Although people across the globe suffer, sometimes we find it difficult to respond to another person’s suffering because we might not know what would be most helpful to them in that particular situation. For instance, should we focus on the silver lining or the distress? In my talk, I will demonstrate individual and cultural differences in how people express sympathy and what people consider to be compassionate. Moreover, I will present data suggesting individual and cultural variation in the degree to which people notice others’ suffering, the first step of a compassionate response.

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

About Dr. Montello

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.

[Abstract]