Last month researchers from Oxford University and University College London found the part of the brain responsible for altruistic thoughts - the subgenial anterior cingulate cortex.
Apparently it works better in some people more than others but why are we generous at all when we often quote the Darwinian mantra of "survival of the fittest"?
Let's face it, giving something to someone else without expecting anything in return does not seem like a good way to ensure personal survival.
Unfortunately all signs point to the fact that, at some stage, goverments will fail to have the funds to provide for our ageing population; global warming could start to force people to flee their homes; disease is likely to spread further through ease of travel.
If, or maybe when, these scenarios occur in the future, it is unlikely conventional insurance and social assistance programmes will have the means to support us either.
So it might be up to the generosity of others to save us. It might even be the best way we can hope to survive as a species - and it may mean use of behavioural economics (the study of psychological techniques to understand and influence how people make decisions) to increase understanding and application of generosity.
Companies like Google, Barclays Bank and Proctor & Gamble are actively employing behavioural economics principles in the way they approach consumers, according to David Thomason, chief strategy officer for advertising agency FCB.
In business, a recent US Gallup study showed firms using behavioural economics techniques out-performed rivals by 85 per cent in sales growth and by more than 25 per cent in gross profitability.
But Thomason says it is also a powerful tool in social or altruistic work because it demonstrates how people actually behave as opposed to basing assumptions on how people should behave.
An example is the Human Generosity Project (HGP), which analysed a number of societies to understand why people are generous and how to encourage it - most notably the Masai tribe in Kenya and Tanzania. Their code of generosity means that, should someone hit hard times, like livestock dying, others would offer some of their herd with no requirement to be paid back.
The HGP made a computer simulation of the Masai herding society to test its benefits under three scenarios. One involved no giving, another where potential donors would only give if the asker had paid back previous gifts, and one based on generosity.
Results showed all households survived much longer, on average, under the generosity model, supporting the idea that even habitual donors benefit in the long run from keeping their neighbours going.
So how do we encourage people to be more generous?
Incentives seem an obvious step. However, a study by the Max Planck Institute for Evolution found toddlers who had avidly and spontaneously helped someone in need helped less when given a toy as a reward.
Neurologist Donald Caine once said: "Reasons lead to conclusions, emotions lead to action". Behavioural economics can be the most effective way to encourage giving by tapping into those emotions.
Our perceived level of comfort affects our generosity. Those who see the world as a threat give less because they feel they need to save for the bad times even though they have the financial means to be generous, according to a study conducted by Notre Dame University in the US. By creating a more positive context, we can improve people's generosity.
Helping people feel good about being generous is also effective - a simple thank you or smile positively reinforces behaviour so we are more likely to repeat it.
Asking people to be generous in a personal way can also be behaviour-changing. People are more likely to help a friend than someone they don't know - even if that anonymous person has greater need.
Another behavioural economics technique is to build empathy for the needy - encouraging people to see life through the needy's eyes as well as demonstrating they are in genuine need and not simply trying to 'scam' out of our hard earned money.
"If we can put ourselves in their shoes," says Thomason, "we realise that we would need the kindness of others to survive and, hopefully, thrive."