Rebecca Costa

Evolutionary biologist Rebecca Costa uses the theory of evolution to explain societal forces like terrorism, gridlock, debt, obesity and violence. She expounded on this outlook in her 2010 bestselling book The Watchman’s Rattle: that human problems, propelled by technology, are too complex for our slowly-evolving brains; that we understand the world in digestible supermemes, but can lurch toward solutions by capturing flashes of insight.

Her father was a covert CIA operative and the family lived undercover in Laos for two years during the Vietnam War. In the ’80s and ’90s, Costa ran a Silicon Valley marketing firm. Now she hosts The Costa Report, a nationally-syndicated, non-partisan radio talk show (2pm Thursdays on 1080AM KSCO) that garners nearly 2.3 million listeners a week who tune in to listen to her interviews with everyone from Carol Moseley Braun and Dennis Kucinich to Ann Coulter and Ben Carson.

The Carmel Highlands resident has another book, The Sum of Our Ambitions, coming out this fall. She spoke to the Weekly about her forthcoming book, the presidential primaries and evolution.

Weekly: What lessons did you learn in Laos?

Costa: That the amount the American public knows is miniscule. What we know about what the U.S. government is doing overseas is such a small part of the truth, it’s difficult to have an opinion. I’m in constant contact with people involved in humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan and Africa. I’m pretty sure my phone is tapped on a regular basis.

If a meme is “any widely accepted information, thought, feeling or behavior,” what is a supermeme circulating now?

The idea that all people who worship Islam are dangerous and should be prevented from entering our country. Supermemes are not dangerous per se, it’s the actions attached to them.

Do you believe the choice between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is equally troublesome?

I believe they are equally troublesome choices for most Americans. I think Clinton has the [nomination] secured. I think it will be likely Trump or Cruz, unless there is a brokered convention – then, based on my contacts in D.C., you can expect Mitt Romney to throw his hat in the ring. Anytime you have an insurgent candidate in either party, there’s going to be nervousness. Trump and Bernie Sanders [are] rewriting the rules.

Is that, in Darwinian terms, healthy for the two parties?

As an evolutionary biologist, I say the Democratic party has the opportunity to adapt. In the case of the GOP, you’ll see a more painful correction. This may be the part where the GOP doesn’t survive the extreme change. The laws of nature are clear: adapt or die. The jury is out. Some of the issues you see Hillary dealing with now have to do with biology and the sexes. With an alpha male versus an alpha female, males can raise their voice and pound their chest – it establishes leadership. But if a woman does it, she is considered shrill and unlikable.

How would you advise her?

[Be] relaxed and use humor. The most important thing is to look and behave [naturally] in the role. I don’t believe Carly Fiorina and Hillary Clinton [have looked] comfortable.

You call the Costa Report “post-partisan.” How does your audience skew?

I’m an independent. Every other week half the country is mad at me. One week I had Ann Coulter, the next Ralph Nader. I think my audience is largely independent. But most of talk radio is geared toward the right of the political spectrum.

What is your new book about?

We’re going through a bit of an awkward social revolution and no one’s described it in biological terms. Thanks to predictive algorithms and big data analytics, we’re getting to be better predictors of future events. I argue we’re on the cusp of becoming the first eternal species – a species that has overcome the threat of extinction. I do not believe Darwin’s laws of evolution will apply in the future. The human species has cut the tether.

What about climate change?

In my first book, one of the stages of decline is that society cannot tell the difference between empirical fact and belief. Ninety-nine percent of scientists say [climate change] poses a grave threat to humans, and 40 percent of people believe it’s a hoax. In the new book, let’s take it further. We know what’s going on, we have the empirical data; the question is, are we prepared to act on it?

To read Rebecca Costa’s blog or find a list of syndicated radio stations, visit www.rebeccacosta.com