientists reported that, uh, people in 257 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:47,200 Speaker 1: the study that viewed really cute images of puppies and 258 00:15:47,280 --> 00:15:50,400 Speaker 1: kittens performed better in the game of Operation you know, 259 00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:54,240 Speaker 1: the kids game than people who saw less like that 260 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:56,960 Speaker 1: saw pictures of grown up dogs and cats. So it 261 00:15:57,040 --> 00:16:01,600 Speaker 1: just innately triggers this care response. It's really really interesting. Yeah. 262 00:16:01,680 --> 00:16:05,840 Speaker 1: And so what Lorenz called that innate releasers, that that 263 00:16:06,160 --> 00:16:09,680 Speaker 1: you see a cute baby and the cuteness acts as 264 00:16:09,680 --> 00:16:14,040 Speaker 1: an innate releaser, which triggers a set of inborn instincts 265 00:16:14,080 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: in every human to take care of that baby, and 266 00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:19,960 Speaker 1: that one apparently hasn't necessarily borne out. But there is 267 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:23,200 Speaker 1: a lot of or there's an increasing amount of documentation 268 00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:26,720 Speaker 1: about how seeing something cute affects the brain. And I 269 00:16:26,800 --> 00:16:29,880 Speaker 1: propose that we take a commercial break and then come 270 00:16:29,920 --> 00:16:33,400 Speaker 1: back and talk about that afterwards. We'll be right back. 271 00:17:00,120 --> 00:17:04,199 Speaker 1: I think I has a commercial break. Sure, I now 272 00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:06,120 Speaker 1: it's in the in the survey, it's like an after 273 00:17:06,160 --> 00:17:09,440 Speaker 1: school special all of a sudden, so um, I think 274 00:17:10,280 --> 00:17:12,159 Speaker 1: before we dive into what you're talking about, I do 275 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:15,639 Speaker 1: want to mention the wolf puppy thing. I thought it 276 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:18,679 Speaker 1: was pretty interesting, is that there is an example of 277 00:17:19,520 --> 00:17:23,120 Speaker 1: a co evolved trait with the human brain that triggers 278 00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:27,040 Speaker 1: that cuteness response when you look at wolves wild wolves apparently, 279 00:17:27,480 --> 00:17:31,119 Speaker 1: and these were predogs. Basically, Um, they don't have this 280 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:35,399 Speaker 1: muscle called the uh. Here we go with some Latin. 281 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:41,360 Speaker 1: I guess uh leabator angouli oculi. Mettie Alice just made 282 00:17:41,359 --> 00:17:46,359 Speaker 1: a demon appere Oh my god, Um, this muscle they 283 00:17:46,359 --> 00:17:48,600 Speaker 1: don't have in their eyebrows, and apparently that is the 284 00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:51,200 Speaker 1: muscle that can make what we think of as puppy 285 00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: dog eyes. Dogs that came later did of all that muscle, 286 00:17:55,720 --> 00:17:58,480 Speaker 1: and then we're bred for it because it made people 287 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:02,879 Speaker 1: melt inside. Uh so that's why wolves, which is interesting, 288 00:18:02,920 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: like wolves have that sort of scowl and they can't 289 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:07,840 Speaker 1: help it. But then I looked at wolf puppy pictures 290 00:18:07,840 --> 00:18:11,480 Speaker 1: and it's pretty cute. But maybe it's not in the eyes. 291 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,040 Speaker 1: I don't know. Yeah, I don't know what it is either, 292 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:16,119 Speaker 1: but that I think that raises a really good question 293 00:18:16,200 --> 00:18:18,800 Speaker 1: that also kind of points out it like this, this 294 00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:23,080 Speaker 1: research is still very young, and there's contradictory information coming 295 00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:24,480 Speaker 1: in and a lot of it is just based on 296 00:18:24,560 --> 00:18:28,840 Speaker 1: intuition and that kind of thing. But there are, like 297 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:31,160 Speaker 1: you said, there's that there are people walking around who think, 298 00:18:31,200 --> 00:18:33,200 Speaker 1: like that baby lizard is super cute. You know what 299 00:18:33,240 --> 00:18:37,439 Speaker 1: I'm saying, Like it it's not entirely universal, and you know, 300 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:40,119 Speaker 1: maybe those wolf puppies have some other traits that have 301 00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:43,719 Speaker 1: nothing to do with the eyes that that are hijacking 302 00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:47,040 Speaker 1: your brain. The point that stands out to me is 303 00:18:47,080 --> 00:18:50,919 Speaker 1: that that that caregiving instinct that Lorenz pointed out, or 304 00:18:50,920 --> 00:18:55,120 Speaker 1: whatever whatever weird brain pathway we have, um, that's triggered 305 00:18:55,119 --> 00:18:58,200 Speaker 1: by seeing something cute, is that it extends beyond humans. 306 00:18:58,200 --> 00:19:00,800 Speaker 1: And I think that that kind of that that makes 307 00:19:00,880 --> 00:19:05,160 Speaker 1: humanity as a species like that much greater in my opinion, 308 00:19:05,240 --> 00:19:10,320 Speaker 1: that like that caregiving impulse can extend beyond humans. And 309 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:12,840 Speaker 1: I mean that explains pets right there. Like, I don't 310 00:19:12,880 --> 00:19:15,800 Speaker 1: think we would have pets if that wasn't true, you know, 311 00:19:15,880 --> 00:19:17,920 Speaker 1: I mean, we'd have like guard dogs or something still, 312 00:19:17,960 --> 00:19:21,400 Speaker 1: but you know, not a pet. There would be German shepherds. 313 00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:24,240 Speaker 1: There'd be nothing but and they'd all be mean as 314 00:19:24,359 --> 00:19:27,080 Speaker 1: as snakes. And we probably have snakes too. That rode 315 00:19:27,119 --> 00:19:30,639 Speaker 1: the German shepherds. They still wouldn't be pets. Baby snakes 316 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:33,040 Speaker 1: not so cute. There's also that weird thing where something 317 00:19:33,080 --> 00:19:36,639 Speaker 1: is so ugly it's cute as a young thing. Okay, 318 00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:40,240 Speaker 1: so that's a Japanese term. We'll talk about kawaie later. 319 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:45,600 Speaker 1: But there's something called chemo kawaii, which is called gross cute. Interesting. Yeah, 320 00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:48,879 Speaker 1: they they've they've got it. That's something they're like the Germans, 321 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:51,399 Speaker 1: but further east, they have like a name and a 322 00:19:51,520 --> 00:19:53,840 Speaker 1: term in idea for everything. You know. All right, we'll 323 00:19:53,880 --> 00:19:56,080 Speaker 1: put a pin in that because we did promise the 324 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:59,399 Speaker 1: science of cute. So we're gonna have to look at um, 325 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:01,040 Speaker 1: we're gonna have to look at the brain and actually 326 00:20:01,080 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: what's going on there. And they've done that of course. UM. 327 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,520 Speaker 1: They've put people in the Wonder machine and they have 328 00:20:07,560 --> 00:20:10,320 Speaker 1: shown people pictures of baby faces to see what lights up. 329 00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:13,640 Speaker 1: And when that happens, you get a really strong immediate 330 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:19,000 Speaker 1: response and what's called the orbitofrontal cortex, which is where 331 00:20:19,080 --> 00:20:21,560 Speaker 1: we regulate our emotions and our pleasure, and it's a 332 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:26,679 Speaker 1: really really fast response, um one seven of a second. Um. 333 00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:29,119 Speaker 1: It doesn't take long when you see that baby or 334 00:20:29,160 --> 00:20:31,399 Speaker 1: that puppy or whatever you don't it doesn't take you 335 00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:34,720 Speaker 1: long to to immediately think, I need to care for 336 00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:37,439 Speaker 1: that thing and hold that thing. Yeah, Because so that 337 00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:42,159 Speaker 1: orbitofrontal cortex UM apparently has something to do with the 338 00:20:42,280 --> 00:20:46,639 Speaker 1: reward system. So your attention is captured very quickly and 339 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:50,000 Speaker 1: you get a little burst of of pleasure from seeing 340 00:20:50,080 --> 00:20:53,200 Speaker 1: that that cute baby. And then there's another thing too 341 00:20:53,240 --> 00:20:55,680 Speaker 1: that that that came out of that two thousand nine 342 00:20:55,760 --> 00:21:00,840 Speaker 1: study using operation that all of a sudden, you're attention 343 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:04,520 Speaker 1: is very much focused and you can complete tasks um 344 00:21:05,000 --> 00:21:10,080 Speaker 1: much better or at least remarkably better. Um, then you 345 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:14,640 Speaker 1: could without seeing something cute. So it really does suggest 346 00:21:14,760 --> 00:21:18,760 Speaker 1: we have this inborn pathway to respond to something cute 347 00:21:18,920 --> 00:21:23,400 Speaker 1: in a pleasurable way with warm feelings. Um, that trigger 348 00:21:23,520 --> 00:21:26,359 Speaker 1: an ability a greater or more focused ability to do 349 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:30,200 Speaker 1: something like, for example, care for or feed a baby 350 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,080 Speaker 1: or that kind of thing that's that seems to be 351 00:21:33,119 --> 00:21:36,359 Speaker 1: borne out like Lawrence's innate release, or seems to be 352 00:21:36,359 --> 00:21:40,360 Speaker 1: being discovered um by neurology right now. Which is interesting though, 353 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:44,359 Speaker 1: because caring for a baby is not, in my experience, 354 00:21:44,359 --> 00:21:46,359 Speaker 1: something you need that kind of focus for. It's not 355 00:21:46,400 --> 00:21:49,639 Speaker 1: like putting together a little model house with tiny pieces 356 00:21:49,680 --> 00:21:54,359 Speaker 1: of furniture. Um, it's just like keep this thing alive. Right, 357 00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:57,800 Speaker 1: But maybe maybe that's like, um, rather than being like, 358 00:21:58,359 --> 00:22:00,760 Speaker 1: oh you know, I think i'll I'd rather break the 359 00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:03,840 Speaker 1: law of the law and instead and you just stop 360 00:22:03,880 --> 00:22:06,320 Speaker 1: feeding the baby leaves you know what I'm saying, Like 361 00:22:06,359 --> 00:22:08,920 Speaker 1: your your attention to the task at hand. He's a 362 00:22:08,960 --> 00:22:12,399 Speaker 1: little more focused, so you're less distracted. Yeah, that's what 363 00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: kind of focus. Sure. Yeah, Luckily it doesn't take much 364 00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:19,600 Speaker 1: brains because it's a lot of non smart parents out there. 365 00:22:19,760 --> 00:22:23,479 Speaker 1: That is true. Um So in that response, that speedy 366 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:26,679 Speaker 1: response in the orbitofrontal cortex when you see that baby, 367 00:22:27,440 --> 00:22:30,399 Speaker 1: men and women both have that same spike. But I 368 00:22:30,440 --> 00:22:33,879 Speaker 1: think women report stronger caregiving, which they chalk up to 369 00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:37,320 Speaker 1: just gender roles basically and not necessarily anything to do 370 00:22:37,359 --> 00:22:40,320 Speaker 1: with the brain itself. Yeah, because the same areas light 371 00:22:40,440 --> 00:22:42,800 Speaker 1: up for men and women, I guess to the same degree. 372 00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:46,000 Speaker 1: It's just self reported as different, right right. And then 373 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,960 Speaker 1: apparently also like this, this is not just um parents 374 00:22:49,960 --> 00:22:53,440 Speaker 1: who experienced this, like a human being will or a 375 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:57,160 Speaker 1: typical human being will experience this. Yeah, I mean that's 376 00:22:57,160 --> 00:23:00,520 Speaker 1: the thing where like, as an adoptive parent, you know 377 00:23:00,600 --> 00:23:04,560 Speaker 1: this is uh, my daughter is not my seed. Um, 378 00:23:04,600 --> 00:23:09,199 Speaker 1: but I can't piplical it. Um but I can't like 379 00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:10,680 Speaker 1: I have nothing to base it on. But I can't 380 00:23:10,720 --> 00:23:14,920 Speaker 1: imagine a stronger connection or a stronger instinct to care 381 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:19,680 Speaker 1: give and um so it's a It's an important trait 382 00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:23,280 Speaker 1: clearly because like you've seen movies where uh, people find 383 00:23:23,359 --> 00:23:26,840 Speaker 1: like a baby like abandoned by the dumpster and that 384 00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:29,119 Speaker 1: you know, you run out and you know, I suppose 385 00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:31,760 Speaker 1: some people might just say call it in and say Hey, 386 00:23:31,760 --> 00:23:33,480 Speaker 1: there's a baby over here. I'm not going near it, 387 00:23:34,119 --> 00:23:36,560 Speaker 1: but a humans inclination is to run over and pick 388 00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:39,280 Speaker 1: that baby up and wrap it up in something warm 389 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:43,320 Speaker 1: and then maybe call the cops or whatever. Right, and 390 00:23:43,359 --> 00:23:45,679 Speaker 1: like you said, like run over there like that, like 391 00:23:45,720 --> 00:23:48,439 Speaker 1: it an urgent thing that that your brain would just 392 00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:50,760 Speaker 1: be like get over there, right, the helpless thing out 393 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:53,560 Speaker 1: there by a dumpster, let's go get it. Yeah. Um, 394 00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:57,720 Speaker 1: that apparently would come probably more from um the baby's cry, 395 00:23:57,840 --> 00:24:01,679 Speaker 1: which I guess also a nights like the same kind 396 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:07,280 Speaker 1: of um pathway as cuteness does, but it's a different 397 00:24:07,359 --> 00:24:10,080 Speaker 1: it's slightly different. There's not necessarily a reward. It's more 398 00:24:10,119 --> 00:24:13,800 Speaker 1: like urgency. And they call that a biological siren, which 399 00:24:13,880 --> 00:24:16,359 Speaker 1: which would you know, get you over there really quickly, 400 00:24:16,480 --> 00:24:18,960 Speaker 1: But it's not necessarily because you saw you know, you 401 00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:20,840 Speaker 1: you thought about how cute the baby is in those 402 00:24:20,880 --> 00:24:25,119 Speaker 1: swaddling clothes. Right. Uh. Sound is definitely important. Like that 403 00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:28,520 Speaker 1: same study, if you hear babies laughter or even as 404 00:24:28,560 --> 00:24:31,000 Speaker 1: the smell of a baby, you your brain lights up 405 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:33,760 Speaker 1: in the same way. Yeah. So like that, we're presented 406 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:38,320 Speaker 1: with the entire cute package of everything that's great about babies, sounds, smell. 407 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:42,800 Speaker 1: They are really deeply manipulative. I think is is what 408 00:24:42,920 --> 00:24:44,960 Speaker 1: you're meant to take away from this episode. They are 409 00:24:45,320 --> 00:24:48,800 Speaker 1: just tiny little monsters saying like, take care of me 410 00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:52,160 Speaker 1: for eighteen years. That's right, and possibly beyond. If I'm 411 00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:56,920 Speaker 1: gen X exactly, it was a gen X or millennials. 412 00:24:57,280 --> 00:24:58,600 Speaker 1: I don't know. I feel like there were plenty of 413 00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:01,320 Speaker 1: gen xers that lived in the Bay, right, you're totally right, 414 00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:04,200 Speaker 1: or maybe that's every generation, but we weren't coddled as much. 415 00:25:05,119 --> 00:25:12,240 Speaker 1: Oh boy, you're gonna get us canceled the boy. Uh yeah, 416 00:25:12,320 --> 00:25:15,400 Speaker 1: So let's move on from that. Oh wait, here's another thing. 417 00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:20,000 Speaker 1: And this is the satisfinding Ever, when they did the study, 418 00:25:20,359 --> 00:25:23,719 Speaker 1: um that that brain activity was diminished when they were 419 00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:28,159 Speaker 1: shown baby faces that were had some sort of facial disruption, 420 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:31,399 Speaker 1: like a cleft palate. And that is really one of 421 00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:34,639 Speaker 1: the saddest things you can imagine hearing. Yeah, because I 422 00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:39,480 Speaker 1: mean that would that would account for you know what 423 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:42,000 Speaker 1: I was talking about earlier about how cuteness is selected 424 00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,439 Speaker 1: for that there's this like by no one's fault of 425 00:25:45,480 --> 00:25:48,800 Speaker 1: their own, but just through you know, the evolutionary process 426 00:25:48,840 --> 00:25:51,920 Speaker 1: of these these neural connections that were born that are 427 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:55,240 Speaker 1: ready to make like wanting to respond to something cute. 428 00:25:55,760 --> 00:25:58,640 Speaker 1: If you're presented with something that doesn't quite line up 429 00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:02,960 Speaker 1: with that king Kin schema, Um, that baby is going 430 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:06,520 Speaker 1: to have a much harder time getting that same response 431 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:11,040 Speaker 1: from from somebody than just a traditionally cute baby. Well, 432 00:26:11,080 --> 00:26:15,000 Speaker 1: it's it's extraordinarily sad. I think we need to do 433 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,360 Speaker 1: an episode on cleft palates too. That that stood out 434 00:26:17,400 --> 00:26:19,520 Speaker 1: to me that we haven't done that yet. Yeah, or 435 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:21,760 Speaker 1: even worse than you know, in ancient times, those babies 436 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:24,920 Speaker 1: would be walked out to the woods and left, you know, yeah, 437 00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:30,000 Speaker 1: for sure, you know. Um, Carl Lawrence apparently said that 438 00:26:30,080 --> 00:26:33,639 Speaker 1: the Quby doll, you know, our cup mayonnaise, So the 439 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:35,840 Speaker 1: doll that that's based on if you take a look 440 00:26:35,840 --> 00:26:39,679 Speaker 1: at its face, Um, that in Lawrence's opinion, that was 441 00:26:39,880 --> 00:26:46,640 Speaker 1: the maximum exaggeration that you could reach of Kinkin schema 442 00:26:47,160 --> 00:26:51,560 Speaker 1: before violating it, and that afterward what was beyond it 443 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:54,720 Speaker 1: was that wasn't coined at the time, but what he 444 00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:57,720 Speaker 1: was talking about was basically an uncanny valley like there's 445 00:26:57,760 --> 00:26:59,520 Speaker 1: your brain would start to be like, wait, there's something, 446 00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:03,520 Speaker 1: so thing is somewhat out of order here. UM, So 447 00:27:03,600 --> 00:27:07,000 Speaker 1: it's weird. There's like a really apparently there's a set 448 00:27:07,080 --> 00:27:10,719 Speaker 1: a package of traits that make up what is considered cute, 449 00:27:10,760 --> 00:27:15,800 Speaker 1: and straying outside of that, UM just kind of violates 450 00:27:15,840 --> 00:27:18,840 Speaker 1: it in some weird way. It violates like this this 451 00:27:18,960 --> 00:27:22,840 Speaker 1: pathway that we're we seem to be pre programmed to have. 452 00:27:23,119 --> 00:27:25,000 Speaker 1: I didn't know mayonnaise was going to make an appearance. 453 00:27:25,880 --> 00:27:28,679 Speaker 1: I I did because I saw the cuteie thing, But 454 00:27:28,800 --> 00:27:32,200 Speaker 1: before that I had no idea either. So cuteness is 455 00:27:32,240 --> 00:27:34,840 Speaker 1: going to activate other parts of the brain. It's just 456 00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:40,160 Speaker 1: not that superspeedy response that you get in the orbitofrontal cortex. UM. 457 00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:44,720 Speaker 1: So if you're a parent and you have a brain, UM, 458 00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:49,720 Speaker 1: you're gonna go undergo a really kind of slow change. UM. 459 00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:52,159 Speaker 1: As you parent and as you take care of that baby, 460 00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:55,560 Speaker 1: in bond with that baby, as they go into infancy. UM, 461 00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:58,160 Speaker 1: you're gonna still have that trigger of cuteness, but it's 462 00:27:58,200 --> 00:28:01,360 Speaker 1: just going to be a slower response and more complex 463 00:28:01,400 --> 00:28:04,040 Speaker 1: as far as your actual brain activity goes. Yeah, and 464 00:28:04,040 --> 00:28:09,520 Speaker 1: supposedly that co evolves with the cuteness of a baby, 465 00:28:09,560 --> 00:28:13,000 Speaker 1: like a newborn baby is just that. But like you 466 00:28:13,119 --> 00:28:16,200 Speaker 1: look at a baby some six months that same baby, Yeah, 467 00:28:16,400 --> 00:28:18,920 Speaker 1: you have to admit, it's pretty infrequent for a baby 468 00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:22,240 Speaker 1: to be cute right out of the womb. Yeah, I 469 00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:26,800 Speaker 1: mean generally they're little alien lizard type creatures. Sure, but 470 00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:29,720 Speaker 1: wait six months, and that same baby is going to 471 00:28:29,760 --> 00:28:34,760 Speaker 1: look awfully cute. So and within right, and within that 472 00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:40,840 Speaker 1: six months, um, you're going to have developed more sophisticated responses, 473 00:28:40,920 --> 00:28:45,400 Speaker 1: caretaking responses to that baby's cuteness. Um, it's pretty interesting 474 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:47,960 Speaker 1: that like they both start to gel around the same time, 475 00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:51,240 Speaker 1: the babies start to hit pique cuteness and the caregiving 476 00:28:51,280 --> 00:28:54,800 Speaker 1: stuff becomes more and more sophisticated. It goes from I 477 00:28:54,880 --> 00:28:57,719 Speaker 1: need to keep this baby alive to um, you know 478 00:28:57,760 --> 00:29:00,400 Speaker 1: what college is this baby? I'm gonna get this baby 479 00:29:00,400 --> 00:29:03,360 Speaker 1: through college kind of stuff. You start thinking about that, right, 480 00:29:03,400 --> 00:29:05,200 Speaker 1: and that sort of brings back what we talked about 481 00:29:05,200 --> 00:29:12,040 Speaker 1: earlier as UM, like that that empathetic, compassionate response when 482 00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:16,280 Speaker 1: it's not even your child, Yes, when it's not even 483 00:29:16,360 --> 00:29:20,160 Speaker 1: from the same species. And and like you were saying, 484 00:29:20,200 --> 00:29:24,080 Speaker 1: you know, people tend to rate um, the species that 485 00:29:24,120 --> 00:29:27,120 Speaker 1: are most altricial as the cutest because they need the 486 00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:31,360 Speaker 1: most help. So that pathway can be hijacked by humans, 487 00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:35,640 Speaker 1: human babies and other species as well, and by people 488 00:29:35,680 --> 00:29:37,560 Speaker 1: who are trying to sell you stuff. As we'll see. 489 00:29:38,560 --> 00:29:43,959 Speaker 1: That's very true. Break, Yes, all right, we're gonna take 490 00:29:43,960 --> 00:29:47,040 Speaker 1: your break and talk about qute aggression, something that we're 491 00:29:47,040 --> 00:30:16,800 Speaker 1: pretty familiar with right after this. All right, So I've 492 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:20,880 Speaker 1: talked before in the past about my wife Emily, and uh, 493 00:30:21,480 --> 00:30:25,920 Speaker 1: when she sees puppies and babies and other cute little things, 494 00:30:26,480 --> 00:30:31,360 Speaker 1: she uh, she says stuff like I want to I 495 00:30:31,400 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: want to punch that baby in the face. I want 496 00:30:33,320 --> 00:30:36,360 Speaker 1: to squeeze the life out of it. I want to 497 00:30:36,760 --> 00:30:39,240 Speaker 1: I want to eat that puppy. Like some things that 498 00:30:39,280 --> 00:30:42,680 Speaker 1: sound genuinely horrific, Maybe not, I want to punch that 499 00:30:42,720 --> 00:30:45,680 Speaker 1: baby in the face. That's a different I've seen that somewhere, 500 00:30:46,200 --> 00:30:48,920 Speaker 1: but it's a thing, and it's not just her, it's 501 00:30:48,920 --> 00:30:52,960 Speaker 1: an actual thing. It's called cute aggression. When you see 502 00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:56,400 Speaker 1: something and you say, you know, I want to put 503 00:30:56,440 --> 00:31:00,360 Speaker 1: that puppy on a plate and eat it, which is, 504 00:31:00,560 --> 00:31:02,560 Speaker 1: like you said, it's very weird when you step back 505 00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:06,120 Speaker 1: and think about it, um, and it actually it's of 506 00:31:06,360 --> 00:31:10,920 Speaker 1: a very recent um investigation, like I think two thirteen 507 00:31:11,040 --> 00:31:13,400 Speaker 1: is the earliest I saw um. And one of the 508 00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:16,680 Speaker 1: people who are leading the charge into studying qute aggression 509 00:31:17,160 --> 00:31:21,440 Speaker 1: is a Clemson psychologist named Oriana aragon Um, and she 510 00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:24,320 Speaker 1: and some of her colleagues have really kind of are 511 00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:29,600 Speaker 1: are are establishing this field of cute aggression. And the 512 00:31:29,640 --> 00:31:33,280 Speaker 1: reason why aragon is a pretty good social psychologist to 513 00:31:33,320 --> 00:31:37,240 Speaker 1: be investigating this is because her specialty is dimorphous expressions, 514 00:31:37,880 --> 00:31:44,360 Speaker 1: which is contradictory emotional indicators that don't really seem to 515 00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:47,800 Speaker 1: go together, but do because it's just so common, like 516 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:52,640 Speaker 1: tears of joy um or nervous laughter, that kind of stuff, 517 00:31:53,720 --> 00:31:57,040 Speaker 1: And it seems that que aggression kind of falls under 518 00:31:57,080 --> 00:32:01,280 Speaker 1: that same umbrella. Yeah, and it's interesting because you say, sure, great, 519 00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:04,040 Speaker 1: qute aggression. We've got a name for it that doesn't 520 00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:08,280 Speaker 1: really explain it though, and it's explained kind of like 521 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:12,479 Speaker 1: nervous laughter or tears of joy. It may be a 522 00:32:12,480 --> 00:32:16,800 Speaker 1: way of regulating something that's just too overwhelming emotionally. So 523 00:32:16,920 --> 00:32:20,480 Speaker 1: when they study qute aggression, they show people the cutest 524 00:32:20,480 --> 00:32:23,520 Speaker 1: pictures of the cutest things, see how the brain responds 525 00:32:24,320 --> 00:32:30,720 Speaker 1: and people who have the really biggest cute aggressive response, UM, 526 00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:33,600 Speaker 1: their brains are lighting up, but your reward system is 527 00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:36,600 Speaker 1: also lighting up at the same time, right, but it's 528 00:32:36,640 --> 00:32:43,040 Speaker 1: like an overwhelming reward response, like you're just uh, it's intolerable. Yeah, 529 00:32:43,200 --> 00:32:47,760 Speaker 1: And so the idea is that your brain brings you 530 00:32:47,840 --> 00:32:54,880 Speaker 1: down from that um by implementing like a not complimentary 531 00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:59,280 Speaker 1: what's the opposite of complimentary m you're a big jerk, 532 00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:03,479 Speaker 1: that kind of UM, that kind of emotion like anger 533 00:33:03,600 --> 00:33:06,920 Speaker 1: or aggression or hostility or something like that, to balance 534 00:33:06,960 --> 00:33:08,480 Speaker 1: it out and to bring you back down. Because it 535 00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:12,080 Speaker 1: makes sense that if you were just sitting there experiencing 536 00:33:12,200 --> 00:33:17,280 Speaker 1: overwhelming UM cute overload like you would, you might not 537 00:33:17,400 --> 00:33:19,880 Speaker 1: ever get around defeating that baby. You might just be 538 00:33:19,920 --> 00:33:22,160 Speaker 1: sitting there like with your tongue hanging out the side 539 00:33:22,160 --> 00:33:25,440 Speaker 1: of your mouth, drooling. Yeah. It's interesting because like a 540 00:33:25,480 --> 00:33:27,560 Speaker 1: lot of times, and I've heard a lot of other 541 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:29,760 Speaker 1: people say this, but like Emily will say like I 542 00:33:29,800 --> 00:33:32,120 Speaker 1: just want to squeeze that baby, and that's followed up 543 00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:35,280 Speaker 1: with I can't even take it, Like I just can't 544 00:33:35,280 --> 00:33:38,560 Speaker 1: even take it with this cuteness, Like that's that's literally true, 545 00:33:38,640 --> 00:33:41,920 Speaker 1: Like your brain can't even take it. So I thought 546 00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:45,240 Speaker 1: it was cute. Aragon Um came up with a way 547 00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:49,520 Speaker 1: to measure cute aggression UM by using bubble wrap. This 548 00:33:49,640 --> 00:33:52,920 Speaker 1: I didn't quite understand this. She would give um bubble 549 00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:55,560 Speaker 1: wrap two people and show them different pictures, and the 550 00:33:55,600 --> 00:34:02,160 Speaker 1: pictures that rated the highest in cuteness UM evoked or 551 00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:05,920 Speaker 1: led to the largest number of bubbles pops. So the 552 00:34:05,960 --> 00:34:09,920 Speaker 1: idea is like, if you see something cute, pop bubbles 553 00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:12,240 Speaker 1: or just like here, hold this, and you just find 554 00:34:12,239 --> 00:34:15,000 Speaker 1: yourself popping them. I don't know. I don't know that. 555 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:18,480 Speaker 1: I don't know actually to tell you the truth, UM, 556 00:34:18,800 --> 00:34:21,040 Speaker 1: I think yeah. I think it's more it's meant to 557 00:34:21,080 --> 00:34:24,080 Speaker 1: be like an unconscious thing, Like you're not supposed to 558 00:34:24,120 --> 00:34:26,759 Speaker 1: be like, well, this is an eighty bubble kitty, you know, 559 00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:29,040 Speaker 1: nothing like that. Or it's just like you look down 560 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:31,040 Speaker 1: you're like, oh my god, there's no more bubbles left 561 00:34:31,080 --> 00:34:35,000 Speaker 1: this that that cat was so cute kind of thing. UM. 562 00:34:35,160 --> 00:34:37,960 Speaker 1: I saw another explanation for Q diggression in that it's 563 00:34:38,000 --> 00:34:44,480 Speaker 1: a response to a frustrated desire for caregiving. So where um, 564 00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:48,399 Speaker 1: where you want to go punch that baby in the face. 565 00:34:48,440 --> 00:34:50,919 Speaker 1: But you know, you'll spend a significant amount of time 566 00:34:50,920 --> 00:34:54,560 Speaker 1: in jail if you actually do that, right, Like, that's 567 00:34:54,680 --> 00:34:56,879 Speaker 1: that's where that would come a from like like that, 568 00:34:57,000 --> 00:34:59,480 Speaker 1: you can't do that. It's not your baby to go 569 00:34:59,640 --> 00:35:02,080 Speaker 1: snug goal and cuddle and take care of you can't. 570 00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:04,719 Speaker 1: You have to do it from a far exactly, So 571 00:35:04,800 --> 00:35:06,920 Speaker 1: you have to do it from afar. So it it 572 00:35:06,920 --> 00:35:11,640 Speaker 1: it comes out in this mixture of cute response and 573 00:35:11,960 --> 00:35:15,680 Speaker 1: aggression or aggressive words or uh you know that kind 574 00:35:15,680 --> 00:35:18,160 Speaker 1: of thing well, and that also kind of dovetails with 575 00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:21,560 Speaker 1: the cute sadness, which is I guess Aragon coined that 576 00:35:21,680 --> 00:35:26,680 Speaker 1: term as well. Is where um, you see a puppy 577 00:35:26,680 --> 00:35:29,960 Speaker 1: in a window and you go oh, no or ah 578 00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:32,279 Speaker 1: or make a frowny face. That's when you see a 579 00:35:32,320 --> 00:35:35,480 Speaker 1: lot when you see something really cute. And her theory 580 00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:37,759 Speaker 1: is that kind of like what you're just saying, like 581 00:35:37,840 --> 00:35:42,080 Speaker 1: that puppy is is uh is in the crate at 582 00:35:42,080 --> 00:35:44,520 Speaker 1: the adoption place and you can't get to it, or 583 00:35:44,560 --> 00:35:46,600 Speaker 1: it's just walking down the street with somebody and you're 584 00:35:46,680 --> 00:35:48,600 Speaker 1: driving your car and you can't get to it. So 585 00:35:48,640 --> 00:35:51,480 Speaker 1: you're expressing a kind of a frustration that you can't 586 00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:53,919 Speaker 1: get out of the car and squeeze the puppy, right, 587 00:35:54,200 --> 00:35:57,840 Speaker 1: so you have to squeeze your sphincter instead. But I 588 00:35:57,840 --> 00:36:01,239 Speaker 1: guess it comes out as disappointment though, yeah, yeah, and 589 00:36:01,280 --> 00:36:04,840 Speaker 1: it's it would seem to be frustrated, a response to 590 00:36:04,840 --> 00:36:08,080 Speaker 1: frustrated attempts at caregiving or a frustrated desire to caregive 591 00:36:08,200 --> 00:36:13,640 Speaker 1: because you see something cute and your caregiving instinct is 592 00:36:13,680 --> 00:36:15,560 Speaker 1: triggered or whatever you want to call it if you 593 00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:18,359 Speaker 1: don't don't agree with instinct, but there's nothing you can 594 00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:20,560 Speaker 1: do about it because you're driving and that things going 595 00:36:20,640 --> 00:36:22,520 Speaker 1: the other way, so you can't do anything to to 596 00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:24,440 Speaker 1: take care of it. So you have to get that 597 00:36:24,520 --> 00:36:26,880 Speaker 1: out somehow. And it seems like anger and aggression is 598 00:36:26,880 --> 00:36:29,320 Speaker 1: a good way for it to make it subside quickly. 599 00:36:30,480 --> 00:36:32,799 Speaker 1: But again again I really want to point out here 600 00:36:33,880 --> 00:36:37,680 Speaker 1: this is this is intuitive stuff. This is not stuff 601 00:36:37,719 --> 00:36:39,680 Speaker 1: where it's like this study backs the sub and this 602 00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:42,360 Speaker 1: study backs this up. From what I've seen, every single 603 00:36:42,400 --> 00:36:46,400 Speaker 1: study in cuteness and cute aggression, uh, involves about a 604 00:36:46,480 --> 00:36:52,000 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty college undergrads as your your your study population, 605 00:36:52,120 --> 00:36:54,080 Speaker 1: and they're popping bubble wrap and stuff like that like, 606 00:36:54,120 --> 00:36:57,080 Speaker 1: it's still very early in its research, but it does 607 00:36:57,160 --> 00:37:00,560 Speaker 1: make a lot of sense, you know, But that doesn't 608 00:37:00,560 --> 00:37:04,520 Speaker 1: necessarily mean that's that's accurate. Just take that and take 609 00:37:04,520 --> 00:37:06,799 Speaker 1: that with a grain of salt whatever that means. And 610 00:37:06,800 --> 00:37:11,719 Speaker 1: it's also, um, I'm not knocking the study, but it's 611 00:37:11,719 --> 00:37:14,000 Speaker 1: also you know, let's be honest, it's not the most 612 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:18,160 Speaker 1: important thing in the world. No, No, it's like interesting 613 00:37:18,200 --> 00:37:21,920 Speaker 1: to understand. It makes for good reading on an internet article, 614 00:37:22,719 --> 00:37:27,760 Speaker 1: but uh, it's not driving Like, it's not solving a problem, 615 00:37:27,880 --> 00:37:30,680 Speaker 1: you know what I'm saying. I suddenly feel like we're 616 00:37:30,719 --> 00:37:33,359 Speaker 1: standing in the middle of a vast glass house and 617 00:37:33,360 --> 00:37:36,160 Speaker 1: we have rocks in our hands right now. Oh boy, 618 00:37:36,560 --> 00:37:38,160 Speaker 1: I think it's fun to talk about. I mean, that's 619 00:37:38,160 --> 00:37:43,040 Speaker 1: what makes I mean, this is perfect podcast spodder for sure. Um, 620 00:37:43,080 --> 00:37:45,879 Speaker 1: But like I'm curious that this could be applied at all. 621 00:37:46,800 --> 00:37:48,680 Speaker 1: I don't know. I think maybe it's just one of 622 00:37:48,719 --> 00:37:51,600 Speaker 1: those things where it's like, now we understand that it's documented, 623 00:37:51,640 --> 00:37:53,840 Speaker 1: it's understood, so we understand humans a little more, and 624 00:37:53,880 --> 00:37:56,000 Speaker 1: then maybe it'll open some door to some other thing 625 00:37:56,040 --> 00:38:00,200 Speaker 1: that we realize was connected that. You know that. Yeah, 626 00:38:00,239 --> 00:38:03,279 Speaker 1: but I totally agree with what you're saying. Yeah, but 627 00:38:03,360 --> 00:38:05,720 Speaker 1: I think you've pulled me any other direction. Nobel prize, 628 00:38:06,360 --> 00:38:09,160 Speaker 1: oh good God to send it their way. Good. So 629 00:38:09,280 --> 00:38:11,720 Speaker 1: you mentioned earlier about using the stuff to sell things, 630 00:38:12,440 --> 00:38:15,799 Speaker 1: and that is for sure true. Um, you can't. I mean, 631 00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:21,520 Speaker 1: you look at any Pixar or Disney cartoon or anime. Certainly, Um, 632 00:38:21,600 --> 00:38:25,880 Speaker 1: you're gonna see round babies and you're gonna see huge eyes. 633 00:38:26,560 --> 00:38:30,240 Speaker 1: When you see pamphlets that are trying to sell stuff 634 00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:33,000 Speaker 1: or or try to get you to donate to an 635 00:38:33,080 --> 00:38:37,680 Speaker 1: animal cause or a children's foundation. Um, they're probably gonna 636 00:38:37,680 --> 00:38:40,719 Speaker 1: put a baby or a puppy on that cover that 637 00:38:40,760 --> 00:38:45,359 Speaker 1: has the biggest, roundest face and eyes. It's manipulative, Um, 638 00:38:45,400 --> 00:38:48,800 Speaker 1: but used for good generally. Yeah, yeah, totally. It's almost 639 00:38:48,880 --> 00:38:52,240 Speaker 1: like um, using music in the background of an ad, 640 00:38:52,360 --> 00:38:58,240 Speaker 1: you know, like it's purposefully hijacking a very ancient neural 641 00:38:58,320 --> 00:39:02,840 Speaker 1: pathway that basically all humans have to get an emotional 642 00:39:02,920 --> 00:39:06,160 Speaker 1: response out of you, a positive emotional response. And it 643 00:39:06,280 --> 00:39:09,719 Speaker 1: might have nothing to do with with what they're trying 644 00:39:09,800 --> 00:39:14,200 Speaker 1: to sell, but you're you're now associating pleasurable, warm feeling 645 00:39:14,239 --> 00:39:21,560 Speaker 1: with you know, Mr Sparkle dishwashing detergent, you know when 646 00:39:21,640 --> 00:39:25,560 Speaker 1: really it's just a a joint venture of Matsumura Fish 647 00:39:25,600 --> 00:39:31,680 Speaker 1: Works and Tomorrow Heavy Manufacturing concern. Um. Like when they've 648 00:39:31,680 --> 00:39:34,840 Speaker 1: done um, they've done studies and like anti smoking campaigns 649 00:39:34,840 --> 00:39:38,480 Speaker 1: for teenagers, and they respond more to cartoon characters that 650 00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:40,920 Speaker 1: are cute, which sounds a lot like Joe Campbell. If 651 00:39:40,920 --> 00:39:43,920 Speaker 1: you ask me, it's like the opposite. That's true. Um, 652 00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:46,320 Speaker 1: but it does make sense like a teens might respond 653 00:39:46,400 --> 00:39:48,840 Speaker 1: to a list here is like a penguin and a 654 00:39:48,920 --> 00:39:53,040 Speaker 1: jacket or a polar bear. Then you know some adult 655 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:57,600 Speaker 1: human like pointing their finger at you like John, can 656 00:39:57,640 --> 00:40:04,560 Speaker 1: you imagine to the teens don't smoke? Right? So? Um? Yeah, 657 00:40:04,560 --> 00:40:07,040 Speaker 1: it also makes you think, like you know, since so 658 00:40:07,120 --> 00:40:11,080 Speaker 1: many like cute toys, or so many toys are cute. Um, 659 00:40:11,200 --> 00:40:15,600 Speaker 1: when you're buying like a plush animal has, are you 660 00:40:15,840 --> 00:40:22,000 Speaker 1: responding almost in like an insane way to your cute 661 00:40:22,040 --> 00:40:25,520 Speaker 1: caregiving response? Just being manipulated and like you're going to 662 00:40:25,560 --> 00:40:27,799 Speaker 1: take that stuff to animal home and and and give 663 00:40:27,840 --> 00:40:31,560 Speaker 1: it care because it's just been activated in you? Is 664 00:40:31,560 --> 00:40:33,600 Speaker 1: that really? Is that? That seems to be what's going 665 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:36,640 Speaker 1: on when you when you're when you buy like a 666 00:40:36,680 --> 00:40:40,600 Speaker 1: toy like that. That's interesting because then if you know, 667 00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:43,279 Speaker 1: if you see people walking around like that, you're like, oh, 668 00:40:43,320 --> 00:40:47,120 Speaker 1: well you've you've just been manipulated. Congratulations kind of thing. 669 00:40:48,120 --> 00:40:50,640 Speaker 1: But also you can make the case to um. And 670 00:40:50,719 --> 00:40:53,640 Speaker 1: I read a guy uh something by a guy named 671 00:40:53,640 --> 00:40:58,680 Speaker 1: Gary Jenosco who is the Canada Research Chair and Techno 672 00:40:58,760 --> 00:41:03,640 Speaker 1: Culture at lake Head University in thunder Bay, Ontario, and 673 00:41:03,719 --> 00:41:07,560 Speaker 1: he argues that UM that same thing that the commodification 674 00:41:07,640 --> 00:41:11,000 Speaker 1: of cute, uh say, like by Disney. He also argues 675 00:41:11,040 --> 00:41:15,239 Speaker 1: that National Geographic Magazine was big into getting people in 676 00:41:15,239 --> 00:41:19,440 Speaker 1: involved in caring about animals and nature. They really use cuteness, 677 00:41:20,120 --> 00:41:23,480 Speaker 1: especially in like the fifties and sixties. I guess um 678 00:41:23,520 --> 00:41:28,600 Speaker 1: that it forms our understanding of things in a very 679 00:41:28,640 --> 00:41:32,239 Speaker 1: specific way, which is this thing is cute. It's like 680 00:41:32,280 --> 00:41:33,719 Speaker 1: a toy to me. I want to pick it up 681 00:41:33,719 --> 00:41:35,520 Speaker 1: and carry it around and love it and hug on it. 682 00:41:36,040 --> 00:41:39,759 Speaker 1: But in doing that you really miss out on a 683 00:41:39,840 --> 00:41:46,280 Speaker 1: lot of the um the individual um personality of whatever 684 00:41:46,320 --> 00:41:52,600 Speaker 1: that animal is. Like you like you trade respect for infantalism, 685 00:41:52,840 --> 00:41:56,560 Speaker 1: right and like that. That that really stood out to 686 00:41:56,600 --> 00:41:58,719 Speaker 1: me because I have to remind myself that Momo is 687 00:41:58,760 --> 00:42:04,360 Speaker 1: like this sncient individual entity who deserves respect and to 688 00:42:04,440 --> 00:42:06,600 Speaker 1: be treated with respect. I just picked up any time 689 00:42:07,040 --> 00:42:09,200 Speaker 1: she you know, she looks at me a certain way 690 00:42:09,200 --> 00:42:12,160 Speaker 1: and it sets off my cuteness response. Like I've really 691 00:42:12,160 --> 00:42:14,000 Speaker 1: had to grapple with that. And luckily, you mean's like 692 00:42:14,040 --> 00:42:16,920 Speaker 1: really aware of that because she hasn't She's always been 693 00:42:16,920 --> 00:42:19,319 Speaker 1: a very small person and she us got get picked 694 00:42:19,360 --> 00:42:21,760 Speaker 1: up all the time, so she's like identifies with Mama 695 00:42:21,760 --> 00:42:25,520 Speaker 1: on that level. Um, And it's been like really an 696 00:42:25,520 --> 00:42:28,239 Speaker 1: exercise and restraint. Sometimes it's just be like, no, I've 697 00:42:28,280 --> 00:42:30,560 Speaker 1: just got to treat Mama like she doesn't want to 698 00:42:30,560 --> 00:42:32,360 Speaker 1: be picked up right now kind of thing. You know. 699 00:42:33,400 --> 00:42:36,160 Speaker 1: But I thought Canascar Jenascar really made a good point 700 00:42:36,200 --> 00:42:39,600 Speaker 1: that we we miss a lot of like what makes 701 00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:42,240 Speaker 1: an animal and animal in in favor of just seeing 702 00:42:42,239 --> 00:42:44,800 Speaker 1: it as something cute and a kind of a plaything 703 00:42:44,840 --> 00:42:48,759 Speaker 1: in a way. Yeah, and if like there's no clear 704 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,880 Speaker 1: reminder that, um, you know, I've always had dogs and 705 00:42:52,960 --> 00:42:55,360 Speaker 1: multiple dogs and love dogs, but when you see a 706 00:42:55,400 --> 00:42:59,280 Speaker 1: dog like you know, go after a squirrel and catch 707 00:42:59,280 --> 00:43:01,600 Speaker 1: it and eat it or something, that these are the 708 00:43:01,600 --> 00:43:05,360 Speaker 1: reminders like these are these are animals, you know, like 709 00:43:05,400 --> 00:43:08,640 Speaker 1: the same cute dog will also you know, eat poop 710 00:43:08,640 --> 00:43:10,600 Speaker 1: out of it's a but if it could right or 711 00:43:10,680 --> 00:43:12,560 Speaker 1: eat your face if you died on the couch and 712 00:43:12,600 --> 00:43:17,200 Speaker 1: it was locked in the house with in a second. Sure, Um, 713 00:43:17,239 --> 00:43:21,680 Speaker 1: so we probably shouldn't finish until we talk about kauaie culture. Yeah, 714 00:43:21,719 --> 00:43:25,520 Speaker 1: this is the Japanese culture that is um well, this 715 00:43:25,560 --> 00:43:28,400 Speaker 1: says it best. Maybe the greatest pop culture expression of cute. 716 00:43:29,120 --> 00:43:33,880 Speaker 1: You think Pikachu think um like pop singers dressed as 717 00:43:34,200 --> 00:43:38,040 Speaker 1: a little sort of pigtailed schoolgirls. Uh. It's it's a 718 00:43:38,160 --> 00:43:43,920 Speaker 1: very very big trend in Japan. It's huge, Like everybody 719 00:43:43,920 --> 00:43:47,960 Speaker 1: has a cute mascot, Hello kiddies everywhere. It's just enormous. 720 00:43:48,400 --> 00:43:51,520 Speaker 1: And apparently it kind of like grew and evolved and 721 00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:55,600 Speaker 1: morphed over time, starting with this um student protest movement 722 00:43:55,600 --> 00:43:59,600 Speaker 1: in the sixties, where like the Japanese kids like um 723 00:43:59,600 --> 00:44:01,640 Speaker 1: just to sided, they didn't want to go to class anymore. 724 00:44:01,640 --> 00:44:05,400 Speaker 1: They sat around and read manga comic books instead and 725 00:44:05,480 --> 00:44:08,440 Speaker 1: kind of regress to back to childhood. And then that 726 00:44:08,520 --> 00:44:11,160 Speaker 1: kind of developed in the seventies into a trend for 727 00:44:11,480 --> 00:44:16,600 Speaker 1: cute see bubbly handwriting that led to Hello Kitty, and 728 00:44:16,640 --> 00:44:21,200 Speaker 1: then weirdly, it also made an appearance um as Uh 729 00:44:21,280 --> 00:44:26,279 Speaker 1: what is it Burrico women, which is very childlike. Um 730 00:44:26,520 --> 00:44:31,879 Speaker 1: women who adopted this this kind of demeanor UM two 731 00:44:32,200 --> 00:44:36,319 Speaker 1: number one, uh cut off any sense of threat that 732 00:44:36,360 --> 00:44:39,200 Speaker 1: they presented when they entered the workforce, but also to 733 00:44:39,280 --> 00:44:43,960 Speaker 1: kind of keep um unwanted advances from their male colleagues. 734 00:44:44,000 --> 00:44:47,239 Speaker 1: At Bay two, they entered the workforce as if they 735 00:44:47,239 --> 00:44:50,880 Speaker 1: were young kids, little girls, giggly and all that kind 736 00:44:50,880 --> 00:44:52,759 Speaker 1: of stuff. And this is like a persona that they 737 00:44:52,800 --> 00:44:57,239 Speaker 1: adopted that eventually became this trend, this cuteness trend that's 738 00:44:57,280 --> 00:45:00,360 Speaker 1: like everywhere in Japan. I never thought about the bubble letters. 739 00:45:00,360 --> 00:45:04,399 Speaker 1: That's so interesting because I've always sort of wondered, like 740 00:45:05,000 --> 00:45:09,560 Speaker 1: why elementary school girls. It seems like I would write 741 00:45:09,600 --> 00:45:14,600 Speaker 1: in those big, juicy round letters. Yeah, it makes sense, 742 00:45:15,320 --> 00:45:18,600 Speaker 1: it does. But that was apparently where Hawaii culture came 743 00:45:18,640 --> 00:45:22,560 Speaker 1: from originally as a handwriting thing. Interesting. Yeah, I was 744 00:45:22,640 --> 00:45:26,240 Speaker 1: curious here at the end, I was like, has science 745 00:45:26,280 --> 00:45:29,800 Speaker 1: proven what the cutest animals are? And I did find 746 00:45:29,960 --> 00:45:33,520 Speaker 1: something from list Verse and Jonathan Cantor the top ten 747 00:45:33,600 --> 00:45:36,799 Speaker 1: cutest animals in the world, according to science. But I 748 00:45:36,840 --> 00:45:39,359 Speaker 1: see nothing in the article about how science proved this, 749 00:45:40,719 --> 00:45:43,960 Speaker 1: literally nothing, but I figured i'd read it just for frenzies. 750 00:45:44,800 --> 00:45:48,560 Speaker 1: Number ten is most baby mammals, okay. Number nine is 751 00:45:48,600 --> 00:45:52,400 Speaker 1: the slow Loris. You ever see those things? You should 752 00:45:52,400 --> 00:45:53,719 Speaker 1: look at some of these. In fact, I'm gonna go 753 00:45:53,719 --> 00:45:58,560 Speaker 1: ahead and text you number one right now because and 754 00:45:58,600 --> 00:46:00,160 Speaker 1: I guess i'll just send it to you and are 755 00:46:00,280 --> 00:46:03,000 Speaker 1: since she's on our most recent thread, she'll be like, 756 00:46:03,160 --> 00:46:06,319 Speaker 1: what the heck is this all right? Coming your way? So? 757 00:46:06,719 --> 00:46:10,719 Speaker 1: Number eight is the mere cat, which I think mere 758 00:46:10,760 --> 00:46:13,640 Speaker 1: cancelok a little sinister personally. Yeah, I can see that 759 00:46:13,680 --> 00:46:17,439 Speaker 1: because of the like there they got the bandit masks on. Yeah. Uh. 760 00:46:17,560 --> 00:46:21,360 Speaker 1: Number seven is the koala. Yeah, did you just Lauras 761 00:46:21,440 --> 00:46:24,120 Speaker 1: looks like, no, that's not a Lauras that I sent you. 762 00:46:24,160 --> 00:46:26,799 Speaker 1: Are you looking at Laris? Well? What is this what 763 00:46:26,880 --> 00:46:28,960 Speaker 1: I sent you? We'll just put a pen in. It's 764 00:46:29,040 --> 00:46:31,799 Speaker 1: number one, okay, Yeah, I can see that. Number six 765 00:46:31,880 --> 00:46:38,480 Speaker 1: is the Flapjack and Dumbo octopode. Okay, um, piglets. Number 766 00:46:38,480 --> 00:46:43,400 Speaker 1: five match the fennic fox. Number four, that's the fox 767 00:46:43,400 --> 00:46:47,440 Speaker 1: with those huge ears and make those great sounds. The 768 00:46:47,480 --> 00:46:50,120 Speaker 1: red pandas number three, the panda bear, the white panda, 769 00:46:50,120 --> 00:46:52,520 Speaker 1: black and white pant is nowhere on this list. Weird, 770 00:46:52,719 --> 00:46:54,959 Speaker 1: this guy's way off. This must have been a list 771 00:46:55,000 --> 00:47:01,640 Speaker 1: from Jimmy Science, his roommate. According to Jimmy Science, I 772 00:47:01,640 --> 00:47:05,000 Speaker 1: think you mean James B. Science, number two with sea 773 00:47:05,000 --> 00:47:06,680 Speaker 1: otters and then number one. I don't know how I've 774 00:47:06,719 --> 00:47:09,000 Speaker 1: lived my whole life without knowing that this thing existed. 775 00:47:09,719 --> 00:47:14,440 Speaker 1: But the quoca q u o k k A from Australia. 776 00:47:14,600 --> 00:47:18,000 Speaker 1: It's a small marsupial uh same family as a kangaroo, 777 00:47:18,040 --> 00:47:22,440 Speaker 1: apparently in southwestern Australia. And that picture I sent you, 778 00:47:22,960 --> 00:47:29,440 Speaker 1: my friend, just google smiling quoca and you'll see this 779 00:47:29,480 --> 00:47:35,040 Speaker 1: one picture of this quoca literally jumping hands out, smiling 780 00:47:35,400 --> 00:47:37,840 Speaker 1: at the camera lens like give me a hug, Like, 781 00:47:37,880 --> 00:47:40,239 Speaker 1: give me a hug. This is and I think, I mean, 782 00:47:40,320 --> 00:47:42,000 Speaker 1: n you know, they said it's because they look like 783 00:47:42,000 --> 00:47:44,840 Speaker 1: they're smiling. Obviously is one of the big reasons. But 784 00:47:44,880 --> 00:47:48,400 Speaker 1: almost every picture you look at a quoca, it's got 785 00:47:48,440 --> 00:47:53,000 Speaker 1: this little smile. It's unbelievable. Hey, I have to say, 786 00:47:53,040 --> 00:47:55,080 Speaker 1: based on the screenshot you you need to charge your 787 00:47:55,120 --> 00:47:59,279 Speaker 1: phone soon. Uh yeah, and that was even earlier, So 788 00:48:00,120 --> 00:48:02,680 Speaker 1: I get that same stress because I'm I'm generally at 789 00:48:02,719 --> 00:48:06,000 Speaker 1: least guy. Yeah, and so when I see people do 790 00:48:06,040 --> 00:48:11,600 Speaker 1: screenshots and as that read, yeah, boy, I can't even 791 00:48:11,600 --> 00:48:15,000 Speaker 1: take it so um to finish up, chuck that the 792 00:48:15,200 --> 00:48:18,760 Speaker 1: converse of what you're talking about the cutest animals, um, 793 00:48:18,960 --> 00:48:22,279 Speaker 1: the fact that they exist also kind of implies that 794 00:48:22,320 --> 00:48:25,120 Speaker 1: there are non cute animals that exist and that they're 795 00:48:25,200 --> 00:48:28,640 Speaker 1: less likely to get our attention. Um. And as a result, 796 00:48:28,719 --> 00:48:30,600 Speaker 1: there is a kind of tongue in cheek. But I 797 00:48:30,600 --> 00:48:33,319 Speaker 1: also get the impression kind of serious group called the 798 00:48:33,400 --> 00:48:38,680 Speaker 1: Ugly Animal Preservation Society whose mascot is the blob Fish, 799 00:48:38,800 --> 00:48:41,120 Speaker 1: which makes a lot of sense, and their slogan is 800 00:48:41,440 --> 00:48:44,960 Speaker 1: we can't all be pandas I love that. Yeah, So 801 00:48:45,000 --> 00:48:48,960 Speaker 1: they're looking out for the ugly animals that we're going 802 00:48:49,000 --> 00:48:51,160 Speaker 1: to wipe out because they're not cute. Well, I know 803 00:48:51,239 --> 00:48:53,400 Speaker 1: that is a big deal when it comes to conservation, 804 00:48:54,280 --> 00:48:58,040 Speaker 1: is that that people can conservations have a much harder 805 00:48:58,080 --> 00:49:01,400 Speaker 1: time getting money and stuff. And we talked about it 806 00:49:01,440 --> 00:49:05,000 Speaker 1: in our Zoos episode. Yeah, like that's why they lead 807 00:49:05,040 --> 00:49:07,840 Speaker 1: with giraffes and elephants and stuff like that. Was that 808 00:49:07,920 --> 00:49:09,920 Speaker 1: the episode? I know we talked about it before and 809 00:49:09,920 --> 00:49:12,359 Speaker 1: they were like, look, man, just leave us alone. This 810 00:49:12,400 --> 00:49:16,120 Speaker 1: is the important stuff because it saves the other stuff. Yeah, exactly. 811 00:49:16,719 --> 00:49:23,960 Speaker 1: That blobfish that looks like man, yeah, ugly cute maybe yeah, 812 00:49:24,200 --> 00:49:28,799 Speaker 1: chemo kawaii. If kawaii sounds familiar, that's probably because you 813 00:49:28,880 --> 00:49:31,640 Speaker 1: heard it at the very beginning of the Quin Stefani 814 00:49:31,719 --> 00:49:34,359 Speaker 1: song Haull of back Girl, where she sees a bunch 815 00:49:34,360 --> 00:49:38,680 Speaker 1: of hard juku girls in Japan and goes, kawai nice. 816 00:49:38,800 --> 00:49:43,680 Speaker 1: That blobfish look like look like it's constantly saying okay, 817 00:49:44,040 --> 00:49:46,960 Speaker 1: I know they shouldn't call it that or fish. The 818 00:49:47,040 --> 00:49:51,400 Speaker 1: blobfish definitely works sooner man um, Well, since we have 819 00:49:51,520 --> 00:49:54,160 Speaker 1: wrapped it up with the old blobfish, if you want 820 00:49:54,200 --> 00:49:57,520 Speaker 1: to know more about the science of cute, just start 821 00:49:57,600 --> 00:50:02,520 Speaker 1: looking at cute pictures of the coo ooka. Sure, that's 822 00:50:02,560 --> 00:50:05,120 Speaker 1: a great place to start. And since Chuck said sure, 823 00:50:05,600 --> 00:50:11,239 Speaker 1: that means it's time for a listener mail. I'm gonna 824 00:50:11,280 --> 00:50:14,319 Speaker 1: call this. I'm getting called out here and it's something 825 00:50:14,360 --> 00:50:16,279 Speaker 1: I haven't thought about. I got called out by a 826 00:50:16,280 --> 00:50:19,560 Speaker 1: couple of people for different reasons for saying, uh, this 827 00:50:19,640 --> 00:50:22,239 Speaker 1: phrase you know unless you live under a rock that 828 00:50:22,360 --> 00:50:26,160 Speaker 1: you know blank. One person said, Hey, that just makes 829 00:50:26,160 --> 00:50:28,319 Speaker 1: me feel dumb because I didn't know about one of 830 00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:30,879 Speaker 1: these things. Sure, I think that's the point, right, that's 831 00:50:30,880 --> 00:50:33,000 Speaker 1: your intent. No, I don't want to make anyone to 832 00:50:33,040 --> 00:50:35,840 Speaker 1: feel bad, but this is a different kind of response, 833 00:50:35,880 --> 00:50:38,560 Speaker 1: and uh, well worth reading. Hey, guys, making my way 834 00:50:38,560 --> 00:50:41,799 Speaker 1: through a backlog log of episodes, and I noticed the 835 00:50:41,800 --> 00:50:43,399 Speaker 1: thing that seems to pop up from time to time 836 00:50:43,400 --> 00:50:47,080 Speaker 1: and your descriptions of popular culture and products like hang 837 00:50:47,120 --> 00:50:49,960 Speaker 1: gliding at a sketch and Rubik's Cube. You make comments 838 00:50:49,960 --> 00:50:52,239 Speaker 1: like and if you don't know what one of these 839 00:50:52,400 --> 00:50:54,839 Speaker 1: is or looks like, get out from under your rock 840 00:50:55,320 --> 00:50:57,879 Speaker 1: and go look up a picture. Uh, someone who has 841 00:50:57,920 --> 00:51:01,480 Speaker 1: been blind since birth? Though, my problem isn't that I've 842 00:51:01,480 --> 00:51:04,279 Speaker 1: been living under a rock, but rather the pictures to 843 00:51:04,320 --> 00:51:08,680 Speaker 1: me are worth zero words. Yeah, I really got me good. 844 00:51:09,480 --> 00:51:10,840 Speaker 1: I grew up in the eighties, so everyone had a 845 00:51:10,920 --> 00:51:13,120 Speaker 1: Rubik's Cube, and I played with my fair share of them, 846 00:51:13,160 --> 00:51:15,879 Speaker 1: even though I couldn't solve them for many things in life. Though, 847 00:51:15,920 --> 00:51:19,160 Speaker 1: if I haven't physically touched it or had it described 848 00:51:19,200 --> 00:51:21,560 Speaker 1: to me. I only have the faintest idea of what 849 00:51:21,600 --> 00:51:24,320 Speaker 1: it looks like. In fact, I was a music music 850 00:51:24,440 --> 00:51:27,480 Speaker 1: education major in college, and it wasn't until my sophomore 851 00:51:27,560 --> 00:51:30,520 Speaker 1: year in age nineteen that I touched a brass instrument 852 00:51:30,560 --> 00:51:33,000 Speaker 1: for the very first time. Uh, the French horn still 853 00:51:33,040 --> 00:51:36,560 Speaker 1: fascinates me. I've enjoyed listening to your show for years, 854 00:51:36,920 --> 00:51:39,600 Speaker 1: and I've learned lots of visual information from you, from 855 00:51:39,600 --> 00:51:42,800 Speaker 1: what jiraffes looked like to fashion choices of punk rockers. 856 00:51:43,120 --> 00:51:44,880 Speaker 1: I wanted to make you aware of this though. You 857 00:51:44,880 --> 00:51:47,600 Speaker 1: can help people who can't look at pictures, whether uh, 858 00:51:47,800 --> 00:51:50,480 Speaker 1: we're blind or whether we're on the road driving in 859 00:51:50,520 --> 00:51:52,440 Speaker 1: a truck and we don't want to pull out our 860 00:51:52,480 --> 00:51:54,959 Speaker 1: phones to look at pictures. Thanks for years of learning 861 00:51:54,960 --> 00:51:59,719 Speaker 1: and laughter. Appreciate the work warmly, Ryan for Minneapolis and 862 00:51:59,800 --> 00:52:03,000 Speaker 1: Ryan in I have nothing to say but great point, 863 00:52:03,400 --> 00:52:05,960 Speaker 1: and I'll do better. Very nice, Chuck. I don't think 864 00:52:06,000 --> 00:52:08,680 Speaker 1: there's anything else you could say. You know why, because 865 00:52:08,719 --> 00:52:11,200 Speaker 1: you're a good person and jerk. That's right. And now 866 00:52:11,320 --> 00:52:13,080 Speaker 1: I will try and describe things to the best of 867 00:52:13,080 --> 00:52:15,399 Speaker 1: my ability, which might not be great but I think 868 00:52:15,440 --> 00:52:20,200 Speaker 1: you did a good job with the kawaka description. Smiling 869 00:52:20,200 --> 00:52:23,719 Speaker 1: wrote it. Yeah, it looks like it's smiling. That's all 870 00:52:23,760 --> 00:52:27,479 Speaker 1: you need to know that. Um, well, if you want 871 00:52:27,560 --> 00:52:30,239 Speaker 1: to take a chuck or meat a task, that's There's 872 00:52:30,280 --> 00:52:31,799 Speaker 1: not a lot of sport in that. But if you 873 00:52:31,800 --> 00:52:34,439 Speaker 1: want to do it anyway, that's fine. You can send 874 00:52:34,480 --> 00:52:37,040 Speaker 1: it to his via email, wrap it up and send 875 00:52:37,080 --> 00:52:44,280 Speaker 1: it off to stuff podcast at iHeart radio dot com. 876 00:52:44,360 --> 00:52:46,120 Speaker 1: Stuff you Should Know is a production of I Heart 877 00:52:46,200 --> 00:52:48,840 Speaker 1: Radio for more podcasts for my heart Radio because it 878 00:52:48,880 --> 00:52:51,560 Speaker 1: the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen 879 00:52:51,600 --> 00:52:52,480 Speaker 1: to your favorite shows.