Primate Intelligence Flashcards
Big Brains & Long Lives
- brain size and longevity are correlated
- longevity occurs via selection for larger brains
Energy Allocation
- growth
- maintenance
- reproduction
Trade-Offs
- growing/maintaining self & offspring
- quantity & quality of offspring
- current & future reproduction
Fast Life History
r selected
- reproduce early
- small body
- small brain
- short gestation
- large litters
- high mortality rate
- short life span
Slow Life History
K selected
- reproduce late
- large body
- large brain
- long gestation
- small litters
- low mortality rate
- long life span
What Selective Pressures Favored Large Brain Size in Primates
- Selective pressures related to social factors
- Selective pressures related to ecological factors
- Social Factors
intelligence linked to competitive pressures of group living
evolution of group living provided context for complex social interactions
rewarded behavioral flexibility
Social Intelligence Hypothesis
selection favors individuals that can both cooperate with and manipulate others in a group
- Ecological Factors
cognitive skills associated with frugivory (evaluate ripeness, toxicity, nutrition, good memory)
cognitive skills associated with extracted foods
cognitive skills linked to innovation and behavioral flexibility (invest solutions, learn from others)
Frugivory Hypothesis
% fruit in the diet (or range size) should be positively correlated with cognitive complexity
Today, more evidence suggests that
ecological factors are more important drivers of brain size evolution in primates
NHPs Know
- 3rd Party Kinships
- dominance hierarchies
Theory of Mind
the ability to attribute mental state (beliefs, intents, knowledge) to others
understand that other’s mental states may differ from one’s own
special cognitive capability
Mirror Self-Recognition
apes pass, but monkeys don’t
Captive Experiments
Chimps take advantage of discrepancies between their own knowledge and that of others.
Neocortex
site of the most substantial evolutionary changes in size and complexity
associated with problem solving and behavioral flexibility
Neocortex Ratio
measures the ratio between volume of the neocortex and the volume of the rest of the brain
Dunbar’s Analyses Indicate
animals living in larger groups have larger neocortex ratios than animals living in smaller groups
