Human biological, social, and cognitive evolution has depended on food. That much seems obvious, but what is less obvious is the specific ways that first fire, and then agriculture, and then the combination of advanced cooking and food preservation methods have contributed to the quality of the human brain and the efficacy of the human body. Even at its most basic, cooking transforms the available nutrients in plants, and renders some otherwise inedible plants both edible/nonpoisonous or better able to provide bioavailable nutrients. Even just sticking plants and animal parts into a fire and waiting for a transformation to take place fueled human biological evolution because "cooking made available to our ancestors unprecedented nutrients that fueled brain growth over time, and reduced the need for energy-expensive chewing of tough foods," (King). Bioavailability increases from just 30 to 40% of nutrients in raw plants to a full hundred percent (Mott). Cooking transforms the food by making more nutrients available in a smaller food mass, condensing not just calories but nutrients. Cooking also transforms food in ways that were critical for the human body's evolution, such as by softening tough fibers, hastening the digestive process, and even releasing flavors -- enhancing the taste buds. The...
About 1.8 million years ago, the human brain grew exponentially, launching homo erectus ahead of the other primates. The innovation of cooking explains the transformation: "Homo erectus, considered the first modern human species, learned to cook and doubled its brain size over the course of 600,000 years," (Mott). The biological evolution of humanity has depended on the advent of cooking.
Their brains reflect the major centers that control these functions. The human brain is over and above those animals, such as advanced cognitive skills. What about the mathematical and scientific abilities of the geniuses? Do their unsurpassed talents have something to do with their brain development? Some studies say that the capacity of learning is greatest when we are young, and as we grow older, it diminishes. Various results of
The frontal lobes rely on processing of internal information, including memories, in order to guide behavior, while the parietal lobes specialize in processing of externally-based sensory information, in order to guide behavior. Both sources of information are needed to self-regulate one's own behaviors but internal mnemonic sources are crucial to resist enslavement to external and salient events (p. 72)." While McNamara has explained the technical functions taking place in the
Human Biology Human Evolution in Africa The human evolution in Africa is a drawn out process of transformation by which natives' originated from the apelike ancestors. Scientific study shows that behavioral traits and physical traits shared by the people came from the apelike ancestors over approximation of six million years ago. The earliest traits were the bipedalism is walking using the two rear limbs. Other human trait was the ability to make
It is not startling that some remarkable variation exists between the great apes as well as humans with regard to mental capabilities. Humans possess a lot higher intricate types of verbal communications compared to any other primates. Humans are the sole animal to make and apply symbols as a way to communicate with each other. Humans also have diverse as well as complex forms of social organizations compared to
Robert Bly also speaks about the "three brains" of man, but unlike in the more scientific description above, he calls them the reptilian, the mammalian, and the new brain, in order to have them correspond better to our evolution stages thus, in a way, building upon MacLean's ideas. According to Bly, the first brain is "cold and ruthless" and deals with survival issues. The mammalian part deals with comforts
Diamond Marian Diamond addressed the nature vs. nurture issue so long debated by researchers and scientists by actually observing the effects of living in different environments on young rats. The beginnings of her research with Donald Head occurred in the 1960's, a time when the brain was not viewed as plastic. When presenting the results of their early research demonstrating a small but significant thicker cerebral cortex in rats raised in
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now