Evolution of Cognition III

Question 1

Das Volumen des menschlichen Gehirns ist im Laufe der Evolution …

Answer 1

… (scheinbar exponentiel) gestiegen.

Question 2

Korreliert die größe von bestimmten Gehirnarealen mit kognitiven Fähigkeiten? + Beispiel

Answer 2

ja -

Singvögel: größe des Gesangareals korreliert mit der Größe des Gesangrepertoirs

Question 3

Welche Gehirnstruktur wird in Zusammenhang mit räumlichem Gedächtnis gebracht?

Answer 3

Hippocampus

Question 4

Hippocampus in food-caching Birds?

Answer 4

ist größer!

Question 5

London Taxi Driver Example;

2 points:

Answer 5

• Posterior Hippocampus is larger in London Taxi-Drivers than in non-Taxi-Drivers
• Correlation of volume change with time as taxi driver. -> neural plasticity

Question 6

What does Neuroplasticity actually mean?

Answer 6

Brain is continually changing!

Question 7

Traditional view on neuro-plasticity:

Answer 7

no new neurons in adult brain, except in the olfactory system
(despite clear evidence in 60s and 70s, this was believed up until recently)

Question 8

What is neurogenesis?

Answer 8

Neurogenesis (birth of neurons) is the process by which neurons are generated from neural stem and progenitor cells.

Question 9

Is it known now that there is neurogenesis in adult brains? Who?

Answer 9

Yes!

Elizabeth Gould leads the way

Question 10

rat gymnastics lead to …

Answer 10

… more synapses and dendrites

Question 11

Was kann zu schrumpfen des Hippocampus führen?

Answer 11

sozialer Stress

Question 12

New sensory maps can develop over weeks, this was shown by …

Answer 12

… sewing together to digits of a monkey hand. Clear border between digit 3 and digit 4 on the somatosensory cortex vanished within month.

Question 13

Who are leading figures in neurogenesis research?

Answer 13

Pasko Rakic
Fernando Nottebohm
Liz Gould

Question 14

enriched environment leads to …

Answer 14

… more neurogenesis.

Question 15

String players have …

Answer 15

… larger left hand representation in motor cortex.

Question 16

relative regional size of brain ____ matter

Answer 16

DOES

Question 17

Does absolute brain size matter?

Answer 17

complex question!

Question 18

Welche Tiere haben große Gehirne?

Answer 18

Delphin, Elefant, Mensch

Question 19

What’s the case of large brains within species?

Answer 19

• variance is huge

- brain size accounts only for 4 - 16 % of IQ variance

Question 20

Brain-to-body size ratio, a small ranklist:

Answer 20

Maulwurf
kleine Vögel
Mensch
Maus
Frosch
Elefant

Question 21

The Chihuahua Fallacy?

Answer 21

Encephalization is the degree to which an animal’s brain size is larger than would be predicted for an animal of its size. Encephalization is, therefore, the relationship between the brain and the body, and can be affected by changes in either one.

This is most easily demonstrated in domestic breeds of dogs. Small dogs have a large ratio between brain and body size, and large dogs have a small ratio between brain and body size. Does this fact, then, mean that small dogs with a larger ratio are intelligent and large dogs with a smaller ratio are relatively stupid? There is, of course, no pattern like this for dog intelligence.

Question 22

What is the encephalization quotient?

Answer 22

the ratio between actual brain weight and (from body-weight) predicted brain weight by a regression equation
e.g.:
Cat 1/1
Mouse 1/2
Dolphin 4/1
Human 7/1

Question 23

Who developed the encephalization quotient?

Answer 23

Harry Jerison

Question 24

What says the Expensive Tissue Hypothesis?

Answer 24

Tradeoff between brain and digestive tract:

Bad food -> big gut, small brain

Question 25

Who and when is behind the Expensive Tissue Hypothesis?

Answer 25

Aiello & Wheeler 1995

Question 26

Bird brains seem efficient. Why aren’t mammals brains that efficient?

Answer 26

Good question!

Question 27

Neuronal concentration various, which is a problem for the hypothesis of ..

Answer 27

.. large brain -> high IQ.