Evolution by Natural Selection
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Eric Kandel Form in Which This Information Is Stored
RESEARCH I NEWS pendent, this system would be expected to [2] HEEsch and J E Bums. Distance estimation work quite well, since the new recruit bees by foraging honeybees, The Journal ofExperi mental Biology, Vo1.199, pp. 155-162, 1996. tend to take the same route as the experi [3] M V Srinivasan, S W Zhang, M Lehrer, and T enced scout bee. What dOJhe ants do when S Collett, Honeybee Navigation en route to they cover similarly several kilometres on the goal: Visual flight control and odometry, foot to look for food? Preliminary evidence The Journal ofExperimental Biology, Vol. 199, pp. 237-244, 1996. indicates that they don't use an odometer but [4] M V Srinivasan, S W Zhang, M Altwein, and instead might count steps! J Tautz, Honeybee Navigation: Nature and Calibration of the Odometer, Science, Vol. Suggested Reading 287, pp. 851-853, 1996. [1] Karl von Frisch, The dance language and OT Moushumi Sen Sarma, Centre for Ecological Sci ientation of bees, Harvard Univ. Press, Cam ences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, bridge, MA, USA, 1993. India. Email: [email protected] Learning from a Sea Snail: modify future behaviour, then memory is the Eric Kandel form in which this information is stored. Together, they represent one of the most valuable and powerful adaptations ever to Rohini Balakrishnan have evolved in nervous systems, for they In the year 2000, Eric Kandel shared the allow the future to access the past, conferring Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicinel flexibility to behaviour and improving the with two other neurobiologists: Arvid chances of survival in unpredictable, rapidly Carlsson and Paul Greengard. -
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GENIUS, WOMANHOOD AND THE STATISTICAL IMAGINARY: 1890s HEREDITY THEORY IN THE BRITISH SOCIAL NOVEL by ZOE GRAY BEAVIS B.A. Hons., La Trobe University, 2006 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES (English) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2014 © Zoe Gray Beavis, 2014 Abstract The central argument of this thesis is that several tropes or motifs exist in social novels of the 1890s which connect them with each other in a genre, and which indicate a significant literary preoccupation with contemporary heredity theory. These tropes include sibling and twin comparison stories, the woman musician’s conflict between professionalism and domesticity, and speculation about biparental inheritance. The particulars of heredity theory with which these novels engage are consistent with the writings of Francis Galton, specifically on hereditary genius and regression theory, sibling and twin biometry, and theoretical population studies. Concurrent with the curiosity of novelists about science, was the anxiety of scientists about discursive linguistic sharing. In the thesis, I illuminate moments when science writers (Galton, August Weismann, William Bates, and Karl Pearson) acknowledged the literary process and the reading audience. I have structured the thesis around the chronological appearance of heredity themes in 1890s social novels, because I am arguing for the existence of a broader cultural curiosity about heredity themes, irrespective of authors’ primary engagement with scientific texts. Finally, I introduce the statistical imaginary as a framework for understanding human difference through populations and time, as evidenced by the construction of theoretical population samples – communities, crowds, and peer groups – in 1890s social fictions. -
Introduction and Historical Perspective
Chapter 1 Introduction and Historical Perspective “ Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution. ” modified by the developmental history of the organism, Theodosius Dobzhansky its physiology – from cellular to systems levels – and by the social and physical environment. Finally, behaviors are shaped through evolutionary forces of natural selection OVERVIEW that optimize survival and reproduction ( Figure 1.1 ). Truly, the study of behavior provides us with a window through Behavioral genetics aims to understand the genetic which we can view much of biology. mechanisms that enable the nervous system to direct Understanding behaviors requires a multidisciplinary appropriate interactions between organisms and their perspective, with regulation of gene expression at its core. social and physical environments. Early scientific The emerging field of behavioral genetics is still taking explorations of animal behavior defined the fields shape and its boundaries are still being defined. Behavioral of experimental psychology and classical ethology. genetics has evolved through the merger of experimental Behavioral genetics has emerged as an interdisciplin- psychology and classical ethology with evolutionary biol- ary science at the interface of experimental psychology, ogy and genetics, and also incorporates aspects of neuro- classical ethology, genetics, and neuroscience. This science ( Figure 1.2 ). To gain a perspective on the current chapter provides a brief overview of the emergence of definition of this field, it is helpful -
Neuroethlogy NROC34 Course Goals How? Evaluation
Course Goals Neuroethlogy NROC34 • What is neuroethology? • Prof. A. Mason – Role of basic biology – Model systems (mainly invertebrate) • e-mail: – Highly specialized organisms – [email protected] – Biomimetics – [email protected] • Primary literature and the scientific process – No textbook – subject = NROC34 – But if you really want one, there are a couple of suggestion on the • Office Hours: Friday, 1 – 4:00 pm, SW566 syllabus • Basic principles of integrative neural function • Weekly Readings: download from course webpage – More on this a bit later www.utsc.utoronto.ca/amason/courses/coursepage/syllabus2012.html NROC34 2012:1 1 NROC34 2012:1 2 How? Evaluation • Case studies of several model systems – Different kinds of questions – Different kinds of research (techniques) • Weekly readings 5% – Sensory, motor, decision-making… • Mid-term 35-45% • Selected papers each week • Final Exam 45-60% – Read before, discuss during: usually readings are challenging and “discussion” means me explaining (so • Presentation (optional) 10% don’t be discouraged) • Most topics include current work • Weekly reading marks: each week several – Take you to the leading edge of research in selected people will be selected at random to areas contribute 3 questions about the papers. NROC34 2012:1 3 NROC34 2012:1 4 1 Information Neuroethology • Who are you people? • The study of the neural mechanisms • What do you expect to learn in this course? underlying behaviour that is biologically • What previous course have you taken in: relevant to the animal performing it. – neuroscience • This encompasses many basic mechanisms – Behaviour of the nervous system. • Is this a req’d course for you? • Combines behavioural analysis and neurophysiology NROC34 2012:1 5 NROC34 2012:1 6 Neurobiology Behavioural Science • What do I mean by “integrative neural function”? • What does the nervous system do? • Ethology • Psychology – detect information in the environment – biological behaviour – abstract concepts (e.g. -
Consciousness Eclipsed: Jacques Loeb, Ivan P. Pavlov, and the Rise of Reductionistic Biology After 1900
Consciousness and Cognition Consciousness and Cognition 14 (2005) 219–230 www.elsevier.com/locate/concog Consciousness eclipsed: Jacques Loeb, Ivan P. Pavlov, and the rise of reductionistic biology after 1900 Ralph J. Greenspan*, Bernard J. Baars The Neurosciences Institute, 10640 John Jay Hopkins Dr., San Diego, CA 92121, United States Received 17 May 2004 Available online 25 November 2004 Abstract The life sciences in the 20th century were guided to a large extent by a reductionist program seeking to explain biological phenomena in terms of physics and chemistry. Two scientists who figured prominently in the establishment and dissemination of this program were Jacques Loeb in biology and Ivan P. Pavlov in psychological behaviorism. While neither succeeded in accounting for higher mental functions in physical- chemical terms, both adopted positions that reduced the problem of consciousness to the level of reflexes and associations. The intellectual origins of this view and the impediment to the study of consciousness as an object of inquiry in its own right that it may have imposed on peers, students, and those who followed is explored. Ó 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Keywords: History of ideas; Reductionism; Tropism; Conditional reflex 1. Introduction The current acceptance of consciousness as a suitable object of study in the life sciences came late in the 20th century (Flanagan, 1984). By that time other biological processes—physiology, biochemistry, genetics, embryology, and even many aspects of brain function—had long since * Corresponding author. Fax: +1 858 626 2099. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (R.J. Greenspan), [email protected] (B.J. -
Behavioral Ecology
AP BIOLOGY BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY 1. Define the following terms: Ethology Behavior 2. Match the description/example with the correct behavior category. A. Classical conditioning E. Insight B. Fixed-action pattern F. Instinct (innate) C. Habituation G. Observational learning D. Imprinting H. Operant conditioning Behaviors that are inherited Performed virtually the same by all individuals regardless of environmental conditions In mammals, the female parent cares for offspring Highly stereotyped sequence of behaviors that, once begun, is usually carried to completion Triggered by a sign stimulus When a graylag goose sees an egg outside her next, she will methodically roll the egg back into the nest. The egg outside the nest is the stimulus. Even if the egg is removed or slips away, she completes the behavior by returning an “imaginary” egg to the nest Male stickleback fish defend their territory against other males. The red belly of males is the stimulus for aggressive behavior. Nikolass Tinbergen discovered any object with a red underside triggers the same aggressive behavior Learning that occurs during a specific time period; generally irreversible Konrad Lorenz discovered that during the first two days of life, graylag goslings will accept any moving object as their mother (even a human) Association of irrelevant stimulus with a fixed physiological response Animal performs a behavior in response to a substitute stimulus rather than the normal stimulus Pavlov’s dogs; dogs were conditioned to salivate in response to a bell Trial and error learning -
The Fessard's School of Neurophysiology After
The fessard’s School of neurophysiology after the Second World War in france: globalisation and diversity in neurophysiological research (1938-1955) Jean-Gaël Barbara To cite this version: Jean-Gaël Barbara. The fessard’s School of neurophysiology after the Second World War in france: globalisation and diversity in neurophysiological research (1938-1955). Archives Italiennes de Biologie, Universita degli Studi di Pisa, 2011. halshs-03090650 HAL Id: halshs-03090650 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-03090650 Submitted on 11 Jan 2021 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. The Fessard’s School of neurophysiology after the Second World War in France: globalization and diversity in neurophysiological research (1938-1955) Jean- Gaël Barbara Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UMR 7102 Université Denis Diderot, Paris, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UMR 7219 [email protected] Postal Address : JG Barbara, UPMC, case 14, 7 quai Saint Bernard, 75005, -
Chapter 51 Animal Behavior
Chapter 51 Animal Behavior Lecture Outline Overview: Shall We Dance? • Red-crowned cranes (Grus japonensis) gather in groups to dance, prance, stretch, bow, and leap. They grab bits of plants, sticks, and feathers with their bills and toss them into the air. • How does a crane decide that it is time to dance? In fact, why does it dance at all? • Animal behavior is based on physiological systems and processes. • An individual behavior is an action carried out by the muscular or hormonal system under the control of the nervous system in response to a stimulus. • Behavior contributes to homeostasis; an animal must acquire nutrients for digestion and find a partner for sexual reproduction. • All of animal physiology contributes to behavior, while animal behavior influences all of physiology. • Being essential for survival and reproduction, animal behavior is subject to substantial selective pressure during evolution. • Behavioral selection also acts on anatomy because body form and appearance contribute directly to the recognition and communication that underlie many behaviors. Concept 51.1: A discrete sensory input is the stimulus for a wide range of animal behaviors. • An animal’s behavior is the sum of its responses to external and internal stimuli. Classical ethology presaged an evolutionary approach to behavioral biology. • In the mid-20th century, pioneering behavioral biologists developed the discipline of ethology, the scientific study of how animals behave in their natural environments. • Niko Tinbergen, of the Netherlands, suggested four questions that must be answered to fully understand any behavior. 1. What stimulus elicits the behavior, and what physiological mechanisms mediate the response? 2. -
Cells of the Nervous System
3/23/2015 Nervous Systems | Principles of Biology from Nature Education contents Principles of Biology 126 Nervous Systems A flock of Canada geese use auditory and visual cues to maintain a V formation in flight. How are these animals able to respond so quickly to environmental cues? All animals possess neurons, cells that form a complex network capable of transmitting and receiving signals. This neural network forms the nervous system. The nervous system coordinates the movement and internal physiology of an organism, as well as its decisionmaking and behavior. In all but the simplest animals, neurons are bundled into nerves that facilitate signal transmission. More complex animals have a central nervous system (CNS) that includes the brain and nerve cords. Vertebrates also have a peripheral nervous system (PNS) that transmits signals between the body and the CNS. Cells of the Nervous System Structure of the neuron. Figure 1 shows the general structure of a neuron. The organelles and nucleus of a neuron are contained in a large central structure called the cell body, or soma. Most nerve cells also have multiple dendrites in addition to the cell body. Dendrites are short, branched extensions that receive signals from other neurons. Each neuron also has a single axon, a long extension that transmits signals to other cells. The point of attachment of the axon to the cell body is called the axon hillock. The other end of the axon is usually branched, and each branch ends in a synaptic terminal. The synaptic terminal forms a synapse, or junction, with another cell. -
Kandel and Hawkins
© 1992 SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, INC The Biological Basis of Learnin and Individuality Recent discoveries suggestg that learning engages a simple set of rules that modify the strength of connections between neurons in the brain. These changes play an important role in making each individual unique by Eric R. Kandel and Robert D. Hawkins ver the past several decades, there surgeon at the Montreal Neurological Institute. has been a gradual merger of two In the 1940s Penfield began to use electri originally separate fields of science: cal stimulation to map motor, sensory and neurobiology,O the science of the brain, and language functions in the cortex of patients cognitive psychology, the science of the mind. undergoing neurosurgery for the relief of Recently the pace of unification has quick epilepsy. Because the brain itself does not ened, with the result that a new intellectual have pain receptors, brain surgery can be car framework has emerged for examining percep ried out under local anesthesia in fully con tion, language, memory and conscious aware scious patients, who can describe what they ness. This new framework is based on the abil experience in response to electric stimuli ap ity to study the biological substrates of these plied to different cortical areas. Penfield ex mental functions. A particularly faSCinating plored the cortical surface in more than 1,000 example can be seen in the study of learning. Elementary as patients. Occasionally he found that electrical stimulation pects of the neuronal mechanisms important for several dif produced an experiential response, or flashback, in which ferent types of learning can now be studied on the cellular the patients described a coherent recollection of an earlier and even on the molecular level. -
1. Overview 2. Database Architecture 3. Example Tree 6. Mentorship Network Influences?
Neurotree: Graphing the academic genealogy of neuroscience Stephen V. David1, Will Chertoff1, Titipat Achakulvisut2, Daniel Acuna2 1Oregon Health & Science University, 2Northwestern University 1. Overview 3. Example tree 4. Founding ancestors Neurotree (http://neurotree.org, [1]) is a collaborative, open-access Name N Resarch area Family tree The distance between two nodes can be Johannes Müller 7715 Physiology website that tracks and visualizes the academic genealogy and history P+ William Fitch measured by the number of mentorship Sir Charles Sherrington 4758 Neurophysiology of neuroscience. After 10 years of growth driven by user-generated Allen Hermann von Helmholtz 3048 Psychophysics University of P- steps connecting them through a Sir John Eccles 2998 Synapses content, the site has captured information about the mentorship of over Rudolf Oregon Ludwig Robert Samuel Alexander Sir Charles Medical common ancestor i(below). The list at Karl Lashley 2558 Learning and memory 80,000 neuroscientists. It has become a unique tool for a community of John Friedrich Karl Koch Sir Charles Kinnier Charles Gordon John Scott Sir Charles Harvey Sir Charles Karl Edgar School C+ Louis Agassiz 2241 Anatomy Sir Michael Newport Goltz Virchow Universität Scott Wilson Symonds Holmes Farquhar Sherrington Scott Williams Scott Spencer Wilder Douglas Frederic right shows the 30 most frequent primary researchers, students, journal editors, and the press. Once Foster Langley Kaiser-Wilhelms- Universität Berlin (ID Sherrington National Hospital, Queen National -
Ethology of Geese; Fixed Action Patterns and The
9.20 M.I.T. 2013 Class #5 Ethology of geese Fixed Action Patterns and the Central Nervous System 1 Video: Konrad Lorenz and his geese, recorded from WGBH-TV, “Wild, Wild World of Animals” • Discovery of imprinting • Nature of imprinting • Natural responses to predators by geese • Imprinting and development of social life by geese 2 Video: Konrad Lorenz and his geese, recorded from WGBH-TV, “Wild, Wild World of Animals” • Discussion: Is the response of geese to an aerial predator innate? – Experiments with exposure of naïve geese to a moving silhouette: 3 Video: Konrad Lorenz and his geese, recorded from WGBH-TV, “Wild, Wild World of Animals” • Discussion: Is the response of geese to an aerial predator innate? – Experiments with exposure of naïve geese to a moving silhouette: Moved in this direction: Fear/ mobbing response Turkeys and chickens appeared to be sensitive to shape, as shown. Geese were not. They respoinded to overhead movement that is slow with respect to size (calm gliding) like the appearance of a hunting white-tailed eagle. Moved in this direction: No such responses Cf. ducks: Their innate releasing mechanism appeared to be tailored more to falcons. 4 A more recent analysis: Schleidt, W., Shalter, M. D., & Moura-Neto, H. (2011, February 21). The Hawk/Goose Story: The Classical Ethological Experiments of Lorenz and Tinbergen, Revisited. Journal of Comparative Psychology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1037/a0022068 Conclusion: Although there appear to be some innate reactions of these birds, the major differences in observed reactions of geese, ducks, turkeys, and chickens to gliding hawk and goose shapes can be explained as the result of differences in the relative novelty of stimulus encounters.