Abstract
Theories concerning the process of evolution commonly assume that the Neo-Darwinian principles of random mutation and subsequent selection apply to the evolution of brain and behavior as well as to other biological systems. Specifically, the evolution of behavior is thought to precede changes in body morphology, which are seen as adaptations to newly acquired behavioral habits (Piaget 1976, Mayr 1977). The best known example is probably the evolution of the Darwin finches. Yet, evolutionary theories barely touch the problem of how random mutations can result in new behavior patterns or capacities. Given that even small mammals and birds have millions of neurons and billions of synapses, it would seem difficult to imagine how random mutations can produce the ordered complexity typical for the mammalian brain, and even more difficult to see why the most complex biological system evolves faster than body morphology.
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© 1988 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Lipp, HP. (1988). The Forebrain as a Playground of Mammalian Evolution. In: Jerison, H.J., Jerison, I. (eds) Intelligence and Evolutionary Biology. NATO ASI Series, vol 17. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-70877-0_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-70877-0_7
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