Anyone who has ever had the feeling of being higher than a kite after giving a public speech is well aware of the effects of attention.

Evolution acts slowly. Our psychological characteristics today are those that promoted reproductive success in the ancestral environmen.

Cults, or related social movements such as the Taliban in Afghanistan, result in massive military expenses.

Could people be trained to be less gullible? Or are you as stuck with gullibility as you are with skin colour?

Attention is the way social primates measure status. It is highly rewarding because it causes the release of brain chemicals such as dopamine and endorphins.

People under the influence of cults is similar to that we observe in addicts. Typical behaviour for both includes draining bank accounts, neglecting children, destroying relations with family and losing interest in anything except the drug or cult.

As for leadership, I am the kind who leads reluctantly and more by example than anything else. Someone had to be on the incorporation papers as president.