02877nam a2200373 a 4500 ebr10402495 CaPaEBR m u cr cn||||||||| 090527s2009 maua sb 001 0 eng 2009021339 GBA978982 bnb 015346766 Uk 9780674035348 (alk. paper) 0674035348 (alk. paper) CaPaEBR CaPaEBR (OCoLC)648760641 QP376 .A4225 2009eb 612.8/2 22 Allen, John S. (John Scott), 1961- The lives of the brain [electronic resource] : human evolution and the organ of mind / John S. Allen. Cambridge, Mass. : Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009. x, 338 p. : ill. Includes bibliographical references (p. [281]-326) and index. Introduction -- The human brain in brief -- Brain size -- The functional evolution of the brain -- The plastic brain -- The molecular evolution of the brain -- The evolution of feeding behavior -- The aging brain -- Language and brain evolution -- Optimism and the evolution of the brain. Though we have other distinguishing characteristics (walking on two legs, for instance, and relative hairlessness), the brain and the behavior it produces are what truly set us apart from the other apes and primates. And how this three-pound organ composed of water, fat, and protein turned a mammal species into the dominant animal on earth today is the story the author seeks to tell in this book. Adopting what he calls a bottom-up approach to the evolution of human behavior, the author considers the brain as a biological organ; a collection of genes, cells, and tissues that grows, eats, and ages, and is subject to the direct effects of natural selection and the phylogenetic constraints of its ancestry. An exploration of the evolution of this critical organ based on recent work in paleoanthropology, brain anatomy and neuroimaging, molecular genetics, life history theory, and related fields, this book shows us the brain as a product of the contexts in which it evolved : phylogenetic, somatic, genetic, ecological, demographic, and ultimately, cultural-linguistic. Throughout, the author focuses on the foundations of brain evolution rather than the evolution of behavior or cognition. Electronic reproduction. Palo Alto, Calif. : ebrary, 2013. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ebrary affiliated libraries. Brain Evolution. Brain Growth. Human evolution. Electronic books. local ebrary, Inc. http://site.ebrary.com/lib/rucke/Doc?id=10402495 An electronic book accessible through the World Wide Web; click to view 200237 200237