From Selfies with Mama Bears to Bison, We May be Losing Our Sense of Self-Preservation

In August 2023, a video of a mother bear and her two little cubs at Yellowstone National Park went viral. The clip didn’t circulate the web because of the precious baby bears. Instead, it went viral because of how the tourists reacted when they saw the bears.

At first, people stopped their cars and stared at the bears in a field next to the roadway. The bears ignored the humans, even as some got out of their cars and stood at a distance in the road.

Then, a van pulled up, and passengers quickly jumped out. Three men — one of them holding a young girl — began sprinting toward the mother bear and her cubs. Another tourist crossed the street with her camera and moved closer as well.

It is extremely dangerous to approach a mother bear with her cubs, which is why some researchers are starting to question ...