... 1993). Four trends led to major evolutionary changes and the development of Homo sapiens. The Hall of Human Origins is an exhibit at the National Museum of History that summarizes the changes that sets us apart as humans. The path to becoming human began 1.8 million years ago when our ancestors started to walk upright. The first major change to occur was the development of a bipedal structure. Initially our early ancestors walked on four legs while on the ground and climbed trees. Changes in anatomy such as reshaping the hips, skull, and lower limbs resulted in an upright body, longer stride, efficient gait, and the ability to run (Blaxland and Dorey, 2012). The second major change occurred when human ancestors developed shorter jaws and smaller teeth. The canines became shorter and rounded and the less protruding jaw allowed the face to become more vertical and proportionate (Blaxland and Dorey, 2012). One of the more significant changes that occurred was the development of a larger brain size. Early on about 3 million years ago the brain size of our early ancestors was very similar to the modern chimpanzee. The dramatic change in size led to reorganization of the brain. Evolution led to the development in areas of the brain that involved learning, smelling, and vision (Blaxland and Dorey, 2012). In less than 2 million years brain size increased threefold from the initial 450 cc to 1250 cc. Finally, as a result of developing brains our ancestors’ intelligence...
Words: 605 - Pages: 3
...INTRODUCTION The human brain is a complex organ that begins to grow and develop at just four weeks prenatal and continues on changing and developing until a person’s death (Boyd & Bee, 2012). A person’s heredity and genes play a part in this development however a person’s experience also shapes the development of the brain. The age old debate of nature verse nurture can be applied to brain development. The following discussion will take the reader on a journey through the development of the brain from its prenatal development to its development in old age. The reader will see that it is the combination of both genes and the environment which shapes the brain. The report will show that both nature and nurture are required to develop a healthy brain. DISCUSSION The human brain is set apart from other animal in its ability relay thoughts and mental states including desires, ideas, and intentions to other individuals. This concept is referred to as theory of mind and to date has not been seen in any other animal (Harmony, 2008). The question is what shapes the brain? Is it shaped by a person’s genes or is it the environment that person lives in. The answer is both. The human brain needs both genes and experience in order to develop healthily and to its fullest potential. Brain Development Prenatal The human brain begins to development well before birth. By the sixth week of pregnancy, an embryo’s brain is able to move in response to stimuli and by week eight the brain connects with...
Words: 2184 - Pages: 9
...Journey of the brain-Birth to late adulthood Child development is crucial throughout the early years, during this time the development of the brain occurs and continues through late adulthood. The development of the brain contributes to the functioning of the body. The anatomy of the brain is made up of neurons and divided into four different lobes. The temporal, frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes control a variety of cognitive functions (Santrock, 2013). The brain controls simple functions such as fine and gross motor skills, vision, and memory. For instance the frontal lobes are involved in the voluntary movement, thinking, personality, and intentionality or purpose. The occipital lobes are responsible for vision. The temporal lobes are responsible for hearing, language processing and memory. The parietal lobes plays role in registering spatial location, attention and motor control. (Santrock, 2013). Brain development in children is vital during the early years. During the early years, children brains are active enabling children to learn a variety of information. However, as individual ages there are changes in the brain which influence cognitive functioning learned throughout the years of development. At birth the newborn’s brain is about 25 percent of its adult weight; by the 24 months the brain is about 75 percent of its adult weight (Santrock, 2013). The brain is very delicate and needs a lot of protection for its safety...
Words: 1311 - Pages: 6
...confer different degrees of influence on the development of diseases, characters, and behaviour in humans. The hormones on the other hand, are commonly known as the body’s chemical messengers that have effect on various processes in the body including the mood. Humans behave differently and studies found that both heredity and hormones affects human behaviour though in different ways. Further details by comparing and contrasting on how genes and heredity affect the human behaviour will make this subject clearer. Knowing heredity, we develop an understanding that the genes inherited are the main foundation that makes a certain individual a distinct person. It is heredity that makes a person who he is and what he is. Every human has an inherited genes embedded in the body system which serve as the guidelines in the development of the individual’s distinct physical characteristics. The genes also shape the development the organ systems particularly the nervous system and the endocrine system. The most significant organ of the nervous system perhaps that is developed with the influence of the inherited genes is the brain. Giving a closer look, the genes actually are not capable of directly affecting the behaviour. (Johnston & Edwards, 2002) Factors that are known to have direct effect on the behaviour are sensory stimulation and physical influences. But knowing that the inherited genes has a great role to play in the development and functions of the nervous system and the endocrine...
Words: 817 - Pages: 4
...device. Identity control. Information control. Emotion control. A world where everything is monitored and kept under control. Society has changed. The age of technology has become the age of control, and for he who controls technology, controls humanity. How far can technology go? What makes it so addictive? It all comes down to the functions of the brain. As the human brain develops over time-from birth to adulthood- the sudden change is relative to the way humans respond to stimuli. The human brain, in particular, is one of the most complex of all biological systems. In the early stages of brain development, at birth most specifically, the brain is composed of glial cells and 100 billion neurons (Nguyen). Glial cells provide structural and metabolic support for the brain. Neurons are excitable cells which chemically transmit electrical signals through connections called synapses (Nguyen). Essentially, it is the way we respond to different situations and execute actions. While it’s true that babies are born with a significant amount of nerve cells and reflexes, the cerebral cortex, which is largely responsible for most important brain functions such as voluntary actions, isn’t quite developed. At birth, however, the cerebral cortex produces most of those synaptic connections in a process known as the exuberant period (Zero to Three). Such synaptic connections allow...
Words: 1002 - Pages: 5
...Bodies and minds change from early to late adulthood Student’s name Course name and number Instructor’s name Date submitted BODIES AND MINDS CHANGE FROM EARLY TO LATE ADULTHOOD Introduction After human beings are born, they experience many changes both their mind and physical bodies. The changes in the human mind and the physical body are the main reason for the development that humans undergo in their lives. People should be conversant with the changes that take place in their bodies hence be able to cope up other types of changes such as emotional, physical and psychological changes in their development stages. The human development in mind starts right after fertilization and continues up until the person dies. This paper is a study on the development of human mind and the physical growth. A human mind identifies as the cognitive faculties that help people in perception, thinking and effective judgment. Additionally, the human mind is also attributed to the consciousness and memory ability. However, it is true that both the physical and mind development differs between boys and girls where their developments depend more on the gender that one holds. During the development stages, children's bodies tend to develop making them look less like an adult. In the womb, male babies are born with as much as testosterone as a 25-year-old man (Black, 2003). Alter after birth. The testosterone plummets until the boy reaches the age of puberty. The testosterone is responsible...
Words: 2333 - Pages: 10
...Chapter5: Physical Development in Infancy & Toddlerhood GURE 5.21 Acting on the environment plays a major role in perceptual differentiation Crawling and walking change the way babies perceive a sloping surface. The newly crawling infant on the left plunges headlong down the slope. He has not yet learned that it affords the possibility of falling. The toddler on the right, who has been walking for more than a month, approaches the slope cautiously. Experience in trying to remain upright but frequently tumbling over has made him more aware of the consequences of his movements. He perceives the incline differently than he did at a younger age. Summary Body Growth Describe major changes in body size, proportions, muscle–fat makeup, and skeletal growth over the first two years. ■ Height and weight gains are greater during the first two years than at any other time after birth. Body fat is laid down quickly during the first nine months, whereas muscle development is slow and gradual. Parts of the body grow at different rates, following the cephalocaudal and proximodistal trends, resulting in changing body proportions. ■ Skeletal age, a measure based on the number of epiphyses and the extent to which they are fused, is the best way to estimate the child’s overall physical maturity. At birth, the bones of an infant’s skull are separated by six gaps, or fontanels, which permit the skull to expand as the brain grows. Brain Development Describe brain development during infancy...
Words: 1806 - Pages: 8
...Epilepsy is often specifies as “recurrent self-sustained paroxysmal disorders of brain function characterized by excessive discharge of cerebral neurons” (Purpura 1972). According to the World Health Organisation, epilepsy is the most relevant neurolopathology, with the epidemiology area of over 50 million and incidence of 2.4 million per year (Lévesque and Avoli 2013). Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is the most prevalent form of medical refractory symptomatic epilepsy disease (Engel 2001). Although any region of the brain can serve as a seizure focus, the temporal lobe is the most epileptogenic region. Patients with TLE typically show hippocampal sclerosis (HS), characterized by both selective neuronal atrophy, astrogliosis in the amygdala,...
Words: 552 - Pages: 3
...earlier in clinical settings, the primary criteria for manic and hypomanic episodes (Criterion A) is now including an emphasis on changes in activity and energy, not just mood. Bipolar disorder can be present in a mixed state, in which you might experience both mania and depression at the same time. During a mixed state, symptoms may be that you feel extremely agitated, have a hard time sleeping, experience major changes in appetite, and have suicidal thoughts. Individuals that are in a mixed state may have feelings of extreme sadness or hopelessness while at the same time feel very energized. Certain individuals with bipolar disorder may experience symptoms with severe episodes of mania or depression also has psychotic symptoms as well. The psychotic symptoms tend to express the individuals extreme moods. For example, if you are having psychotic symptoms during one’s manic episodes, you may experience irrational beliefs such as an individual believing that one is famous, having a lot of money, or possessing special powers. If you are having psychotic...
Words: 952 - Pages: 4
...psychological life ... have as their biological bases the activity of neuronal systems in the brain’ (p.259). Does this mean that psychological life can be reduced to neuronal activity? Illustrate your answer with examples from Chapter 4, ‘Biological psychology’, from Book 1, mapping psychology The case study of Phineas Gage referred as being within the subject of Biological Psychology. As we human beings are a “biological species”, we need to be able to understand our biological make-up, to further study the Physiological field, only once we can fully understand the different part of our bodies, including the brain can we then apply Psychological research methods to study & develop understanding . Science constantly evolves to study and gain understanding, which then can lead to data interpretation methods like Psychological .The Theorist Crick,-: His belief and scientific approach called “Reductionism” (Mapping Psychology, Pg 230) Suggests that “Potentially all psychological events and experiences can fully and only explained in terms of the activity within the components of the brain”. Other Scientists do however argue that there should be a much broader view taken, and other views et should be considered.(Bolton and Hill, 1996, Stevens, 1996: Toates, 2001) These other theorists, and studies are suggested (Mapping Psychology, Pg 230) as having equally possible explanations of how our brains components affect our actions and how we are. Phineas Gage, the study and interpretation...
Words: 3420 - Pages: 14
...Does the Cultural Environment influence Lifespan Development more than our Genes? This debate has been ongoing for a long period of time where some believe that cultural environment influence lifespan development while others are against the claim. The argument that cultural environment influence the lifespan development of an individual more than genes is true as it is argued that culture is an evolution which is a process that is very different from genetic evolution by natural selection, and it is playing the central role in the production of people’s behavior (Guest, A.M 2011). Genes does not dictate how development will go what they do is that they participate together with the environmental influences in making some of the developmental outcomes to happen. It is also true that genes are involved in human behavior as for every aspect of a person’s phenomenon it is due to the interaction between the environment and the genome. An example that shows how gene is involved in our behavior is in the degree in which we use vision to adjust ourselves, like hitting a baseball and selection of new clothes for kids. The reason behind this is because we have genetically evolved to be sight animals whereby our perception system that is dominant is vision and the next one is hearing. The information that is in our DNA that is supposed to produce morphology and physiology which makes sight very important to us has been molded by natural selection (Guest, A.M 2011). According to evolutionary...
Words: 1415 - Pages: 6
...of language? What is language? What does it mean to say that language is generative? ✓ How do nature and nurture play a role in language? Know what the associated theories are: nativism, social pragmatics, and general cognitive processing. ✓ What are the two brain areas responsible for language? What happens with damage? ✓ What are the general trends in language development? ✓ What are some ways to test language comprehension early on? ✓ What are overextension and underextension? ✓ Know the evidence for language-like capacities in nonhuman animals Development ✓ What is the evidence that nature and nurture contribute to development? When does nurture begin? ✓ What are some problems associated with studying development? ✓ Know the basic stages of prenatal development. What is the developmental trend in brain size? When is your brain the largest? When do most changes in the brain occur? ✓ What are the four major steps in prenatal brain development? Which occur(s) after birth? ✓ What are teratogens? What is one example? ✓ Know who Piaget was, what he studied, and how his four stages of development contribute to our knowledge of development. Know the major developmental milestones (and deficits) for each of Piaget’s 4 developmental stages. ✓ What are some problems associated with Piaget’s conclusions or studies? ✓ When are we done developing? ✓ What is attachment? ✓ What were Harlow’s studies of monkeys...
Words: 564 - Pages: 3
...Institute of Mental health12,Nov,2006. 2- “The Concept of Progressive Brain Change in Schizophrenia: Implications for Understanding Schizophrenia”, by Linn E. Delisi. 2008 INTRODUCTION Schizophrenia is a brain disorder, which interferes with normal brain functioning. It is mainly characterize by major disturbances in perception, language, thought, emotions and behavior. Furthermore, it can also trigger hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and lack of motivation (Rosenberg and Kosslyn). Experts now agree that schizophrenia develops as the result of the combination of a biological predisposition, and the kind of environment the person is exposed to. However, not until recent days, schizophrenia was thought to have “no “organic” cause and thus related to the psychological environment that one was born into” (Delisi). In “What Causes schizophrenia, by Grohol, even though the author emphasis how genetic, behavioral and other factors, are interrelated in the development of the disorder, he emphasis his article in how the tools of biomedical research are being used to search for genes or critical moments of brain development. At the same time, “The concept of Progressive Brain Chain in Schizophrenia: Implications for Understanding Schizophrenia”, by Delisi focuses in the new “discoveries” regarding brain change in schizophrenia, and how this ones support. Kraepelin perspective. The article states the different brain chances a schizophrenic patient goes through from its earliest stages...
Words: 1531 - Pages: 7
...refers specifically to the biology of the nervous system, whereas the latter refers to the entire science of the nervous system. The scope of neuroscience has broadened to include different approaches used to study the molecular, cellular, developmental, structural, functional, evolutionary, computational, and medical aspects of the nervous system. The techniques used by neuroscientists have also expanded enormously, from molecular and cellular studies of individual nerve cells to imaging of sensory and motor tasks in the brain. Recent theoretical advances in neuroscience have also been aided by the study of neural networks. Given the increasing number of scientists who study the nervous system, several prominent neuroscience organizations have been formed to provide a forum to all neuroscientists and educators. For example, the International Brain Research Organization was founded in 1960, the International Society for Neurochemistry in 1963, the European Brain and Behaviour Society in 1968, and the Society for Neuroscience in 1969. History The study of the nervous system dates back to ancient Egypt. Evidence of trepanation, the surgical practice of either drilling or scraping a hole into the skull with the purpose of curing headaches or mental disorders or relieving cranial pressure, being performed...
Words: 2664 - Pages: 11
...Origins of Psychology and Research Methods Worksheet Part I: Origins of Psychology Within the discipline of psychology, there are several perspectives used to describe, predict, and explain human behavior. The seven major perspectives in modern psychology are psychoanalytic, behaviorist, humanist, cognitive, neuroscientific/biopsychological, evolutionary, and sociocultural. Describe the seven major psychological perspectives using two to three sentences each. Select one major figure associated with one of the seven major perspectives and describes his or her work in two to three sentences. Type your response in the space below. Psychoanalytic- States that people are said to have sexual and aggressive drives. People’s behaviors are ruled by irrational forces and the unconscious, as well as instinctual and biological forces. It is believed people have no free will. Sigmund Freud made his own theory in the 1890’s. Freud theory was that a hysterical patient could have these problems due to a painful childhood experience that they cannot remember. This theory states that there is influence of lost memories that shape our feeling, thoughts and behavior. Behaviorist- Emphasizes objective, observable environmental influences on overt behavior. B.F. Skinner research states that when you give a person positive reinforcement for a correct chose they will go out of their way to make the correct choice for that positive reinforcement. Also works the other way. When a person...
Words: 1417 - Pages: 6
