The evolution of man and mankind goes back to millions of years. recently, I attended a talk in CES, IISc by Geoffery Miller, Prof in University if New Mexico, on the topic entitled " The Evolution of Human Intelligence and Creativity." The talk was exceptionally interesting and was skewed towards cognitive psychology giving an idea of mate choice and use to brains.The talk enclosed the fact that mates in human society are selected not on the basis of beauty or symmetry rather on the basis of kindness, intelligence and the physical fitness. Geoferry has been working on this topic for years and has written books like
" The Mating Mind" and
" Mating Intelligence."
Women seek for emotional support while men seek for sex?? Is that true?? research reveal something else as per Geoferry.
Sometimes back, I also did see a TV documentary about "Are male and female brains alike?". The human brain is the most mysterious piece of matter on earth. 100 thousand millions neurons determine who we are, and what we do. But it’s only now, in the 21st century, that brain scanning technologies enable scientists to watch this peculiar thing in our head while it is actually thinking.
As Geoferry said, the use of brain cells for evolution got its origin long back from our pre-ancestors. The use of brain for mate choice has been always a great topic and infact a fascinating area of research for anthropologists, psychologists, and not least for evolutionary biologists. while women search for nicer brains, males search for creativity. The feminine gender is keened onto the intelligence while the masculine one hovering onto the art of creativity. While creativity is well demarcated by verbal and pictorial attributes, the representational approach and abstract are well recognized in today's world. The payoffs, as for Geoffery are of three types:
* Survival payoff(tool production and foraging ability) Anyone who hasn't missed Tom's "Cast Away" can better realise this payoff.
** Social payoff (that involves Machiavellian intelligence and group competition,exp: Pre-Halloween "Punkin-Chunkin")
*** Sexual( thats associated with good parenting and better genes, long term genetic diversity and short term individuals in comparison to the first, generations over generations, passing of benevolent alleles, and overcoming mutations)
Has there been no Adam and Eve, the mankind wont be existing, thats the saying goes about that Forbidden apple.
A article was found in the journal "NATURE" -"Molecular insights into human brain evolution" by Robert Sean Hill1 & Christopher A. Walsh. The summary is linked to
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v437/n7055/images/nature04103-f1.2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v437/n7055/fig_tab/nature04103_F1.html&h=508&w=600&sz=63&hl=en&start=1&sig2=A8ctBEnLw-t1zpmy4Yppdw&um=1&tbnid=DNt5ha3tiT9QjM:&tbnh=114&tbnw=135&ei=cDq8R92sKZ7mhQOgqMWQDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhuman%2B%2Bbrain%2B%2Bevolution%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DG
These all can be accounted to the evolution of the neo cortex in the primates and hence the "
larger brain".
Among scientists’ most fascinating subjects of study are a small group of mysterious individuals with astounding talents: the so called savants, or “Knowing Ones”. Savants can multiply 5-digit numbers without a calculator, they can speak a dozen languages, recite 12,000 books from memory or, like Temple Grandin, see the world as an animal does. Over half of the savants are autistic and 6 out of 7 of them are male. Experts all over the world are now asking: How big is this little difference between male and female brains? Are women better human beings? Is the male brain in some way defective? Perhaps gender could be the key to the savant’s capacity for genius.
The study of human sexual behavior and human sex differences has been approached from many vantage points (Davidson & Moore, 2001; McGillicuddy-De Lisi & De Lisi, 2002) and in recent years has been viewed through the lens of evolutionary theory (Buss, 1994; Campbell, 2002; Geary, 1998; Low, 2000; Symons, 1979). However, many psychologists, social scientists, and social critics are reluctant and sometimes vigorously opposed to understanding human behavior in general and human sexuality in particular from an evolutionary perspective (Segerstrale, 2000), or at the very least argue that social influences are predominant (Wood & Eagly, 2002). Our goal is not to address the attendant philosophical or social issues, but rather to provide an introduction to the theory and empirical research generated from the evolutionary perspective. In particular, we focus on women's and men's preferences and Choices of mates and marriage partners, and invite the reader to judge for himself or herself the utility of this approach.
Another TV documentary was about "The science behind sexual attraction". Human sexual attraction is bewildering, exasperating, euphoric and potentially dangerous. It is, like romantic love, an indefinable essence. The beating pulse, the clammy palms, and the flood of chemicals to our brain - are all part of the mysterious alchemy of attraction. But what is 'sexiness' from a scientific point of view and what makes 'sexy' 'sexy'?
We reveal just how manipulative nature can be. Taking 'desire' into the lab we can reveal that when it comes to attraction, we are at the mercy of our biochemistry. And these feelings are so powerful that they should carry a Government health warning.
New research concludes that sexual attraction is a biologically based drive just like hunger or thirst. 'Sexiness', 'desire' ... call it what you will, is distilled from an intoxicating hormonal mix designed to encourage human reproduction...
A chemical cocktail that really does make the world go around.
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