Bjørn Grinde is a biologist

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...

 working in the fields of genetics

Genetics

Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....

 and evolution

Evolution

Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...

, with a particular interest in human evolution

Human evolution

Human evolution refers to the evolutionary history of the genus Homo, including the emergence of Homo sapiens as a distinct species and as a unique category of hominids and mammals...

. He studied natural sciences as well as 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 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...

 at the University of Oslo

University of Oslo

The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...

, resulting in a Dr.scient (1981) and a Dr.philos (1984) from the same university. Presently he works as a chief scientist at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health

Norwegian Institute of Public Health

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health is a subordinate institution to the Ministry of Health and Care Services....

, associated with the Division of Mental Health, and as a professor at the University of Oslo

University of Oslo

The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...

. Many of his scientific papers have focused on molecular evolution

Molecular evolution

Molecular evolution is in part a process of evolution at the scale of DNA, RNA, and proteins. Molecular evolution emerged as a scientific field in the 1960s as researchers from molecular biology, evolutionary biology and population genetics sought to understand recent discoveries on the structure...

, using viruses as a model system.

A prime interest has been to use knowledge on human behavioral biology (also referred to as evolutionary psychology

Evolutionary psychology

Evolutionary psychology is an approach in the social and natural sciences that examines psychological traits such as memory, perception, and language from a modern evolutionary perspective. It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations, that is, the functional...

) to improve health and quality of life

Quality of life

The term quality of life is used to evaluate the general well-being of individuals and societies. The term is used in a wide range of contexts, including the fields of international development, healthcare, and politics. Quality of life should not be confused with the concept of standard of...

. His most known book, meant for a general audience, Darwinian Happiness

Darwinian Happiness

Darwinian Happiness: Evolution As a Guide for Living and Understanding Human Behavior, ISBN 0-87850-159-2, is a 2002 book by the Norwegian biologist Bjørn Grinde from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health...

was written for this purpose. He has also published several scientific papers on the topic.

Selected publications

• Grinde B (2002). Darwinian Happiness. Evolution as a Guide for Living and Understanding Human Behavior Princeton: Darwin Press.
• Grinde B (2002). "Happiness in the perspective of evolutionary psychology." Journal of Happiness Studies 3, 331-54.
• Grinde B (2004). "Darwinian happiness: Can the evolutionary perspective on well-being help us improve society?" World Futures – The Journal of General Evolution 60, 317-329.
• Grinde B (2005). "How can science help religion towards optimal benefit for society." Zygon 40, 277-88.
• Grinde B (2005). "An approach to the prevention of anxiety-related disorders based on evolutionary medicine." Preventive Medicine 40, 904-9 Full text.
• Grinde B (2008) "Is chronic fatigue syndrome caused by a rare brain infection of a common, normally benign virus?" Medical Hypothesis 71, 270-274 Full text
• Grinde B (2009) "Can the concept of discords help us find the causes of mental diseases?" Medical Hypothesis 73, 106-109 Full text
• Grinde, B. (2009) "An evolutionary perspective on the importance of social relations for quality of life." TheScientificWorldJournal 9 588–605. Full text
• Grinde B and Patil GG(2009) "Biophilia: Does visual contact with nature impact on health and well-being?" International Journal of Environment Research and Public Health 6, 2332-2343 Full text.