Are we humans simply remodelled apes? Chimps with a tweak? Is the difference between our genomes so minuscule it justifies the argument that our cognition and behaviour must also differ from chimps by barely a whisker? If “chimps are us” should we grant them human rights? Or is this one of the biggest fallacies in the study of evolution? NOT A CHIMP argues that these similarities have been grossly over-exaggerated - we should keep chimps at arm’s length. Are humans cognitively unique after all?
Thursday, 30 December 2010
Seven-month-old babies can 'read minds'
Fascinating article about recent research suggesting that babies as young as 7 months have substantial understanding of beliefs - i.e. are far more advanced, far earlier, with respect to "theory of mind" than we thought they were. Because babies this young cannot verbalise, the experiments take advantage of a protocol that measures how long an individual looks at a scene portrayed on a screen. The more it violates some rule the more interesting they will find it and they will gaze longer. However, read the very important caveats at the end of the paper, including a very important constructive criticism by Alison Gopnik.
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Structure deep within the brain may contribute to a rich, varied social life
In my chapter INSIDE THE BRAIN I point out the importance of the amygdala, alongside other brain structures, for social intelligence - or the processing of information and stimuli of a particularly social relevance. In this article, several Boston-based brain researchers have correlated amygdala size with the number and complexity of an individual's social networks. As the final paragraph says:
"A member of the the Martinos Center at MGH, Barrett also notes that the results of the study were consistent with the "social brain hypothesis," which suggests that the human amygdala might have evolved partially to deal with an increasingly complex social life. "Further research is in progress to try to understand more about how the amygdala and other brain regions are involved in social behavior in humans," she says. "We and other researchers are also trying to understand how abnormalities in these brain regions may impair social behavior in neurologic and psychiatric disorders.""
"A member of the the Martinos Center at MGH, Barrett also notes that the results of the study were consistent with the "social brain hypothesis," which suggests that the human amygdala might have evolved partially to deal with an increasingly complex social life. "Further research is in progress to try to understand more about how the amygdala and other brain regions are involved in social behavior in humans," she says. "We and other researchers are also trying to understand how abnormalities in these brain regions may impair social behavior in neurologic and psychiatric disorders.""