What to Believe When You Don't

Paul Rogers read English at Queens' College,Cambridge, and has always enjoyed writing. 'What to Believe When You Don't' is his first major solo work. Inspired by E.M. Forster's advice to 'only connect',Paul values meaningful relationships with family and friends above all.

• Introduction·               What isbelief?·               Chapter structure·               Core“beliefs”·               Stance·               Parable Chapter 1: Nature·               External reality and what we can “know” PART A: Physics·               The atomic structure of matter and the sub-atomicrealm·               The four fundamental forces and quantum fields·               Quantum effects·               Quantum effects in our everyday world·               Relativity·               Unifying Quantum Mechanics with Relativity·               Antimatter, dark matter, and dark energy·               The Universe in our hand PART B: Biology·               Evolution·               Genetics·               How genes work·               Genetic similarities and differences·               Genetics and race·               Biological sex and gender identity·               Inbreeding·               What makes us who we are·               Predictability, mutability, and “flux” PART C: Our story so far Chapter summaryChapter 2: Consciousness·               Consciousness main themes·               Chapter structure PART A:What consciousness is·               The evolutionof human cognition·               The brain asthe centre of consciousness PART B: The opportunity, and obligation,to exercise personal existential choice·               Personal agency and “freewill”·               The essentialself·               Personality and character PART C: How consciousness works·               Executivefunction and the rational brain·               Learning anddevelopment·               Joining up the dots – how our brain processes data·               Instinct, emotion, and reason as triggers forbehaviour·               Cognitive bias·               “Noise”·               Categorisation PART D: Critical faculties which form part of consciousness·               Reason·               Emotion·               Language·               Empathy and Theory of Mind·               Memory·               Imagination·               Motivation and drive PART E: Enablers and inhibitors of consciousness·               Sleep·               Stress PART F: Implications of consciousness for existence·               The fact that we have the freedom to exercisepersonal existential choice in our life means that we should actively embraceit, and then take responsibility for the choices we make·               The fact that our consciousness is fallible meansthat when making choices we should consider the possibility of bias and error·               “Luck” is a fact of life, whereas “destiny” isn’t·               Mindset matters: how we think about our lifeobviously affects how we feel about it, and can also influence outcomes·               Expectations matter: how we think about ourself andothers can materially change what we and they feel and do Chapter summary Chapter 3: Sociability PART A: Pro-socialbehaviours·               Why sociability matters·               Culture as the defininghuman attribute·               Sociability as the defininghuman behaviour·               The evolution of human sociability,and society PART B: Anti-social behaviours ·               Hierarchy and status·               Violence, bullying andintimidation·               The capacity to influence,manipulate and deceive PART C: “Me” versus “Us”·               Cooperate or compete - thecritical existential choice·               Applying Axelrod to oursocial reality PART D: “Only connect” –love and affection·               Sociability feels good andis good·               Romantic love·               Sex and the capacity toentertain·               Extramarital sex·               Altruism·               Loneliness and solitude·               Relationships and subjectiveinterpretation·               Experiencing love Chapter summary Chapter 4: Morality PART A: What is moral instinct?·               Definition of morality·               Morality as sociability·               Universal moral triggers·               Empathy and “do no harm”·               Fairness PART B: Complications1.                   Morality is ultimately relative, not an absolute lawof nature.2.                  Moral instinct is instinctive – we feel first, andreason later.3.                  Our instincts do not always prompt us to behave“morally”.4.                  Morality is often nuanced and contextual.5.                  Morality inherently promptsus to privilege other members of our own social group at the expense of membersof other groups.6.                  Moral norms are not stable, but rather change overtime PART C: Practical implications·               Embrace a moral principle·               Live and let live·               Let reason, not emotion, determine the answer tocomplex moral issues·               “Mind the gap” between moral instinct andbehavioural response Chapter summary Chapter 5:Happiness PART A: Happiness as the goal ofhuman existence PART B: Defining Happiness·               Pain and pleasure·               Fundamental needs-               Maslow’s hierarchy of needs-               Self-actualisation-               Critical assessment of Maslow’s ideas-               Self-actualisation for all·               Happiness as wellbeing PART C: Happiness in the world·               Measuring happiness·               Are people happy? PART D: What makes people happy?·               What helps individuals to be happy?1.                   Genes2.                  Sense of personal agency (“locus of control”)3.                  Life stage4.                  Relationships5.                  Health6.                  Money7.                  Work8.                  Religion·               What helps societies to be happy? PART E: Personal meaning1.                   The Meaning of Life2.                  Meaning in life3.                  Will to meaning4.                  Experiencing meaning ·               Sources of meaningSources ofmeaning - Frankl1.                   Creating a work or doing a deed2.                  Experiencing something or encountering someone3.                  The attitude we take to unavoidable suffering4.                  “Actualising” personal potential Sources ofmeaning – post Frankl5.                  Positive affect6.                  Belonging7.                  Religious and other worldviews8.                  The Self9.                  Mental time travel10.               Mortality awareness ·               Meaning as everyday experience Chapter summary Summary of beliefs discussedAcknowledgementsIndex of TopicsIndex of authors quotedSelected bibliography