Origins of the Human Brain

About this book

Humans have always been fascinated by their origins, and the evolutionary development of the human brain is of particular interest as our intellectual, emotional, and cultural capacities are considered to be unique among animals. Written by one of the most well-known neuroscientists in the world, this book is now available in paperback, and brings together a group of eminent scientists from the fields of psychology, anthropology, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology. Their views have been captured to provide a starting point for a debate based on the most recent scientific data relating to the evolutionary origins of the human brain.

Contents

List of participants; Introduction; PART I: ANATOMY OF THE BRAIN; 1. The first modern men; 2. Image of the human fossil brain: endocranial casts and meningeal vessels in young and adult subjects; Discussion; 3. Toward a synthetic theory of human brain evolution; Discussion; 4. The brain of the first hominids; Discussion; 5. Evolution of neocortical parcellation: the perspective from experimental neuroembryology; Discussion; 6. Brain locomotion, diet, and culture: how a primate, by chance, became a man; PART II: GENETICS; 7. The human genome; 8. Mitochondrial DNA and human evolution; Discussion; 9. Mammalian homeo box genes: evolutionary and regulatory aspects of a network gene system; Discussion; PART III: CULTURE; 10. Life in the fast lane: rapid cultural change and the human evolutionary process; Discussion; 11. The origins of cultural diversity; Discussion; 12. Individuals and culture; Discussion; 13. Man's intelligence as seen through Paleolithic art; Discussion; 14. The origins and evolution of writing; Discussion; PART IV: INTELLIGENCE; 15. The origins of consciousness; Discussion; 16. The social mind; Discussion; 17. Facts about human language; Discussion; 18. Cause/induced motion: intention/spontaneous motion; Discussion; Epilogue; Author Index; Subject Index

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