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Intellectual capabilities, cortical circuits and evolutionary aspects of brain.

Changmeng Cui

Over millions of years, the nervous system has evolved to produce a vast range of species-specific brains and behavioural abilities. The ability to create and appreciate art, for example, appears to be a uniquely human trait, a newly acquired cognitive capability in the genus Homo. Almost everything a human being makes contains an element of art, even though we do not require beauty or an aesthetic sensibility to thrive; rather, it just provides intellectual pleasure. Other mental pursuits, such as reading a book or listening to music, have the same effect. Only anatomically modern humans (i.e., Homo sapiens) can be behaviorally modern, capable of making symbolic items, it seems evident.