Exam 4: Evolution of Brain and Function

_____ is the preferred term in referring to the ancestral species related to humans because it is more precise.

Many neuroscientists view evolution in terms of increasing the size of the

Even without an external task to perform, our mind is constantly working. It jumps from one thought to another. William James called this process the _____.

An important development that came with the larger brains in primates was the ability to connect information processing with _____, an ability that eventually led to a sense of self in humans.

If a particular characteristic was present in the ancestors of the group under study, it is called a _____ characteristic; if, on the other hand, the characteristic has evolved in the group under study, it is called a _____ characteristic.

The neural networks that are active during internal processing are called the brain's _____, which is most active when individuals are engaged in private thoughts or left alone to think about real or hypothetical events.

The nervous system of nocturnal mammals encouraged the evolution of _____, which later evolved into humans' ability to create internal representations of external events.

In tracing the development of primitive characteristics, Darwin reminds us to consider primitive and specialized characteristics as a _____ rather than a direct and single line, keeping in mind that different species have unique histories of evolution.

_____ is the name given to a condition in which individuals report an inability to see objects but can accurately "guess" the location of the object; this condition is generally found in people who have had brain damage.

If an observed similarity between two species is due to a shared evolutionary history, it is called a _____ similarity.

Humans today share a number of characteristics with sea mammals. Which of the following is NOT one such characteristic?

The _____, or R-complex, which includes the brain stem and cerebellum, processes major life requirements such as breathing, temperature regulation, and sleep cycles as well as fairly structured behavioral patterns such as territoriality, courtship and hunting.

Which of the following is NOT a level in MacLean's triune brain theory?

The _____ includes the hippocampus, olfactory cortex, and other related areas; one of its main features is that it does not have the six-layered structure of the neocortex.

When a similarity between two species is due to an independent evolutionary history, this is called _____ similarity; bat wings and bird wings are an example.

As a general rule, you can say that _____ matter is involved in the processing of information, whereas _____ matter is involved in moving information from one area of the brain to another.

Around 2.4 million years ago, humans experienced a mutation in gene MYH16, which led to smaller jaw muscles. This mutation allowed us to

Hughling Jackson proposed that over evolutionary time human brains have developed more general-purpose processing systems without replacing the earlier special-purpose processing mechanisms. This principle is known as _____.

Mammals have evolved a brain structure different from that of other organisms, namely the six-layered

In the case of humans, evolution has had to make a trade off between the requirement of walking upright and the development of a large brain; as a result, human infants need more _____ than other primate infants.