Presumably, a brain can achieve abstraction by other means than compression, because other animals without huge brains (such as dogs) or without a cerebral cortex (such as bees) can treat two things as similar based on their function—that is, they can do abstraction to some extent. See 7half.info/abstract.
the Five Cs intertwine and reinforce one another: This idea and its relevance to human evolution is the subject of an ongoing scientific debate. One evolutionary perspective, known as the “modern synthesis,” combines the science of genes (beginning with Mendelian genetics) and Darwin’s theory of natural selection and assumes that genes are the only stable way to transmit information from one generation to the next. An example would be the selfish-gene hypothesis by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. The other perspective, known as the “extended evolutionary synthesis,” involves the various Cs and draws on findings that identify other sources of information transfer that are stable across generations (e.g., sense data from the visual environment that wires a brain during development, and the cultural transmission of information). The extended evolutionary synthesis, which considers evolutionary and developmental (“evo-devo”) neuroscience, proposes other means of transfer, such as epigenetics and niche construction, as well as cultural evolution and gene-culture co-evolution. Examples are the views of Barbara Finlay and Kevin Laland. The breadth of this scientific debate is beyond the scope of our lessons here, but you can find a reading list at 7half.info/synthesis.
it imposes a sovereign function on the stick that goes beyond the physical: Chimpanzees and many other nonhuman animals have dominance hierarchies, but those hierarchies are neither established nor maintained by social reality. If every chimp in a troop agrees on which member is the alpha male, it is because the alpha will kill other animals who challenge him. Killing is physical reality. Most human leaders today stay in power without murdering their opponents. See 7half.info/sticks.
“We don’t create a fantasy world to escape reality. We create it to be able to stay”: This quote about fantasy worlds by author and cartoonist Lynda Barry comes from her book What It Is. See 7half.info/barry.
physical characteristics such as skin tone: Skin pigmentation has evolved and re-evolved in relation to the amount of ultraviolet light in the environment. Lighter skin tones are better adapted for environments with less ultraviolet (UV) light. Lighter pigmentation allows the skin to absorb more light and produce more more vitamin D, which is important for bone growth, bone strength, and a healthy immune system. In contrast, darker skin tones are better adapted for environments with more UV light, because darker pigmentation prevents the skin from absorbing too much light. This in turn slows the destruction of vitamin B9, folic acid, which is important for cell growth and metabolism and is particularly important in early pregnancy (since sunlight breaks down folate). The intensity of UV rays is dictated by how close you are to the equator, but the amount of UV light that actually penetrates your skin depends on your skin pigmentation. A more detailed discussion can be found in anthropologist Nina Jablonski’s book Living Color: The Biological and Social Meaning of Skin Color. See 7half.info/skin.
See more details at sevenandahalflessons.com!
Index
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
abortion, 94
abstraction and social reality, 116–19, 164
abuse, 91, 156–57. See also verbal aggression
The Accidental Species (Gee), 141, 146
acculturation, 108–9
actions
predictions and, 76–78, 82
responsibility for, 81–82, 95–97, 123, 152, 154
adversity and brain development, 61
affect, 104–7, 160–61
agriculture, 162
alcohol and drugs, 107–8
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 86
allocortex, 145–46
allostasis, 7, 8–11, 136–37, 156. See also body budgeting
amodal abstractions versus multimodal abstractions, 164
amphioxi, 1–5, 9, 133–35, 144
amygdala, central nucleus of, 145
ants, 88, 119
anxiety, 78–79
apes, 119
Aristotle, 29
artwork, 69–70, 116, 154
Asperger’s syndrome, 159
assembling memories, 43
associationism versus faculty psychology, 159
atrophy of the brain, 156
attachment, 57
attention, 53–55, 58, 60, 151–52
autism spectrum disorders, 100, 159
autonomic nervous system, 145, 155
axons, 31–32, 34, 50, 144, 148, 163
B
bacteria, 24–25, 48, 83. See also microbes
Balinese Character (Bateson and Mead), 158
Balinese culture, 98–99, 158
Barry, Lynda, 120, 165
Bateson, Gregory, 158
bees, 88, 119, 164
“the beholder’s share,” 69–70, 154
biological resources and body budgeting, 6, 7, 27
Biology as Ideology (Lewontin), 141–42
birds and bird brains, 44, 90, 118, 119
The Blank Slate (Pinker), 150
blindfolds and braille reading, 37, 149
blindsight, 149
body budgeting
affect and, 106–7
brain atrophy and, 156
brain complexity and, 43
brain evolution and, 5–11, 137
creativity and innovation and, 95–96
dorsomedial prefrontal cortex and, 38
hub structure of the brain and, 36
infant caregivers and, 52–53, 57, 58–60
mental challenge and, 80
niches and, 54–55
prediction by the brain and, 6–9, 84, 109
prefrontal cortex and, 60
rationality and, 26–28
sharing and co-regulating with others, 83–88
stress and, 90–93
teleology and, 136–37
words and, 88–90
braille reading and blindfolds, 37, 149
brain, human. See also evolution of the human brain
development of, 47–63
different kinds of minds and, 98–109
evolution of, 1–12
as a network, 29–46
prediction by, 64–82
social reality created by, 110–23
working with other brains, 83–97
brain development, 47–63
caregivers and, 48–50, 52–55, 57–60, 62–63, 81, 113
genes and, 23–24, 48, 50
of newborns, 47–57, 151–52
niches and, 54–55, 62
poverty and, 60–61, 152, 161
social deprivation and, 57–60
tuning and pruning, 50–57, 59, 63, 151
brain-manufacturing plan, 21–22, 144–45
brain regions, 18, 19. See also specific brain region names
brain size, 22–25, 114, 142
brain, triune, 14–17, 24, 25, 28, 140–42, 146
brains working together, 83–97
freedom versus dependence, 93–97, 125
sharing body budgeting, 83–88
words and verbal aggression, 88–92, 155–58
breathing
awareness of, 106
synchronization of, 84–85
words and, 88, 89
Broca, Paul, 140
Brooks, Dana, 151
Buddhism, 104
C
caloric (mythical fluid), 146
Cambrian period, evolution during, 4–9
Cannon, Walter, 140
cardiovascular system, 9, 138, 155
caregivers and brain development, 48–50, 52–55, 57–60, 62–63, 81, 113
Ceauşescu, Nicolae, 58
cell body of neuron, 32, 148
central nervous syst
em, 135
cerebellum, 131–32, 147
cerebral cortex
compression and, 115, 118, 162, 164
heteromodal regions of, 164
limbic circuitry and, 146
neglect and poverty during development of, 59, 60
neuron connections in, 145
neurons counted in, 147
pyramidal neurons in, 148
path of sense data to, 163–64
size in humans, 145
triune brain idea and, 14, 21–23, 24, 25, 140–41
cerebrum, 147
child abuse and neglect, 58–60, 61, 156–57
children of immigrants, 109
chimpanzees, 23, 47, 88, 120, 165
China’s one-child policy, 121
chordates (phylum Chordata), 133, 135
chronic stress, 90–93, 95–96, 156–58
cingulate cortex, 140, 141
circadian rhythm, 133
circumplex model of affect, 160–61
civilization and social reality, 162
Clark, Andy, 154
classical conditioning, 73
clusters of neurons, 18, 34, 35
cocktail party effect, 53
cognitive flexibility, 156
common ancestor with humans, 2, 3, 18, 19, 133, 135–36, 142
communication and social reality, 112–13, 118, 162
complexity
abstraction and, 117–18
brain development and, 50
of brains of other animals, 149
Five Cs and, 114
four-pot technique analogy and, 143
loss of, 142
network organization of the brain and, 39–46
social reality and, 117–18
compression and social reality, 114–19, 162, 164
conscious experience, 149, 153, 154
cooperation and social reality, 113–14, 118, 162
copying and social reality, 113, 118, 162
cortex. See cerebral cortex
cortical circuit, 140–41
cortisol resistance, 157
cortisol rush, 26, 27–28
Cosmides, Leda, 150
creativity and innovation, 43, 95–96, 112, 118, 162
criminal law, 28
crows, 118
“Cultivating Wisdom” (TEDx Talk), 153, 161
cultural evolution, 137, 162, 165
cultural inheritance, 62
cultures and different kinds of minds, 98–99, 103–4, 107, 108–9
D
Darwin, Charles, 17, 101–2, 159–60, 164–65
Darwin’s Unfinished Symphony (Laland), 162
Dawkins, Richard, 165
default mode network, 155
degeneracy, 38–39, 43, 147
democracy as social reality, 123
dendrites, 31–32, 51, 84, 148
dependence versus freedom, 93–97
The Descent of Man (Darwin), 17
dogs, 73, 119–20, 164
dopamine, 36
dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, 38
The Dragons of Eden (Sagan), 17
drugs and alcohol, 107–8
Duchamp, Marcel, 69–70
E
Eastern cultures, 104
eating
amphioxus method of, 1
culture and food, 108–9
hunting and, 4–9
stress and, 92–93, 158
economics, 8, 138
Edelman, Gerald, 153
elephants and elephant brains, 23, 118
emotional brain, 14, 15, 16, 17, 24
emotions
inner conflict and, 13–14, 24, 25–26, 28, 124, 146
rationality versus, 13–16, 26
thinking and, 98–99
triune brain idea and, 140, 145
empathy, 87
empiricism versus nativism, 159
endocrine system, 138, 145, 155
energy efficiency, 5–6, 8, 36
environment and brain development. See under brain development
epigenetics, 165
evolution. See also evolution of the human brain; natural selection
cultural, 137, 162, 165
of humans, and amphioxus, 2–3
of humans, Five Cs and, 164–65
hunting for food and, 4–9
of larger bodies, 9–10, 139
of movement and motor systems, 5, 124
of sensory systems, 4, 124
social reality and, 120–21
of visceral and visceromotor systems in vertebrates, 139
evolution of the human brain
body budgeting and, 5–11, 137
brain-manufacturing plan and, 19–21, 144
brain size and, 22–25, 142
comparisons to other animal brains, 16–19, 20
complexity and, 46, 142
summary of, 124
triune brain idea and, 14–17
explorers in 1800s and copying, 113, 162
extended evolutionary synthesis, 165
eyespot of amphioxus, 133
F
faces, seeing, 56, 57
faculty psychology versus associationism, 159
fear and falling asleep, 98, 158
Finlay, Barbara, 144–45, 165
fish brain, 20
Five Cs, 112–20, 161–62, 164–65. See also social reality
forebrain, 139
four-pot technique, 143
freedom versus dependence, 93–97
freedom and responsibility, 96
free will, 77, 80
Frijda, Nico, 158
frontal lobe of brain, 24
G
gastrointestinal system, 138
Gee, Henry, 134, 141, 143, 146
gender identity, 103. See also pronouns, changes in use of
gene-culture co-evolution, 165
genes
amphioxus notochord and, 134
blueprints metaphor, 45
brain development and, 23–24, 48, 50, 61, 62
brain-manufacturing plan and, 21, 144
common ancestry of brain structures and, 142
modern synthesis and, 164–65
neurons in different species and, 143–44
race concept and, 122
somatosensory regions and, 18–19
glial cells, 46, 132, 148
glutamate, 36
Gombrich, Ernst, 154
Gopnik, Alison, 151–52
granule cells, 147
Great Recession (2007), 122
gun ownership, 94
gut, 9, 46, 70, 138, 139
H
hallucination, 71, 100, 125, 154
Harvard Business Review, 17
head, control of, 152
hearing
amphioxus, lacking in, 1
brain development and, 48, 55–56, 57
construction of experiences and, 70
visual cortex neurons and, 37
vocal sounds and communication, 88
heart
cardiovascular system and, 9, 138
inner sensations and, 56, 64, 67, 70–71, 76, 106
synchronization of beating, 84–85
test anxiety, 78–79
words and, 90
heart rate, 85, 88, 89–90
heat, myth of creation of, 146
Hebb, Donald, 151
Hebb’s principle or Hebbian plasticity, 151
Henrich, Joseph, 162
herpes virus, 157
heteromodal regions of cerebral cortex, 164
Hildegard of Bingen, 100, 159
Himba culture and minds, 99
hippocampus, 146, 147
Hogwarts Sorting Test, 102
homeostasis, 137
homology, 142
Homo sapiens. See humans
homosexuality and variation, 103
hormones
body budgeting and, 10, 88, 91
default mode network and, 155
sense data
from, 72, 106
hub structure, 34–36
human brain. See brain, human
human mind. See mind, human
human nature, 100–103, 109, 125
humans. See also under evolution
body budgeting in, 7, 8
cerebral cortex in, 14, 21–23
neurons in, 19
rational thought and, 13–14, 17
social reality and (See social reality)
as a social species, 83–87
hunger and sleepiness, 70–71
hunting for food, 4–9
hypothalamus, 140, 145, 163
Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain Page 13