HIN K LIK HIN K LIK T T E E A A S S T CIEN T IST CIEN T IS WHY DO WE bEHAVE LIKE THAT INTRODUCTION In 1922 deep in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings a sealed door and saw a stone-filled passage archaeologist Howard Carter broke through Removing the stones revealed another door As he made a small hole in that door Carter’s hands trembled in anticipation of what could be behind it After testing for dangerous gases Carter widened the hole and inserted a candle The flame flickered as hot air escaped and Carter peered into a room He saw shiny golden objects inside Among the treasures were strange animal statues boat models and chariots There were also two mummi fied fetuses and the stone coffin of a king its mummy adorned in a golden mask After years of searching Carter had found King Tut’s tomb Social science answers questions civiliza tions have about their ancestors and why modern people might behave the way they do It includes fields such as anthropology and its subset of archaeology economics political science sociology and psychol ogy Humanities subjects such as history and communications often play a role in the social sciences too To understand a society and the relationships of its peoples social scientists ask questions observe investigate and analyze They test theories by experimenting Whether it is the dis covery of an ancient civilization’s tomb or other intrigues such as why people of some cultures shake hands in greeting how the Super Bowl affects local businesses or what serial killers have in common explaining all these human behaviors is the work of social scientists 5 5
HIN K LIK T E A S CIEN T IST WHY DO WE bEHAVE LIKE THAT CHAPTER 1 SOCIAL ROOTS To undERstAnd indiViduAls And tHEiR RElAtion scientific method to gather information and ships within a society social scientists use the examine what is found just as natural scientists such as biologists and physicists do social scientists ask questions and try to answer them with proof since ancient times people have been fascinated with the brain and how it affects behavior A Greek doctor named Galen who lived in the second century a d used his work on wounded gladiators and dissections of animals to hypothesize how the brain functioned From his experi ments on ox pig and primate brains he was able to show that the control center was in the head not the heart as earlier thinkers had believed Galen’s book On the Diagnosis and Cure of the Soul’s Passion discussed how to cure mental problems by having the afflicted person talk to an older male about their secrets and desires Galen’s Social scientists learn about human interactions by studying historical figures brain theories influenced scientists for more than 1,000 years 7
