"No war. Stop the war. Don't believe the propaganda. They are lying to you here." These are the words that Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova scrawled on a large piece of paper before she burst on to the backdrop of Russia's biggest news programme, shouting "No to war! Stop the war!" for good measure.

She only managed to stay on the air for a few seconds before an editor switched to a prerecorded news item and she was escorted away. Yesterday she was hauled in front of a Moscow court after 14 hours of intense interrogation. She was later fined £214,000 for publishing a separate video in which she called on citizens to "stop the madness". But no punishment can undermine her actions - her act of staggering bravery has already been watched by millions.

Ovsyannikova is no young hothead out to make a name for herself. She is a long-time employee of Channel OneRussia's main public broadcaster. who also has two young children. That is one reason why her example has sparked a discussion of what it means to be brave.

This is a subject that has fascinated us for thousands of years. One of the first to write about it was LaoziA Chinese philosopher who lived some time between 6th and the 4th Century BC., founder of DaoismA philosophy and religion founded by Laozi. It teaches its disciples how to achieve perfection through self-cultivation.. He suggested that courage is derived from love, and the greater one's love, the greater one's courage.

Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates argued that true courage had to be supported with knowledge and wisdom. If you go diving without knowing how to do it, then this is not courage, but madness.

Aristotle came up with a similar idea. For him, courage was a happy medium between cowardice and recklessness, which should both be avoided.

Likewise, Scottish philosopher David Hume suggested that great courage is necessary to turn a person into a hero, but excessive courage tends to lead people to seek out unnecessary dangers, and in doing so ruin their own lives.

One early proponent of the idea that courage contributes to our survival was Thomas HobbesAn English philosopher who is regarded as one of the founders of modern political theory., who claimed that courage was a virtue for individuals, but not always good for the whole of society. 

But it might be that you cannot help whether or not you are a brave person. Scientists now believe that we are hard-wired to be either brave or cowardly.

When we are threatened, our body produces the hormone cortisolA hormone that helps the body deal with stress., which shuts off some of the higher functions of our brain. This then sends us into 'fight-or-flightThe name given to an instinctive response in humans and animals when confronted with a threat. Traditionally it was thought that in this state of panic, we become either aggressive or cowardly.' mode. The brain has to choose between four responses to the threat: fighting, running away, freezing or collapsing.

Each one of these responses had its advantages for our ancient ancestors. If we are able to fight off the threat, we might want to do that. If we are not, it is preferable to run away. If we cannot outrun it, then we should play dead - as many large predators do not eat things that are already dead.

But not all of our brains pick the same option. Sometimes there is an evolutionary advantage in choosing the brave option, and sometimes the coward is more likely to survive. 

As psychologist Steven PinkerA Canadian-American cognitive psychologist, linguist, and popular science author. A well-known intellectual, he believes that the world is getting better. puts it: "The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese." The species as a whole benefits if some people are brave and others are cowardly.

Yes: Madness means acting in a way that is not conducive to our own self-preservation. Courage often leads us to take needless risks, and can sometimes put our loved ones in danger as well.

No: True courage is different from recklessness, which drives a person to seek out risks for their own sake. It means bearing adversity with fortitude and standing up for what is right.

Or... Perhaps bravery is a little bit mad, but then cowardice can drive us insane as well. It could be that madness is simply part of the human condition.