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Krasnow Institute > Monday Seminars > Abstracts SCALING OF VERTEBRATE BRAIN SIZE Geoffrey Birchard Scaling of morphological and physiological variables through the use of allometric methods has been used successfully to develop predictive equations and elucidate functional relationships. Further, the use of allometric analyses to identify comparative studies which will likely be insightful has been particularly fruitful. Scaling of brain size is perhaps the oldest example of the use of allometric scaling. The long-standing interest in brain morphology and size is probably related to the perceived importance of this organ's elaboration in separating man from other vertebrates. The basic methodologies used in allometric scaling and some of the assumptions which should be recognized when using the technique will be presented. The discussion will focus on how these techniques have been/might be used to evaluate differences in brain size. The major results from brain scaling studies dealing with 1) differences between vertebrate classes; 2) variation within classes; and 3) intraspecific analyses will be summarized. Finally, the results of recent work relating brain mass and incubation/gestation times in amniotic vertebrates will be discussed as an example of how brain size and an important developmental variable may be related.
The Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study |
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