Thought for food : the endothermic brain hypothesis
(2024) In Trends in Cognitive Sciences 28(11). p.998-1010- Abstract
The evolution of whole-body endothermy occurred independently in dinosaurs and mammals and was associated with some of the most significant neurocognitive shifts in life's history. These included a 20-fold increase in neurons and the evolution of new brain structures, supporting similar functions in both lineages. We propose the endothermic brain hypothesis, which holds that elaborations in endotherm brains were geared towards increasing caloric intake through efficient foraging. The hypothesis is grounded in the intrinsic coupling of cognition and organismic self-maintenance. We argue that coevolution of increased metabolism and new forms of cognition should be jointly investigated in comparative studies of behaviors and brain anatomy,... (More)
The evolution of whole-body endothermy occurred independently in dinosaurs and mammals and was associated with some of the most significant neurocognitive shifts in life's history. These included a 20-fold increase in neurons and the evolution of new brain structures, supporting similar functions in both lineages. We propose the endothermic brain hypothesis, which holds that elaborations in endotherm brains were geared towards increasing caloric intake through efficient foraging. The hypothesis is grounded in the intrinsic coupling of cognition and organismic self-maintenance. We argue that coevolution of increased metabolism and new forms of cognition should be jointly investigated in comparative studies of behaviors and brain anatomy, along with studies of fossil species. We suggest avenues for such research and highlight critical open questions.
(Less)
- author
- Osvath, Mathias LU ; Němec, Pavel ; Brusatte, Stephen L. and Witmer, Lawrence M.
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-11
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- brain evolution, cognitive evolution, dinosaur cognition, endothermy
- in
- Trends in Cognitive Sciences
- volume
- 28
- issue
- 11
- pages
- 13 pages
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:39242238
- scopus:85203407133
- ISSN
- 1364-6613
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.tics.2024.08.002
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 5c91b1f7-944c-4270-8f4c-cdbc0fdd71df
- date added to LUP
- 2024-12-13 12:32:44
- date last changed
- 2025-05-31 01:53:09
@article{5c91b1f7-944c-4270-8f4c-cdbc0fdd71df,
abstract = {{<p>The evolution of whole-body endothermy occurred independently in dinosaurs and mammals and was associated with some of the most significant neurocognitive shifts in life's history. These included a 20-fold increase in neurons and the evolution of new brain structures, supporting similar functions in both lineages. We propose the endothermic brain hypothesis, which holds that elaborations in endotherm brains were geared towards increasing caloric intake through efficient foraging. The hypothesis is grounded in the intrinsic coupling of cognition and organismic self-maintenance. We argue that coevolution of increased metabolism and new forms of cognition should be jointly investigated in comparative studies of behaviors and brain anatomy, along with studies of fossil species. We suggest avenues for such research and highlight critical open questions.</p>}},
author = {{Osvath, Mathias and Němec, Pavel and Brusatte, Stephen L. and Witmer, Lawrence M.}},
issn = {{1364-6613}},
keywords = {{brain evolution; cognitive evolution; dinosaur cognition; endothermy}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{11}},
pages = {{998--1010}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{Trends in Cognitive Sciences}},
title = {{Thought for food : the endothermic brain hypothesis}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2024.08.002}},
doi = {{10.1016/j.tics.2024.08.002}},
volume = {{28}},
year = {{2024}},
}