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One hypothesis is that we've also evolved to associate greenery with healthy land and lifestyle. I can see why these signals from millions of years can have the

One hypothesis is that we've also evolved to associate greenery with healthy land and lifestyle. I can see why these signals from millions of years can have the 1% quoted effect.

choxi 10y ago
The interesting question to me is: is that hard-coded or learned?
- anilgulecha 10y ago
  Evolutionary traits are usually hard-coded.
ObeyTheGuts 10y ago
I think its obvious, we like rivers, mountains, flowers, greenery as they all represent fertillity of the land! (Mountains mean that there will be water even in draughts)
- ghettoCoder 10y ago
  Only if you consider Coors Light, the mountain beer, to be water (which it is). Draught is the british (and Canada, other places as well) spelling for draft as in draft beer. Not trying to be grammar nazi, just thought it was funny cause the typo was somewhat well placed.
  - throwanem 10y ago
    > if you consider Coors Light, the mountain beer, to be water What did water ever do to you?
internaut 10y ago
Here's a different hypothesis: We are mostly not human. Our bodies contain a vast assortment of usually symbiotic species so it is appropriate to think ecologically, more co-evolution. It seems reasonable that flora and fauna responses to environmental factors that in of themselves may not be directly relevant to a human, but that we benefit from the interaction as a side effect e.g. useful compounds being produced naturally, partially synthesized from plant life even though the direct plant product may show no sign of helping us because we cannot yet process it artificially. Hope that makes sense. Having said that, the Japanese researcher I mentioned above does say some kinds of hinoki oil produce comparable effects to traveling in forests. Now seems like a good time to plug my favorite anime on tiny invisible life forms: Mushishi http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0807832/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0807832/

One hypothesis is that we've also evolved to associate greenery with healthy land and lifestyle. I can see why these signals from millions of years can have the 1% quoted effect.

choxi 10y ago

The interesting question to me is: is that hard-coded or learned?

anilgulecha 10y ago
Evolutionary traits are usually hard-coded.

ObeyTheGuts 10y ago

I think its obvious, we like rivers, mountains, flowers, greenery as they all represent fertillity of the land! (Mountains mean that there will be water even in draughts)

ghettoCoder 10y ago
Only if you consider Coors Light, the mountain beer, to be water (which it is). Draught is the british (and Canada, other places as well) spelling for draft as in draft beer. Not trying to be grammar nazi, just thought it was funny cause the typo was somewhat well placed.
- throwanem 10y ago
  > if you consider Coors Light, the mountain beer, to be water What did water ever do to you?

internaut 10y ago

Here's a different hypothesis: We are mostly not human. Our bodies contain a vast assortment of usually symbiotic species so it is appropriate to think ecologically, more co-evolution. It seems reasonable that flora and fauna responses to environmental factors that in of themselves may not be directly relevant to a human, but that we benefit from the interaction as a side effect e.g. useful compounds being produced naturally, partially synthesized from plant life even though the direct plant product may show no sign of helping us because we cannot yet process it artificially. Hope that makes sense. Having said that, the Japanese researcher I mentioned above does say some kinds of hinoki oil produce comparable effects to traveling in forests. Now seems like a good time to plug my favorite anime on tiny invisible life forms: Mushishi http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0807832/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0807832/