This book summarizes the latest research findings in the neurocircuitry of innate behaviors, covering major topics such as innate fear, aggression, feeding, reward, social interaction, parental care, spatial navigation, and sleep-wake regulation. For decades, humans have been fascinated by wild animals’ instincts, like the annual two-thousand-mile migration of the monarch butterfly in North American, and the “imprint” behavior of newborn birds. Since these instincts are always displayed in stereotypical patterns in most individuals of a given species, the neural circuits processing such behaviors must be genetically hard-wired in the brain. Recently, with the development of modern techniques, including optogenetics, retrograde and anterograde virus tracing, and in vivo calcium imaging, researchers have been able to determine and dissect the specific neural circuits for many innate behaviors by selectively manipulating well-defined cell types in the brain. This book discusses recent advances in the investigation of the neural-circuit mechanisms underlying innate behaviors.
The Neural Control of Behavior contains some of the material presented and discussed at the first interdisciplinary conference on the neural control of behavior, held at the Department of Psychobiology of the University of California, Irvine in June 1968. The compendium presents papers prepared by scientists from a variety of disciplines, which touched upon the primary concerns of psychobiology. Main topics covered include neural mechanisms, evoked responses and network dynamics, perceptual mechanisms, and behavioral and cellular responses to novel and repeated stimuli. Hypothalamic mechanisms for motivational and species-typical behavior, learning and memory, and the behavior of hippocampal neurons during conditioning experiments are also discussed. Psychologists, neurologists, and psychobiologists will find the book very insightful.
"What makes you the way you are--and what makes each of us different from everyone else? In Innate, leading neuroscientist and popular science blogger Kevin Mitchell traces human diversity and individual differences to their deepest level: in the wiring of our brains. Deftly guiding us through important new research, including his own groundbreaking work, he explains how variations in the way our brains develop before birth strongly influence our psychology and behavior throughout our lives, shaping our personality, intelligence, sexuality, and even the way we perceive the world. We all share a genetic program for making a human brain, and the program for making a brain like yours is specifically encoded in your DNA. But, as Mitchell explains, the way that program plays out is affected by random processes of development that manifest uniquely in each person, even identical twins. The key insight of Innate is that the combination of these developmental and genetic variations creates innate differences in how our brains are wired--differences that impact all aspects of our psychology--and this insight promises to transform the way we see the interplay of nature and nurture. Innate also explores the genetic and neural underpinnings of disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, and epilepsy, and how our understanding of these conditions is being revolutionized. In addition, the book examines the social and ethical implications of these ideas and of new technologies that may soon offer the means to predict or manipulate human traits. Compelling and original, Innate will change the way you think about why and how we are who we are."--Provided by the publisher.
A range of empirical and theoretical perspectives on the relationship between biology and social cognition from infancy through childhood. Recent research on the developmental origins of the social mind supports the view that social cognition is present early in infancy and childhood in surprisingly sophisticated forms. Developmental psychologists have found ingenious ways to test the social abilities of infants and young children, and neuroscientists have begun to study the neurobiological mechanisms that implement and guide early social cognition. Their work suggests that, far from being unfinished adults, babies are exquisitely designed by evolution to capture relevant social information, learn, and explore their social environments. This volume offers a range of empirical and theoretical perspectives on the relationship between biology and social cognition from infancy through childhood. The contributors consider scientific advances in early social perception and cognition, including findings on the development of face processing and social perceptual biases; explore recent research on early infant competencies for language and theory of mind, including a developmental account of how young children become moral agents and the role of electrophysiology in identifying psychological processes that underpin social cognition; discuss the origins and development of prosocial behavior, reviewing evidence for a set of innate predispositions to be social, cooperative, and altruistic; examine how young children make social categories; and analyze atypical social cognition, including autism spectrum disorder and psychopathy. Contributors Lior Abramson, Renée Baillargeon, Pascal Belin, Frances Buttelmann, Sofia Cardenas, Michael J. Crowley, Fabrice Damon, Jean Decety, Michelle de Haan, Ghislaine Dehaene-Lambertz, Melody Buyukozer Dawkins, Xiao Pan Ding, Kristen A. Dunfield, Rachel D. Fine, Ana Fló, Jennifer R. Frey, Susan A. Gelman, Diane Goldenberg, Marie-Hélène Grosbras, Tobias Grossmann, Caitlin M. Hudac, Dora Kampis, Tara A. Karasewich, Ariel Knafo-Noam, Tehila Kogut, Ágnes Melinda Kovács, Valerie A. Kuhlmeier, Kang Lee, Narcis Marshall, Eamon McCrory, David Méary, Christos Panagiotopoulos, Olivier Pascalis, Markus Paulus, Kevin A. Pelphrey, Marcela Peña, Valerie F. Reyna, Marjorie Rhodes, Ruth Roberts, Hagit Sabato, Darby Saxbe, Virginia Slaughter, Jessica A. Sommerville, Maayan Stavans, Nikolaus Steinbeis, Fransisca Ting, Florina Uzefovsky, Essi Viding
The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."
Studies on the Development of Behavior and the Nervous System, Volume 3: Neural and Behavioral Specificity covers the fundamental concepts and principles of neural and behavioral specificity in various species, including fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals. This book is composed of five sections encompassing eight chapters. The first section discusses the historical developments of neurobiological research; the role of visual experience in the functional development of the visual system; and the interrelationship between maturation and experience in development. The second section examines the developmental control of synaptogenesis and the precise neural cell connections. This section further addresses the main discrepancies in the evidence and interpretations of the retinotectal specificity based on the chemoaffinity theory. The third section discusses the role of visual experience in the development of the mammalian striate cortex, with particular emphasis on the incorporation of ontogenetic information into the developing nervous system. This topic is followed by an overview of the properties of kitten visual neurons and of some evidence for plasticity in the developing visual systems of frogs, monkeys, and man. The concluding sections cover the theories of innate species-specific behavioral development and the ontogeny of mammalian perceptual development. Neurodevelopmental biologists and researchers will find this book invaluable.
One of the nation's leading neuroscientists presents a radically new view of the function of the brain and the nervous system. Its central idea is that the nervous system in each individual operates as a selective system resembling natural selection in evolution, but operating by different mechanisms. This far-ranging theory of brain functions is bound to stimulate renewed discussion of such philosophical issues as the mind-body problem, the origins of knowledge and the perceptual bases of language. Notes and Index.
Building the Most Complex Structure on Earth provides readers with a basic biological education an easy and understandable introduction into a new epigenetic theory of development and evolution. This is a novel theory that describes the epigenetic mechanisms of the development and evolution of animals and explains the colossal evolution and diversification of animals from a new post-genetic perspective. Modern biology has demonstrated the existence of a common genetic toolkit in the animal kingdom, but neither the number of genes nor the evolution of new genes is responsible for the development and evolution of animals. The failure to understand how the same genetic toolkit is used to produce millions of widely different animal forms remains a perplexing conundrum in modern biology. The novel theory shows that the development and evolution of the animal kingdom are functions of epigenetic mechanisms, which are the competent users of the genetic toolkit. - Provides a comprehensive view of the epigenetic aspects of reproduction, development, and evolution. - Highly rigorous, but simple enough for readers with only a basic knowledge of biology.
Epigenetic Principles of Evolution, Second Edition, fully examines the causal basis of evolution from an epigenetic point-of-view. By revealing the epigenetic uses of the genetic toolkit, this work demonstrates the primacy of epigenetic mechanisms and epigenetic information in generating evolutionary novelties. The author convincingly supports his theoretical perspective with examples from varied fields of biology, emphasizing changes in developmental pathways as the basic source of evolutionary change in metazoans. Users will find a broader view of the epigenetic mechanisms of evolution, moving beyond conventional changes in epigenetic structures, such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and patterns of miRNA, sRNA, and mRNA expression. This second edition is thoroughly updated to reflect new evidence and developing theories in the field of evolutionary epigenetics. New and revised chapters speak to the epigenetic basis of heredity, epigenetic regulation of animal structure and homeostasis, neural manipulation of gene expression, central control of gametogenesis, epigenetic control of early development, the origin of epigenetic information, evolutionary changes in response to environmental stressors, epigenetics of sympatric evolution, and the epigenetics of the Cambrian explosion, among other topics. - Adopts an integrative approach to examine the causal basis of evolution from an epigenetic point-of-view - Features new and revised chapters which reflect novel experimental and observational evidence in the field of evolutionary epigenetics, as well as alternative theoretical approaches - Offers a broad view of epigenetic mechanisms of evolution, moving beyond conventional changes in epigenetic mechanisms, such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and patterns of miRNA, sRNA and mRNA expression
