Why is the New Scientist defending cannibalism?

Most law students in the English-speaking world will have come across R v Dudley and Stephens, from 1884, which established the precedent that necessity is not a defence for murder. The case has a particular grisly attraction, as the defendants were sailors who had resorted to cannibalism after being cast adrift on a lifeboat for nearly three weeks. Such scenarios, though rare, had occurred at sea before, and with public opinion apparently favourable to Messrs Dudley and Stephens, they were finally sentenced to only six months in prison.

Strong taboos against cannibalism have been widely shared in sophisticated societies throughout recorded history. However, as the New Scientist pointed out this week, they have not been universal. A feature and an accompanying editorial note emerging evidence which suggests that cannibalism has been more widespread than previously thought, with perhaps as many as one fifth of all known societies in the last 100,000 years adopting the practice in various ways.