This chapter focuses on the neural systems underlying reward and motivation and how addictive substances hijack these circuits. Central to this discussion is the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system, which drives learning, incentive salience, and goal-directed behavior. The chapter distinguishes pleasure from motivation, emphasizing dopamine’s role in “wanting” rather than “liking.” Evidence from animal models and human neuroimaging illustrates how repeated drug exposure amplifies drug-related cues, diminishes natural reward value, and biases behavior toward compulsive use. These mechanisms provide a foundation for understanding craving and relapse vulnerability.

In this chapter, we first summarize our argument about steppe raiding and conquest serving as a megashock that reinforces autocratic inclinations, but which does so in a manner somewhat differently in various parts of Afro-Eurasia. We then narrow the focus to clashes between democracies and autocracies in general and in eastern Eurasia in particular. We are also interested in exploring the implications of a potential axis uniting Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran as an autocratic bloc in opposition to a Western coalition headed by the United States. These interests may seem far afield from previous chapters, but we believe they relate to the emergence and continuity of exposed and protected zones discussed in Chapter 3. The four eastern Eurasian states represent the four corners of the Eurasian exposed zone. Their adversaries tend to reside in areas that were protected from steppe incursions, and because they were protected, different development trajectories were possible.

Where steppes were moderately distant from sedentary communities, as in eastern Eurasia, there was space for both nomads and sedentaries to scale up their offensive and defensive capabilities, allowing both groups to engage in conquest. Where steppes are located in and around sedentary development, as in the Middle East and North Africa, there was less scaling up and more localized conquests in which the nomadic/sedentary distinction is less critical. However, if sedentary communities are both poor and relatively weak, as in sub-Saharan Africa, slave raiding became a particularly pronounced motivating factor for raiding and conquests and was not necessarily restricted to nomads. In Africa, locals, Arabs, and Europeans ultimately competed as slave raiders.

This chapter revisits Tinbergen’s four types of explanation. Features of motivation include arousal and activation, flexibility, layers of control, the opponent-process theory, excitation transfer, and the sensitization of particular stimulus–response connections. Similarities between motivations are discussed; for example, the dopaminergic pathway from the VTA to the NAcc underlies each motivation and wanting versus liking. The chapter describes interactions and competition between different motivations. Inadequacies of drive are noted. Evolutionary mismatch also applies to contemporary fears. The topic of need is revisited in the context of examples of where it arises in various chapters (e.g. the need for heat). The opponent process theory of motivation is described in terms of imprinting and withdrawal from drugs. The distinction between regulation and control, introduced in the context of temperature regulation, is revisited. Liking/pleasure often correlates with positive reinforcement but not always. The motor act involved in behaviour has a reinforcement value.

Chapter 4 starts by looking at the concept of reinforcement. Two uses of the term are described: (i) a procedure that results in a change in behaviour, without the theorist making a commitment to any underlying process; (ii) a suggested process of change within the animal underlying changes observed in behaviour, strengthening of a stimulus–response connection. The power of an incentive to draw an animal towards it depends upon (i) its intrinsic properties, (ii) internal states such as nutrient levels, (iii) any associations with the incentive, and (iv) any rival incentives present. The theories of Robert Bolles and Dalbir Bindra are described. The chapter introduces the brain’s dopaminergic pathways, with a focus upon the role of the pathway from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to the nucleus accumbens (NAcc). The responsivity of this pathway to uncertain reward and ratio schedules is discussed in the context of incentive salience. The chapter concludes with a discussion of two ‘eccentricities’ of behaviour: the misbehaviour of organisms and autoshaping.

The new science of complex systems explains why Zelinsky’s cube is a good model of culture. It works well with economic markets–and also language in use. We can see the evidence that a complex system has operated in American English by looking at evidence from the Linguistic Atlas Project. Linguistic variants all show the same patterns of distribution, both overall in a population and in subset populations. These frequency profiles provide a challenge to traditional ways of thinking about language with grammars and dictionaries.

Reinforcement and addiction are commonly attributed to dopamine and its release along the pathway from the ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens. This chapter traces the historical development of research linking dopamine to reinforcement, reward prediction error, and incentive salience. It then evaluates the evidence for and against the dopamine theory of addiction and discusses challenges in testing this theory in human studies. The chapter concludes with a speculative exploration of potential dopamine-based treatments for addiction.

Chapter 6 deals with national newspaper effects, especially the claimed influence of the Sun over the voting behaviour of its readers. The associations between newspaper reading and political attitudes and behaviour over the past decades is traced, together with the popular claim that the media, notably national newspapers, set the election agenda for the population. A large body of research finds little or no evidence of strong newspaper effects on party voting and national election agendas. Instead we find strong effects of the normal demographic variables that are usually associated with many forms of social and political behaviour – the standard model of the behavioural sciences.

This chapter offers an example of the role of the Bank in European state finance. The kingdom of Prussia made heavy use of the Bank during the Seven Years War (1756—1763). Public finance in Prussia during this period was primitive, lacking basic features such as a bond market or central bank. Under heavy financial pressure, Prussian King Frederick II chose to finance much of the war through the production of debased coinage. The task of minting debased coins was outsourced to private contractors (“mint entrepreneurs”), who purchased much of the necessary silver in Amsterdam, making use of credit which was abundant in the Amsterdam market. Details of these transactions are revealed in the Bank’s ledgers. Frederick also relied on gold subsidies from Great Britain, which were paid via Amsterdam and can also be matched to Bank records. Finally, at the end of the war, Frederick called upon his entrepreneurs to engineer a reverse debasement (reinforcement). This activity once again relied heavily on Dutch resources, including remote smelting furnaces, Amsterdam credit, and Bank money. Traces of the entrepreneurs’ activity can again be seen in the Bank’s records.

The May 2019 IPBES emphasised the scale of the current biodiversity crisis and the need for transformative change, but highlighted that the tools exist to enable this change. Conservation translocation is an increasingly used tool that involves people deliberately moving and releasing organisms where the primary goal is conservation – it includes species reintroductions, reinforcements, assisted colonisations and ecological replacements. It can be complex, expensive, time consuming, and sometimes controversial, but when best practice guidelines are followed it can be a very effective conservation method and a way of exciting and engaging people in environmental issues. Conservation translocations have an important role to play not only in improving the conservation status of individual species but also in ecological restoration and rewilding by moving keystone and other influential species. As the climate continues to change, species with poor dispersal abilities or opportunities will be at particular risk. Assisted colonisation, which involves moving species outside their indigenous range, is likely to become an increasingly used method. It is also a tool that may become increasingly used to avoid threats from the transmission of pathogens. Other more radical forms of conservation translocation, such as ecological replacements, multi-species conservation translocations, and the use of de-extinction and genetic interventions, are also likely to be given stronger consideration within the wider framework of ecological restoration. There have been significant advances in the science of reintroduction biology over the last three decades. However new ways of transferring and sharing such information are needed to enable a wider spectrum of practitioners to have easier access to knowledge and guidance. In the past the biological considerations of conservation translocations have often heavily outweighed the people considerations. However it is increasingly important that socio-economic factors are also built into projects and relevant experts involved to reduce conflict and improve the chances of success. Some level of biological and socio-economic risk will be present for most conservation translocations, but these can often be managed through the use of sensitivity, professionalism, and the application of tried and tested best practice. The role of species reintroduction and other forms of conservation translocations will be an increasingly important tool if we are to restore, and make more resilient, our damaged ecosystems.

In total, 600 two-year-old and three-year-old saplings of the critically endangered Chinese endemic huagaimu were translocated into the species’ natural range. There were very low survival rates (2 and 20 per cent respectively) of translocated individuals at two sites in Xichou county, with a much higher survival rate of 74 per cent at two sites in Maguan county. The over-riding determinant of translocation success is considered to be the difference in horticultural practices used in the different translocations, with much more favourable outcomes associated with greater horticultural training and expertise.

Although conservation translocations always aim to result in ‘conservation benefit’ for a species or ecosystem, there are many motivations and contexts in which people undertake conservation translocations. Establishing a need for translocations involves considering other ways to deliver the ‘conservation benefit’ to a species or ecosystem. Typically, translocations are initiated alongside other conservation measures. Destination sites must be carefully selected based on more than just vegetation type; attention must be paid to climate, biotic interactions, and other species’ requirements for survival. Socio-economic risks and benefits and legislative constraints should also be considered when evaluating destination sites. Translocated plants, animals, or fungi may be sourced from in situ or ex situ populations, or a combination of the two. Ideally, source populations are those that can support the removal of individuals for translocation without negative consequences for individuals that remain in the wild. It also helps to have ecological similarity between source and destination sites when using wild individuals. Releases should only occur where the original cause of extirpation/decline has been minimised. The choice of one or several sites, and the possibility of several releases over multiple timepoints should be considered, perhaps using pilot releases to evaluate suitability. Monitoring is crucial to being able to report the outcome of the conservation translocation but, perhaps more importantly, allows the translocation team to adapt to changes in status and may prompt the implementation of an exit strategy. Sharing monitoring results is important for others to benefit from lessons learnt. Seek as much advice as you can in the planning phases and build a team that can deliver the various components of the project.

We are using communication and engagement with stakeholders to attempt to foster positive view of eagles. We are exploring the opportunities for nature-based tourism to highlight the benefits of eagles. We are taking a partnership approach with equal input from land management sectors and conservationists.