Mirror Neurons

                How did language evolve?  This question has been a subject of interest to evolutionary psychologists for many years.  Recently, Fogassi and Ferrari, two researchers from Italy, published an article called “Mirror Neurons and the Evolution of Embodied Language”.  Their study revealed that language may have evolved from a class of neurons called mirror neurons.    Mirror neurons allow individuals to understand gestures and signals for others.  This class of neurons can be divided into two smaller categories.  One group is activated when watching others’ motions and the other group translates sounds.  These neurons are located in the premotor cortex, or the upper middle section, of the brain.  These neurons are activated when something in one’s environment changes, thus triggering a neural pathway to initiate.  This stimuli result in action or a thought process.

  Evidence to support this hypothesis comes from looking at our closest relatives, primates.  Though some evolutionary psychologists do believe that human language could potentially arisen from primates, other argue that the purposes for which humans use nonverbal communication are not the same the reasonings for primates.   Humans, when pointing at inanimate objects, usually are in distress.  While in comparison, primates use this type of communication for all types of situations. This implies that human language may be completely new to our species.

 

Nevertheless, Fogassi and Ferrari did present some data correlating the mental process in primates with that of humans.  The relationship is in the organizations of our brains.  These similarities were uncovered by brain-imaging.  Further studies are being conducted to further analyze what evolutionary selective pressures led to human language.  How could this information be used to study and maybe manipulate other species’ communicational skills?     

A World Without Trust

                Trust is a complex aspect of individual human behavior that is reliant upon one’s life experiences.  Due to its multi-variable dependency, it is very difficult to study.  A complete comprehension of trust draws from many disciplines including, but not limited to, sociology and psychology.  Though both of these fields provide research-based insight into building a creditable reputation, trust is nearly impossible to control.  The necessary components required to generate willing vulnerability is unique to the circumstances surrounding the relationship and the nature of the relationship. More specifically, trust is dependent upon the duration of the relationship and the level of strain placed on those involved.

                There are five key elements, proposed by Pearson, Mont, and Crane, in their publication, “Analysis of Trust Properties”, that provide a structure from which trust emerges and the considerations that should be accounted for when asking for someone’s trust. These include, trust is a learning process, trust is fragile, trust is unpredictable, trust is an interaction of causes and effects, and trust reduces the complexity of the world.  This proposition is based on qualitative observations of personal human-human relationships and consumer-company interactions.  The data that Pearson, Mont, and Crane accumulated reveals trends in human behavior.  Indentifying and understanding these principles from which trust operates will prove advantageous.  Not only can they aid in developing positive interpersonal relationships between individuals, they can also build a strong consumer population for a company.  Thus, trust has both an emotional wellbeing component along with a marketable element. 

               A standard definition of trust needs to be provided before further discussing its properties. For the purpose of this paper, Simpson’s explanation from his publication, “Psychological Foundations of Trust”, will prove sufficient.   Simpson is a researcher that approaches trust from a psychological standpoint.  Simpson presents trust as including “people’s loftiest hopes and aspirations with their deepest worries and fears.”  Without trust, Simpson claims that healthy, well-functioning relationships cannot be maintained.  Trust entails faith in others; assurance that they will act in such a manner that will be beneficial to one’s long-term self-interests.  In order to believe that others will follow through, it is necessary to become vulnerable.  As a result, people entering into relationships, based on trust, form expectations about other’s future actions.  They assume that the people they confide in will make decisions reflecting the wellbeing of both individuals.  Pearson, Mont, and Crane further expand upon this definition by incorporating another aspect of trust.  They make the assertion that trust is product of human nature that purposely aims towards achieving security and control in one’s life.             

                Juxtaposing the work of Simpson and Pearson, Mont, and Crane it can be noted that both publications present similar claims, but also disagree in many aspects. Their research is approached from different perspective, Simpson from an emotional health viewpoint, narrowing in on successful interpersonal relationships and Pearson, Mont, and Crane, from an economical standpoint, putting emphasis on how companies can gain the trust of their consumers. Differences in these publications mainly arise due to incomparable intensity of trust required by human-human relationships versus that needed for consumer-company interactions.  Human-human relationships involve an emotional aspect not seen when dealing with the buying and selling of commercial goods.  Humans are not as invested in consumer-company relationships because governments and laws are structured to ensure that businesses do not exploit customers.  Also, often expensive products come with warranty policies.  Thus, whatever someone spends on a good is guaranteed to be reflected in the quality of the item.  In contrast, friendships are not as stable.  Humans can be characterized as unpredictable.  No matter how much love is invested into someone does show a direct correlation with the love returned.  Therefore, entering into a human-human relationship involves a high-risk component that slightly changes the model of trust.      

                Despite their differences both articles support the five key elements of trust mentioned earlier.  The first principle, trust is a learning process, illustrates that trust is not static, rather dynamic.  Strong relationships form only over time.  This concept is based upon the assumption that previous occurrences give insight about future events.  Logically, a person who acts out of love will continue in the same manner.  Likewise, a company who produces quality items will maintain the same caliber with other goods.  The second aspect, trust is fragile, is the most important.  Once someone grants their trust it is essential to proceed cautiously.  Trust takes a long time to develop, but can be taken away in a heartbeat.  The third element, trust is unpredictable, also serves as a reminder that there is no set equation that defines trust.  Rather, it is an individual human attribute that cannot be controlled.  The next component, trust is an interaction of causes and effects, relates the importance of trust.  A healthy relationship between two or more individuals is a powerful thing.  It can only be caused, or brought to life, after a lengthy process, however, when instituted it can have profound effects.  The saying “two brains are better than one” brings to the forefront the necessity of trust during times of advancement.  The final principle, trust reduces the complexity of the world, magnifies our weaknesses.  We are just humans incapable of solving all of the world’s problems. It is crucial to trust that others will have everyone’s best interest in mind.  Without faith in others, the world becomes a very scary place.   

               Though trust is very difficult to grasp, its applications are endless both from a psychological and sociological perspective.  Aristotle claimed that the key to happiness is maintaining close interpersonal relationships throughout life.  As argued by Simpson this can only occur with the presence of trust.  In addition, companies rely on gaining a degree of trust from their customers.  People work very hard to become financially stable.  Sound confidence that a company’s products are of high quality is essential.  Researchers have just begun to touch upon this human behavior.  Future studies may open new realms of utilizing trust.     

Sperm Competition: as if “hooking up” wasn’t difficult enough already

The concept of fitness in relation to gene preservation is a proposed selection pressure in human evolution. How successful individuals are at reproducing determines their level of fitness. The theory of humans competing to have their genetic make-up passed on to later generations has been analyzed through observing sperm competition. Shackelford and Goetz conducted a study in which male psychology, anatomy, and physiology, were examined to enhance knowledge on how males evolve methods to assist their sperm in thwarting rival’s sperm for fertilization. This research was based on the fact that females engage in infidelity. Species that theoretically practice monogamy, the forming of faithful, long-term bonds of partners, but still show individuals having affairs, promotes the need for sperm competition. Males desire to know that the children their partner’s birth are all their own genetic offspring. It is a waste of time and energy to provide for children that are products of affairs. Therefore, to ensure this, males have created many defense mechanisms that fall into three general categories: preventative tactics, sperm competition tactics, and differential paternal investment. Preventative tactics are employed pre-copulation, sperm competition tactics are witnessed post-copulation, and differential paternal investment is practiced prior-conception. Evidence that humans have developed these tactics is seen through many adaptations such as enlarged testis size, ejaculate adjustment, displacement of a rival’s semen, and sexual arousal.
Sperm competition is not seen exclusively in humans. Other species also have evolved defensive mechanisms to infidelity. For instance, male flour beetles have chitinous spines on their genitalia, chimpanzees have testes that make up 30% of their body weight in order to produce more sperm, and the penis of a tree cricket is designed to flush-out the sperm of others. The role that infidelity plays in the future of the human population will determine the adaptations that will evolve in both males and females to account for this selection pressure. I am curious if different cultures will develop distinctive adaptations that mirror their moral structures.

Life by Design

One of the pressing questions in science today revolves around the ability to synthetically assemble a viable, living organism from scratch.  In order to accomplish this, researchers have to complete a three step process.  The first of task, carried out by the Human Genome Project, was completed in 2003.  This project included the identification of all the genes in human DNA and the decoding of the sequence of approximately 3 billion chemical base pairs. The second undertaking, just completed at the beginning of this year, entailed the manufacturing of the entire genome of a bacterium, Mycoplasma Genitalium.  Although viruses have been constructed previously through similarly stitching together their chemical components, bacteria are considerably more complex.  Also, viruses are not considered to be alive, because they lack the ability to self-replicate.  Therefore, J. Craig Venter, the gene scientist responsible for this success, has broken down many barriers in synthetic biology.  The third and most important step, includes placing synthetically constructed DNA in an organism and allowing it to “boot-up”.  This procedure still requires a lot of research and relies heavily on technology.  No amount of knowledge can breathe to life a living organism.  Tools need to exist to apply the information.  Until technology catches up, the dream synthetic biologist hold of designing an organism on a computer and then putting the DNA into a cell to produce custom-made creatures will remain merely hopeful thinking.

Though the possibilities of these experiments are endless, ethicists worry that the consequences may be devastating. Already, the construction of viruses has made the production of smallpox virus very simple.  To combat this fear, J. Craig Venter has placed a watermark on the bacterium genome, in order to have a distinction between synthetic DNA and natural occurring DNA. Also, one gene of the Mycoplasma Genitalium bacteria was changed to make it noninfective.  However, the question still exists whether these precautionary steps will prove sufficient.  

Blog #1…

“Knowledge is Power”

Science is the governing principle of life. It shapes the surrounding world, the sights, the smells, and the noises. Everything we experience is a product of science. Yet, often it escapes our notice. How easy it is to forget that biological cycles, chemical reactions, and physical laws, dictate our lives. Science’s power is overlooked until it neglects someone of their natural “rights”. Blindness, hearing impairments, paralysis, and disease, all reiterate that life is a battle against science. This battle involves gaining control of one’s physical and mental health through understanding and manipulating scientific principles. This warfare, however, fades into the background of our busy lives, only to emerge in dramatic instances. This struggle against science became a reality in my life November 2, 2007.

Waking up in a hospital, only remembering flashes of the previous night, I wondered if I ever would return to a “normal” life. Before being emitted into the hospital I had experienced seizure-like symptoms. I was unaware of my surroundings, and involuntarily thrashing. My mother drove me to the Emergency Room. After three days of extensive testing, seizures were ruled out. Rather, a vitamin deficiency was the culprit. Though, the solution was as simple as adding daily supplement to my diet, the event significantly increased my awareness of science’s control in my life. I had come face to face with the fact, that only when I have a comprehension of how my body works, will I gain power over my health. Comprehending the cause and effect relationships, through which our bodies operate, will provide the keys necessary for self-regulation. Knowledge alone empowers us to win the battle. This realization has fueled my interest in science, specifically focusing on medicine.

Though the medical field is vast and encompasses a variety disciplines, my passion lies with neuroscience. Our brains are powerful instruments, that when used properly can produce life-changing results. The subject I am interested in is therapeutic recovery of Traumatic Brain Injured (TBI) victims. Research and clinical trials enhance our knowledge on how the brain restores itself after injury and will eventually lead to the cure of a paralysis. The tools needed to solve this mystery exist; it is just a matter of looking in the correct places. I intend on joining in on this quest, to help unlock the secrets and win the battle against science.