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9780674035348

The Lives of the Brain: Human Evolution and the Organ of Mind

by
  • ISBN13:

    9780674035348

  • ISBN10:

    0674035348

  • Edition: 1st
  • Format: Hardcover
  • Copyright: 2009-10-01
  • Publisher: HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS

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Summary

Though we have other distinguishing characteristics (walking on two legs, for instance, and relative hairlessness), the brain and the behavior it produces are what truly set us apart from the other apes and primates. And how this three-pound organ composed of water, fat, and protein turned a mammal species into the dominant animal on earth today is the story John S. Allen seeks to tell.Adopting what he calls a "bottom-up" approach to the evolution of human behavior, Allen considers the brain as a biological organ; a collection of genes, cells, and tissues that grows, eats, and ages, and is subject to the direct effects of natural selection and the phylogenetic constraints of its ancestry. An exploration of the evolution of this critical organ based on recent work in paleoshy;anthropology, brain anatomy and neuroimaging, molecular genetics, life history theory, and related fields, his book shows us the brain as a product of the contexts in which it evolved: phylogenetic, somatic, genetic, ecological, demographic, and ultimately, cultural-linguistic. Throughout, Allen focuses on the foundations of brain evolution rather than the evolution of behavior or cognition. This perspective demonstrates how, just as some aspects of our behavior emerge in unexpected ways from the development of certain cognitive capacities, a more nuanced understanding of behavioral evolution might develop from a clearer picture of brain evolution.

Table of Contents

Introductionp. 1
The Human Brain in Briefp. 6
Brain Sizep. 44
The Functional Evolution of the Brainp. 82
The Plastic Brainp. 120
The Molecular Evolution of the Brainp. 148
The Evolution of Feeding Behaviorp. 177
The Aging Brainp. 202
Language and Brain Evolutionp. 232
Optimism and the Evolution of the Brainp. 273
Referencesp. 281
Acknowledgmentsp. 327
Indexp. 329
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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