Prologue

As a vivid reader of history, and the first row audience of the tragedy that is happening in Hong Kong, it is only natural for me to wonder … Why were we eager to murder in the name of religion? Why were we willing to slaughter millions in the name of country and ethnicity? And after all the blood shed in the past millennia, you would have thought we must have learned our lessons. And yet, here we are, so keen to butcher one another simply over a difference in political views.

Are we humans truly so hopeless that, as a species, we are permanently stuck in this cycle of peace and violence?

This is a series that examine humanity from the angles of neuroscience, psychology, and history. By understanding our mind, our heart, and our past, we’d be in a better position to understand ourselves as-is. Perhaps, knowledge and understanding are the keys to break all of us from this wheel of misfortune.

I hope you’d like it.