The evolution of the human brain remains a challenging topic in the field of neuroscience. Studying the brains of our closest living relatives, the great apes, can provide specially informative insights into neuroanatomical diversity and how evolution has shaped the distinct features of the human brain. In this seminar, the similarities and differences in brain structure, function, development, and behavior between humans and great apes will be explored, with a particular focus on the origins of cognitive abilities related to language and cultural capacity.

Genetic Control of Animal Behavior and Decision Making in Drosophila

Image systems form a major component of our species’ cultural heritage. Most likely, their use extends back further into our evolutionary past than the earliest surviving traces of image-making in the archaeological record. Yet the capacity of image systems to serve as complex intellectual devices in their own right is often overshadowed by their perception as “merely illustrating” propositions expressed in language or writing.

Social attachments play a central role in most, if not all, levels of human interaction, from parent-child attachment, friendship and social affiliation, to enduring partnerships with mates. It has been difficult to study social attachment because traditional genetic lab model animals do not exhibit adult social attachment behaviors. Thus, the analysis of social
attachment has been resistant to genetic and neurobiological approaches.

Black women are underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), and they report facing unique challenges and belonging concerns in STEM majors and classrooms. Working to address these disparities while acknowledging intersectional identities, during my talk, I will examine who acts as role models for Black women and encourages their belonging and identity-safety in STEM classrooms.