| Description |
xvii, 343 pages ; 23.4 cm |
| Contents |
Preface - how did the human brain evolve? -- 1. Human evolution : a brief overview -- 2. The human brain : evolution of larger size and plasticity -- 3. Defining characteristics : vulnerability and high energy requirement -- 4. Fatness in human babies : insurance for the developing brain -- 5. Nutrition : the key to normal human brain development -- 6. Iodine : the primary brain selective nutrient -- 7. Iron, copper, zinc and selenium : the other brain selective minerals -- 8. Docosahexaenoic acid : the brain selective fatty acid -- 9. Genes, brain function and human brain evolution -- 10. Bringing the environment and diet into play -- 11. The shore-based scenario : why survival misses the point -- 12. Earlier versions -- 13. The evidence -- 14. How would it work? -- 15. Survival of the fattest |
| Summary |
"In general, evolution depends on a special combination of circumstances: part genetics, part time, and part environment. In the case of human brain evolution, the main environmental influence was adaptation to a 'shore-based' diet, which provided the world's richest source of nutrition, as well as a sedentary lifestyle that promoted fat deposition. Such a diet included shellfish, fish, marsh plants, frogs, bird's eggs, etc. Humans and, more importantly, hominid babies started to get fat, a crucial distinction that led to the development of larger brains and to the evolution of modern humans. A larger brain is expensive to maintain and this increasing demand for energy results in, succinctly, survival of the fattest."--BOOK JACKET |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index |
| Subject |
Brain -- Evolution.
|
|
Brain -- Evolution -- Nutritional aspects.
|
|
Nutrition.
|
| LC no. |
2005043830 |
| ISBN |
9812561919 (alk. paper) |
|
9812563180 |
|
