Comment by worldwidelies
2 years ago
I wonder if there's DNA markers that predispose people to this type of "hobby". There's evidence that humans lived in caves and underground bunkers for extended periods of time. There's even ancient underground cities with dedicated water sources and ventilation systems.
See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derinkuyu_underground_city
There is certainly some psychological component at play. One of my favorite childhood memories is of me and my cousin digging tunnels for our hotwheels cars in a 10' mound of dirt my grandpa had hauled in. I recently tried this new Enshrouded game with another friend and we dug a tunnel for our base (for no reason). I just find it... cozy?
I think ancestral cave dwelling may for sure be a factor here, wrt evolutionary psychology (a scientific domain I wish was not as primitive)
Great notion! Are there any projects or publications attemtping to map preferences like 'invigorated by mountainous forests', 'enjoys building and living in underground tunnels', etc to DNA markers? It seems plausible that these preferences could be genetically embedded based on ancestors' living conditions.