#preparedness theory

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A brushed-aluminium tachistoscope on a lab bench with its exposure-duration dial part-turned and its indicator lamp lit but the projection window still dark, a rack of skin-conductance amplifiers and a wall of grey flat-file drawers receding behind it

Prepared Fears: How Evolution Biased What the Mind Learns to Dread

Snakes and spiders recruit fear faster than cars or wall sockets ever will. The evidence for why is stronger than folk "instinct" and messier than a hardwired module: a learner built with a thumb on the scale, not a dedicated circuit that bypasses learning.

By Brecht Corbeel · August 30, 2026 · 20 min read

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