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Modeling the Functional Network for Spatial Navigation in the Human Brain
Published on: October 13, 2023
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Complex brains allow functioning in a complex environment by using information
Cameron Rouse Turner1, Thomas J H Morgan2, Thomas L Griffiths1
1Computational Cognitive Science Lab, Department of Psychology and Department of Computer Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USAc.rouse.turner@princeton.edutomg@princeton.edu.
The Behavioral and Brain Sciences
|November 3, 2025
Summary
Understanding animal brain evolution requires linking neural traits with environmental selection pressures. A complex environment, offering unreliable information, drives the evolution of more complex brains in animal taxa.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Evolutionary Biology
- Comparative Psychology
Background:
- Comparative analysis of neural traits across taxa offers insights into brain evolution.
- Linking neural complexity to evolutionary pressures is crucial for a comprehensive understanding.
- Environmental factors, such as heterogeneity and information reliability, are hypothesized to influence brain evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between environmental characteristics and the evolution of brain complexity.
- To determine if environmental heterogeneity and information reliability act as selection pressures for neural complexity.
Main Methods:
- This study synthesizes existing data on neural traits and environmental variables across diverse animal taxa.
- It employs comparative analyses to correlate measures of brain complexity with environmental heterogeneity and information reliability.
Main Results:
- A strong correlation was observed between environmental complexity and the evolution of neural complexity.
- Environments characterized by high heterogeneity and unreliable information showed a significant selective pressure for more complex brains.
Conclusions:
- Environmental heterogeneity and information reliability are key drivers of brain evolution.
- A complex environment necessitates and selects for a complex brain to navigate and process information effectively.
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