Voltaire — To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Newborn humans spend close to 90% of their calories on building and running their brains
As adults, our brains consume as much as a quarter of our energy.
1 comment:
Harold
said...
I think that the tradeoff between smart brains and strong immune systems is a genetic one. If you live in a place like sub-Saharan Africa where lethal diseases like malaria are rampant then natural selection will favor a strong immune system over a smart brain. In places where lethal diseases are less common (e.g northern Eurasia), natural selection will favor smart brains over strong immune systems. Why doesn't natural selection favor both smart brains and strong immune systems? I think it may be due to the brain and the immune system consuming large amounts of calories which would have been harder to come by in ancient times when most humans were either hunter-gatherers or subsistence farmers. Therefore, natural selection will usually favor one or the other rather than both.
1 comment:
I think that the tradeoff between smart brains and strong immune systems is a genetic one. If you live in a place like sub-Saharan Africa where lethal diseases like malaria are rampant then natural selection will favor a strong immune system over a smart brain. In places where lethal diseases are less common (e.g northern Eurasia), natural selection will favor smart brains over strong immune systems. Why doesn't natural selection favor both smart brains and strong immune systems? I think it may be due to the brain and the immune system consuming large amounts of calories which would have been harder to come by in ancient times when most humans were either hunter-gatherers or subsistence farmers. Therefore, natural selection will usually favor one or the other rather than both.
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