The Evolution of the Human Brain and Neocortex

The existence of the brain and neocortex is a point of interest due to their high metabolic cost. The neocortex, often considered new, may not be entirely so, but rather the organization is new. George Streeter compares brain reorganization with growing companies. Barb Finley's research suggests all vertebrates' brains go through the same developmental stages, with differences in duration producing anatomical variations in brains. The size of the neocortex is related to the longevity of an animal's life. Humans' large cerebral cortex is attributed to their long lives, as their brains function best when drawing on past experiences to predict the future.