Thoughts in a Haystack

According to a study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences by Dr. Corey Fincher and Prof. Randy Thornhill of the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, tropical regions have more religions than temperate areas.

The reason is that religion helps to divide people and reduce the spread of diseases, which are more common the hotter the country, the research suggests.

Supposedly this works because the adoption of a religion increases group cohesion, reduces migration and dispersal and generally increases cultural isolation. Besides supposedly reducing transmission of disease, the isolation may lead to genetic differences that, even if only slight, might confer some immunity to disease. According to the authors:

[W]e found that religion diversity is the highest where disease diversity is also the highest and the lowest where disease diversity is also the lowest. To our knowledge, previous evolutionary models do not offer an explanation for why religion diversity varies spatially across the globe.

Our analysis suggests that the nature of religion needs to be reconsidered. Although religion apparently is for establishing a social marker of group alliance and allegiance, at the most fundamental level, it may be for the avoidance and management of infectious disease.

I wonder if constructing just-so stories has a similar effect?
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