Jeremy Griffith
Encyclopedia
Jeremy Griffith is an Australian biologist
and author on the subject of the human condition
. He first gained notoriety for his comprehensive search for the Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine
conducted from 1967 to 1973. His search is considered the most intensive ever carried out, and included exhaustive surveys along Tasmania's west coast; installation of automatic camera stations; prompt investigations of claimed sightings; and in 1972 the creation of the Thylacine Expeditionary Research Team with Dr Bob Brown
, which concluded without finding any evidence of the thylacine's existence.
Griffith began writing on the human condition in 1975, publishing the first of his six books on the subject in 1988. The best known of his publications, A Species In Denial (2003), became a bestseller in Australia and New Zealand. Each of Griffith’s published works is grounded in his grand narrative explanation of human nature
. His work is multi-disciplinary, drawing from the physical sciences, biology
, anthropology
and primatology
together with philosophy
, psychology
and psychiatry
. He cites thinkers drawn from varied backgrounds and eras, from Socrates
, Plato
and Christ
, through to more contemporary philosophers and scientists such as Charles Darwin
, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
, Eugene Marais
, Louis Leakey
and R.D. Laing.
His biological works on the origins of human nature
have generated interest and debate in both scientific and general communities for more than two decades. The Templeton Prize
winner and biologist Charles Birch
, the New Zealand zoologist Professor John Edward Morton
, the former President of the Canadian Psychiatric Association Professor Harry Prosen and the Australian Everest mountaineer Tim Macartney-Snape
have been among the long standing proponents of Griffith’s ideas. Professor John Edward Morton
publicly defended Griffith when he and his ideas were attacked in the mid-1990’s.
In 1995, Griffith and his colleague Tim Macartney-Snape
(both founders of the World Transformation Movement) were the subject of an Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Four Corners program and a Sydney Morning Herald newspaper article. The publications became the subject of long running defamation actions in the NSW Supreme Court and were found to be defamatory. In 2007, the ABC was ordered to pay Macartney-Snape almost $500,000 in damages, and with costs the payout was expected to exceed $1 million.The proceedings against the Herald were resolved when it published an apology in 2009. Although Griffith was not awarded damages in relation to the Four Corners broadcast, on appeal in 2010 the NSW Court of Appeal found what was said of Griffith was untrue.
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
and author on the subject of the human condition
Human condition
The human condition encompasses the experiences of being human in a social, cultural, and personal context. It can be described as the irreducible part of humanity that is inherent and not connected to gender, race, class, etc. — a search for purpose, sense of curiosity, the inevitability of...
. He first gained notoriety for his comprehensive search for the Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine
Thylacine
The thylacine or ,also ;binomial name: Thylacinus cynocephalus, Greek for "dog-headed pouched one") was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It is commonly known as the Tasmanian tiger or the Tasmanian wolf...
conducted from 1967 to 1973. His search is considered the most intensive ever carried out, and included exhaustive surveys along Tasmania's west coast; installation of automatic camera stations; prompt investigations of claimed sightings; and in 1972 the creation of the Thylacine Expeditionary Research Team with Dr Bob Brown
Bob Brown
Robert James Brown is an Australian senator, the inaugural Parliamentary Leader of the Australian Greens and was the first openly gay member of the Parliament of Australia...
, which concluded without finding any evidence of the thylacine's existence.
Griffith began writing on the human condition in 1975, publishing the first of his six books on the subject in 1988. The best known of his publications, A Species In Denial (2003), became a bestseller in Australia and New Zealand. Each of Griffith’s published works is grounded in his grand narrative explanation of human nature
Human nature
Human nature refers to the distinguishing characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting, that humans tend to have naturally....
. His work is multi-disciplinary, drawing from the physical sciences, biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
and primatology
Primatology
Primatology is the scientific study of primates. It is a diverse discipline and researchers can be found in academic departments of anatomy, anthropology, biology, medicine, psychology, veterinary sciences and zoology, as well as in animal sanctuaries, biomedical research facilities, museums and zoos...
together with philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
and psychiatry
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
. He cites thinkers drawn from varied backgrounds and eras, from Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
, Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
and Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
, through to more contemporary philosophers and scientists such as Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ was a French philosopher and Jesuit priest who trained as a paleontologist and geologist and took part in the discovery of both Piltdown Man and Peking Man. Teilhard conceived the idea of the Omega Point and developed Vladimir Vernadsky's concept of Noosphere...
, Eugene Marais
Eugene Marais
Eugène Nielen Marais was a South African lawyer, naturalist, poet and writer.- His early years, before and during the Boer War :Marais was born in Pretoria, the thirteenth and last child of his parents, Jan Christiaan Nielen Marais and Catharina Helena Cornelia van Niekerk...
, Louis Leakey
Louis Leakey
Louis Seymour Bazett Leakey was a British archaeologist and naturalist whose work was important in establishing human evolutionary development in Africa. He also played a major role in creating organizations for future research in Africa and for protecting wildlife there...
and R.D. Laing.
His biological works on the origins of human nature
Human nature
Human nature refers to the distinguishing characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting, that humans tend to have naturally....
have generated interest and debate in both scientific and general communities for more than two decades. The Templeton Prize
Templeton Prize
The Templeton Prize is an annual award presented by the Templeton Foundation. Established in 1972, it is awarded to a living person who, in the estimation of the judges, "has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical...
winner and biologist Charles Birch
Charles Birch
Louis Charles Birch FAA was an Australian geneticist specialising in population ecology and was also well known as a theologian, writing widely on the topic of science and religion, winning the Templeton Prize in 1990...
, the New Zealand zoologist Professor John Edward Morton
John Morton
John Morton was an English prelate who served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1486 to 1500. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1493.-Life:...
, the former President of the Canadian Psychiatric Association Professor Harry Prosen and the Australian Everest mountaineer Tim Macartney-Snape
Tim Macartney-Snape
Tim Macartney-Snape is a mountaineer and author. On 3 October 1984 Macartney-Snape and Greg Mortimer were the first Australians to reach the summit of Mount Everest. They reached the summit, climbing without supplementary oxygen, via a new route on the North Face...
have been among the long standing proponents of Griffith’s ideas. Professor John Edward Morton
John Morton
John Morton was an English prelate who served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1486 to 1500. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1493.-Life:...
publicly defended Griffith when he and his ideas were attacked in the mid-1990’s.
In 1995, Griffith and his colleague Tim Macartney-Snape
Tim Macartney-Snape
Tim Macartney-Snape is a mountaineer and author. On 3 October 1984 Macartney-Snape and Greg Mortimer were the first Australians to reach the summit of Mount Everest. They reached the summit, climbing without supplementary oxygen, via a new route on the North Face...
(both founders of the World Transformation Movement) were the subject of an Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
Four Corners program and a Sydney Morning Herald newspaper article. The publications became the subject of long running defamation actions in the NSW Supreme Court and were found to be defamatory. In 2007, the ABC was ordered to pay Macartney-Snape almost $500,000 in damages, and with costs the payout was expected to exceed $1 million.The proceedings against the Herald were resolved when it published an apology in 2009. Although Griffith was not awarded damages in relation to the Four Corners broadcast, on appeal in 2010 the NSW Court of Appeal found what was said of Griffith was untrue.