Evolutionary Neuroscience
An extremely controversial topic within the field of biology is evolution. However, given the plethora of evidence supporting evolution, it is illogical to accept it as anything other than scientific fact. Evolutionary neuroscience is a subfield within evolution for which there exists a great deal of research revealing that evolution is the factual cause of diversity of life on earth. Analysis of population behaviour related to the nervous system, genetic phylogeny, and anatomical evidence of nervous system development all prove the existence of evolution.
Some opponents of evolution believe that it cannot be proven absolute since it cannot be directly observed1. However, in evolutionary neuroscience there are various studies and well-documented events showing …show more content…
Since the Dutch immigrants who migrated to South Africa had a larger proportion of Huntington’s disease, there is currently a greater proportion of the Dutch Afrikaner population with Huntington’s compared to the Holland Dutch2. Such evidence proves that powerful effect of random evolutionary mechanisms in making neurological traits common among a population. From this evidence, it is possible to extrapolate that heritable genetic traits related to the nervous system can become more common because of evolutionary mechanisms. In addition to studying human population patterns, animal models provide a useful source to study the evolution of behaviour, which is a trait directly related to neurological processes. Studies have been done showing proof of a microevolutionary change in behaviour and mating patterns in voles. When the voles were injected with an additional gene intended to change the distribution of the receptor vasopressin 1A, it caused the normally promiscuous male meadow voles to behave more monogamously. By behaving monogamously, they acted more like the monogamous prairie voles, mating with familiar mates
An extremely controversial topic within the field of biology is evolution. However, given the plethora of evidence supporting evolution, it is illogical to accept it as anything other than scientific fact. Evolutionary neuroscience is a subfield within evolution for which there exists a great deal of research revealing that evolution is the factual cause of diversity of life on earth. Analysis of population behaviour related to the nervous system, genetic phylogeny, and anatomical evidence of nervous system development all prove the existence of evolution.
Some opponents of evolution believe that it cannot be proven absolute since it cannot be directly observed1. However, in evolutionary neuroscience there are various studies and well-documented events showing …show more content…
Since the Dutch immigrants who migrated to South Africa had a larger proportion of Huntington’s disease, there is currently a greater proportion of the Dutch Afrikaner population with Huntington’s compared to the Holland Dutch2. Such evidence proves that powerful effect of random evolutionary mechanisms in making neurological traits common among a population. From this evidence, it is possible to extrapolate that heritable genetic traits related to the nervous system can become more common because of evolutionary mechanisms. In addition to studying human population patterns, animal models provide a useful source to study the evolution of behaviour, which is a trait directly related to neurological processes. Studies have been done showing proof of a microevolutionary change in behaviour and mating patterns in voles. When the voles were injected with an additional gene intended to change the distribution of the receptor vasopressin 1A, it caused the normally promiscuous male meadow voles to behave more monogamously. By behaving monogamously, they acted more like the monogamous prairie voles, mating with familiar mates