what it means · as well as how they are learnt during childhood. opposing theories tested although...

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WHAT IT MEANS

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Directorate-General for ResearchDirectorate S-Implementation of the ‘Ideas’ Programme

E-mail: [email protected] http: //cordis.europa.eu/nest

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Directorate-General for ResearchDirectorate S - Implementation of the ‘Ideas’ Programme

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN

A NEST PATHFINDER INITIATIVE

2007 EUR 22427

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GETTING TO THE SOURCE OF WHAT MAKES US HUMAN

How and why are humans different? What features make our cognitive facilities unique

and what are the origins of these features? The focal questions behind the NEST

Pathfinder initiative, What it Means to Be Human, foster cross-disciplinary research projects

that bring to bear the latest insights from fields including genetics, biology, neuroscience,

psychology, linguistics and anthropology to help generate answers for one of science’s most

elusive subjects.

The questions are scientifically precise and limited, but can be addressed from a number of

disciplinary angles. In particular, What it Means to Be Human aims to address:

• the evolutionary dimension of individual development as regards to human cognitive

faculties, taking account of the range of relevant factors from genetics to cultural context;

• the influence of change of life circumstances on the development of cognitive functions,

such as the development of language and non-verbal communication;

• executive functions, reasoning and decision-making, including cooperative behaviour,

which might also take account of relationships between conscious and unconscious

aspects of behaviour.

With its common values, varied cultures, and strong research tradition in many of the relevant

fields, Europe has a vital interest in this area and real potential for fostering scientific progress.

This progress would have considerable future benefits. By understanding the specific nature

and limits of human conceptual reasoning, for example, it would be possible to devise more

powerful artificial learning technologies. Improved education strategies could be developed

as a result of further knowledge of specifically human capabilities to perceive and encode

information and experience. Furthermore, greater insight into the origins of human motivation,

social behaviour and cooperation would assist the design of social and cultural institutions to

accommodate human needs in better ways.

This global understanding of the human mind is clearly a very long way off. However, in order

to move forward, there is a crucial need for interdisciplinary work to generate concepts that

make sense not only at a particular level of analysis, but also within a broader ‘system of

understanding’ that encompasses these different levels. For example, if the links between

genetics and mental faculties are to be understood, there will be a need to find categories for

defining behavioural phenomena which allow them to be linked to genetic factors, and vice

versa.

This need for interdisciplinary work is all the more pressing because of the very rapid pace of

developments in the various relevant fields, in particular biology and genomics. The What it

Means to Be Human initiative offers the ideal, productive arena for this interdisciplinary

research.

3

PROJECTS

ABSTRACT: Communicating the abstract: do we speak the same language? 6

ANALOGY: Understanding human analogy-making 8

APES: It’s in the genes 10

CALACEI: Looking into talking 12

CHLASC: The power of words 14

EDCBNL: Understanding the origins of the human mind 16

EDICI: Learning by imitation 18

FAR: Rules for humanity 20

GEBACO: Cooperation for survival and prestige 22

HAND TO MOUTH: Exploring the evolution of speech and manual dexterity 24

INCORE: Building a cooperation network 26

NESTCOM: What it means to communicate 28

NEUROCOM: What is human in human communication? 30

PAULBROCA II: A twist in the brain confers the power of speech 32

PKB140404: Exploring the origins of the human mind 34

REFCOM: Comparing the sharing of knowledge across species 36

SEDSU: Signing up to be human 38

WAYFINDING: Understanding human navigation 40

NESTPathfinder

COMMUNICATING THE ABSTRACT: DO WE SPEAKTHE SAME LANGUAGE?

A B S T R AC T

Humans are unique in their ability

to describe and understand

abstract concepts through words

and signs. This comprehension

is crucial to our interpretation of

literature, religion and political

thought. But how do we learn it,

and what are the influences of

cultural and linguistic differences?

The ABSTRACT project examines

two contrasting hypotheses in

a wide-ranging multidisciplinary,

multilingual study that could help

shape future policies in clinical

practice, education and even

in international integration.

The use of spoken or signed language to

describe abstract entities, events and

qualities is a key component of what it

means to be human. We are instinctively

able to ascribe a meaning to such words as

respect, faith and contempt. Indeed, the

vocabulary is essential to our expression of

ideas. But the underlying concepts are shaded

by an individual’s cultural context. And some

terms found in a given language may not

even be directly translatable into others.

A systematic investigation of the mechanisms

involved in comprehending and expressing

abstract thought could thus make an

important contribution to improved inter -

national understanding. The goal of

ABSTRACT is to shed light on how such

concepts are represented in the mind and

brain in different languages and cultures,

as well as how they are learnt during childhood.

Opposing theories testedAlthough the field has not, so far, generated

a large body of research, some theories have

been advanced to describe the nature and

origins of this human capability. In ABSTRACT,

a consortium of five institutes is testing two

contrasting hypotheses that produce

widely differing predictions as to the origin,

representation and usage of abstract

concepts.

One of these is the Embodiment Hypothesis

(EH), which proposes that abstract knowledge

originates in conceptual metaphors. It assumes

that language provides children with

metaphors grounded in physical experience,

which facilitate the learning of abstract

concepts but do not depend upon the

language itself. For example, just as one can

‘grasp’ a stone, one can ‘grasp’ an idea.

The second is the Abstraction from Language

Hypothesis (ALH), in which abstract concepts

are considered to be learned via the statistical

properties of language, since words that

behave similarly within a language (in terms

of statistical co-occurrence) are also often

conceptually related. This implies that language

plays a much more pervasive role – in both© European Commission, 2007The Commission accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoeverwhith regard to the information presented in this document.

6

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleThe Origins, Representation and Use of AbstractConcepts

CoordinatorVita-Salute San Raffaele University (Italy)

Partners• University of La Laguna (Spain)• E Medea Scientific Institute (Italy)• Budapest University of Technology

and Economics (Hungary)• University College London (UK)

Further InformationProf Stefano Francesco Cappa Vita-Salute San Raffaele University Faculty of Psychologyvia Olgettina 58Milano 20132Italyemail: [email protected]: +39 02 2643 4892

Project cost€ 1 580 700

EU funding€ 1 378 200

Project referenceContract No 028714 (NEST)

evolutionary (phylogenetic) and experience-

based (ontogenetic) terms. ‘Justice’,

for instance, has no concrete counterpart, but

its meaning is absorbed through interactions

with others.

ALH suggests an implementation mainly

involving neurons in the left hemisphere of

the brain – the classical language processing

area. EH, on the other hand, predicts a close

connection of abstract concepts with

perceptual and motor processing, implying

the participation of both hemispheres.

Broadest scope to dateThe ambitious ABSTRACT initiative will first

set up a framework for empirical evaluation of

these opposing views, using state-of-the-art

linguistics tools, together with specially

developed computer models.

As well as being multidisciplinary, the work is

inherently multilingual. Indeed, ABSTRACT is

believed to address a broader canvas than

any previous study, embracing four spoken

languages (Italian, Hungarian, Spanish and

English) and two sign languages (British Sign

Language, BSL, and Lengua de Signos

Española, LSE).

The examination of large bodies of text from

public and Internet archives, plus oral com-

munications of younger children, will allow

the derivation of detailed probabilistic models

for analysis of the statistical properties of

abstract and concrete words.

This will permit precise description and testing

of the various predictions made by ALH. It

will also be possible to measure how clusters

of semantically related words change when

extracted from texts representative of the

whole language, or just from the language

encountered by children.

Another interesting aspect will be to observe

whether signers in BSL and LSE show

differences with respect to English and

Spanish speakers, given that both are

immersed in the same respective cultures.

In order to establish the degree of inter -

dependence between conceptual and

linguistic knowledge, the findings will then

be subjected to three levels of analysis based

on: behavioural studies with normal subjects;

developmental studies of typically developing

children, children with specific neuropsycho-

logical impairments, and children learning

a language under atypical conditions; and

biological studies using an array of methods,

such as functional magnetic resonance

imaging and patient investigations, to draw

causal relations between anatomy and

cognitive functions.

A possible outcome will be the conclusion

that abstract ideas framed in the same

metaphors across languages trigger the same

perceptions and actions as more concrete

concepts; whereas, those not mapped onto

the same concrete domains are more heavily

dependent upon language variances.

The results will not only be of academic

interest to scientists from cognitive and related

disciplines, their practical applications could

lie in the shaping of future educational

programmes and the development of clinical

treatments for communication deficiencies.

Given their potential impact on mutual

understanding between linguistic

communities, they could ultimately prove

relevant in the framing of member-

integration policies for the expanding EU

– and in promoting greater harmony

throughout the world.

“ABSTRACT is believed to address a broader canvas than any previous study, embracing four spoken languages and two sign languages.”

7

NESTPathfinder

UNDERSTANDING HUMANANALOGYMAKING

A N A LO G Y

Whether you see a face in a stone,

communicate emotions,

or translate poetry from one

language to another, cognitive

processes involve analogy-

making. Is this a uniquely human

capability, and if so, how does it

develop in babies and children?

What are the underlying brain

mechanisms? The ANALOGY

project aims to find out by

bringing together Europe’s

leading minds and technologies

to model how the mechanisms

of analogy-making evolve and

develop.

The ability to see new things as if they

were already familiar to us is unques-

tionably one of the most powerful tools

in our cognitive arsenal. Analogy-making

allows us to comprehend new situations by

seeing them as familiar situations we already

know how to handle.

However, human cognition is a huge and

complex object of study and despite over

thirty years of research, we still don’t know

what makes our own analogy-making

capabilities unique. The mechanisms of

analogy-making are hard to pin down.

Almost anything can, under the right

circumstances, be ‘like’ something else.

Uniting European forces The ANALOGY project has brought together

a consortium made up of leading researchers

from a number of major European research

institutions.

Coordinated by Boicho Kokinov at the New

Bulgarian University and assisted by Robert

French at Centre National de la Recherche

Scientifique in France, it is the first time such

a concentration of expertise from research

institutions in eight countries has been

assembled in this way. This significant

collaborative effort calls upon a wide range

of expertise in computational modelling,

developmental psychology, adult experimental

psychology, animal cognition and brain

imaging.

Few things are quite as challenging as using

a computer to model something we think of

as quintessentially human. However,

the ANALOGY team will be doing just this.

The partners will build a computer model

that will demonstrate how the process of

analogy-making actually works, and how

it can be used to predict new phenomena.

The analogy-making mechanisms will be

closely integrated with other cognitive

processes, such as perception, memory,

learning and action. In this way, the team© European Commission, 2007The Commission accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoeverwhith regard to the information presented in this document.

8

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleHumans – the Analogy-Making Species

CoordinatorNew Bulgarian University (Bulgaria)

Partners• CNRS/University of Bourgogne (France)• Cambridge University (United Kingdom)• Birkbeck College/University of London

(United Kingdom)• University of Heidelberg (Germany)• University College Dublin (Ireland)• CNR (Italy)• University of Athens (Greece)• University of British Columbia (Canada)

Further InformationProf Boicho KokinovNew Bulgarian UniversityCentral and East European Centre for Cognitive ScienceMontevideo 21BG-1618 SofiaHungaryemail: [email protected]: +1 359 2 811 0421




By courtesy of Sabina Pauen

By courtesy of Elisabetta Visalberghi

hopes to demonstrate how all these

processes are inter-related and influence

each other. For example, how an analogy

may make us perceive reality in a new way,

how it may produce distorted memories of

events that have never happened, and how

we gradually acquire general knowledge.

The project will use advanced imaging

techniques to explore the brain’s various

neural mechanisms which control conscious

and unconscious thinking to determine how

they contribute to analogy-making itself.

ANALOGY will explore how mechanisms of

analogy-making evolved in our species, and

how they develop in individuals from infancy

through to adulthood. Analogy-making is

crucial in understanding how we evolved and

how our species survived. Although it is now

a fully-developed part of human thinking,

ANALOGY believes this wasn’t always so, and

that the root of analogy-making lies in primates.

If it is so fundamental, then it should be present

at a very early age in humans as well.

The consortium will explore the difference

between human and animal reasoning by

comparing the performance of primates

with infants, children, healthy adults, as well

as children and adults with atypical brain

function. It is hoped that this will help us

better understand various developmental

disorders, such as autism, Williams syndrome

and synaestesia, and suggest ways in which

their conditions may be alleviated.

ANALOGY will also analyse what effect analogy-

making has on other cognitive processes.

The project team feels that studying analogy-

making – specifically its interaction with

memory and perception – will improve our

understanding of human cognition as a whole

and explain how we learn.

Certainly getting to know how analogy-making

works in children will help us design better

teaching materials and improve the way they

learn. Understanding the mechanisms of

analogy-making should also teach us more

about human decision-making and how

certain situations affect the way we make

those decisions – to gain an initiative,

cooperate better or compete more effectively.

Next generation softwareCrucially, ANALOGY’s research should also help

Europe move ahead in the field of cognitive

robotics. The EU has a vital interest in developing

the next generation of autonomous software

‘agents’ and robots. The technologies, methods,

and theories of agents and multiagent systems

are currently contributing to many diverse

areas of research into information retrieval,

user interfaces, electronic commerce, computer

games, education and training, and social

simulation. They not only constitute a very

promising technology but they are also

emerging as a new way of thinking.

Quality research is being carried out in

Europe, but currently it is dispersed across

the EU. The ANALOGY project is the first real

attempt to bring research groups together in

a major collaborative effort to take the lead

on the world’s stage.

There has never been a comparable effort to

integrate such a variety of approaches and

research techniques, starting with animal and

infant experimentation and proceeding to

computational modelling, all of them

employed in studying the phenomenon of

analogy-making and its relations to other

cognitive processes.

“Few things are quite as challenging as using a computer to model something we think of as quintessentially human.”

9

NESTPathfinder

IT’S IN THE GENES

A P E S

What separates man from his

fellow primates? It is a question

that has plagued scientists and

philosophers alike for centuries.

Man's superior cognitive abilities

have allowed humankind to

distance itself from the rest of the

animal kingdom. The APES

project will use advanced

genetics research techniques to

determine the biological basis for

this extraordinary evolution.

The field of genetics has advanced rapidly

in recent years. The completion of the

historic Human Genome Project has been

complemented by progress in sequencing the

genomes of the chimpanzee, the mouse and

other mammals. Previously it was only possible

to compare individual genes between species;

now it is possible to compare entire genomes.

A wealth of information has been gathered,

but analysis of this data has only just begun.

It has been estimated that the genetic makeup

of humans differs by just 1 to 2 percent from

that of their closest relative, the chimpanzee.

Yet, while we have overwhelmingly more in

common with our fellow primates than not,

it is this small percentage of genetic material

that makes all the difference.

The experts involved in the APES project

intend to locate and characterise these

unique components of the human genome.

In the process, they aim to discover the details

of what makes us truly human. Their work will

focus on genes related to cognition; since it

is man's ability to think and to reason that

sets him apart from animals.

Planet of the apesThe enhanced cognitive abilities of primates

have been well documented by scientists.

APES, led by the Max-Planck-Institute for

Molecular Genetics, will identify common

cognitive building blocks among the primate

species. This will be accomplished by

phylogenetic footprinting, which examines

homologous regulatory regions across

species and exposes highly conserved

regulatory elements.

The species chosen for this genetic

exploration include both Old World monkeys,

namely the chimpanzee (P. troglodytes)

and the rhesus macaque (M. mulatta),

and New World monkeys, represented

by the common marmoset (C. jacchus).

The challenge confronting the APES

consortium is knowing what part of the

© European Commission, 2007The Commission accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoeverwhith regard to the information presented in this document.

10

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleComparative Analysis of Primate Genomes, Transcriptomes and Proteomes with an Emphasison Cognitive Capabilities

CoordinatorMax-Planck-Institute for Molecular Genetics (Germany)

Partners• Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

(France)• Kings College London (United Kingdom)• German Primate Center (Germany)

Further InformationProf Hans Lehrach & Dr Ralf SudbrakMax-Planck-Institute for Molecular GeneticsIhnestrasse 7314195 BerlinGermany email: [email protected]: +49 30 84131380




primate genomes to search. Fortunately,

a hundred or so genes specific to humans

have already been identified and these will

serve as a natural starting point. Primate

genes that have been deactivated in

humans are also of research interest.

Advanced statistical methods, such as Ka/Ks

ratio analysis, will aid the selection process.

The emphasis will be on genes, coding

sequences and regulatory elements that are

expressed in brain development and function.

The expertise of the Centre National de la

Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), an APES partner,

in deciphering the evolutionary history of

genes will be crucial in this respect.

Of mice and menIn the search for mammalian genes related

to cognition, mice can play an important

role. This is possible because of the level of

genetic similarity between mice and men.

Gene identification is elicited by subjecting

the mice to extensive tests of cognitive

ability, including mazes, puzzles and object

recognition.

These are not just any mice. They are the

result of special breeding programs designed

to eliminate the effects of mice strain and to

facilitate polymorphism. The APES project

will benefit greatly from the pre-existing

hippocampus tissue stocks from BxD and HS

mice.

Emerging from the shadowsOnce the candidate genes have been isolated,

they will be sequenced in a number of primates

in order to determine their functional

relevance. This step, known as evolutionary

shadowing, will provide insight into how

genes related to cognition that are common

to all primates are expressed differently in

man, chimp, macaque, and so forth.

Advanced software tools will assist these

efforts to illuminate variation between

species.

Finally, APES will go beyond other research

efforts to date by carrying out in situ

hybridisation of the candidate genes into

mouse brains and in vivo experiments with

marmoset brains. The animals will then be

tested to determine possible changes in

cognitive performance.

The combination of varied yet complementary

approaches envisioned in the ambitious

APES workplan ensures that progress will be

made in answering the elusive question of

‘What makes us human?’. Moreover, the

proven record of the members of the APES

consortium in this field, their previous

collaboration, and several preliminary pilot

studies guarantee success.

Apart from establishing a biological

foundation for humanness, the results of

APES are expected to contribute to a better

understanding of the genetic underpinnings

of the human brain. This, in turn, is expected

to help shed light on neurodegenerative

disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and

Parkinson's disease.

“The results of APES are expected to contribute to a better understanding of the genetic underpinnings of the human brain.”

11

NESTPathfinder

LOOKING INTO TALKING

C A L AC E I

We spend much of our lives

talking and listening. Being

human involves communicating,

but how do we learn to

do it? The CALACEI project

is probing this fundamental

mystery. Partners ranging from

linguists to physicists will

tackle practical and theoretical

barriers to conduct studies of

newborns and infants that have

not been possible until recently.

The project could reveal much

about how we learn to use

language, and may point the

way to applications in medicine

and artificial intelligence.

The complex linguistic abilities of

humans are unique, but how we

acquire our language skills during early

development is far from fully understood.

Improving our understanding is important

as a basic research issue that may help us

understand language disabilities, and may

improve artificial language recognition

systems.

The CALACEI project is examining this issue

as part of the NEST PATHFINDER initiative

on ‘What it means to be human’. After all,

what is more characteristically human than

our language faculty?

To understand the uniqueness of human

language, the project is designed to gain

knowledge of how human infants acquire

syntax, and how a child learns to handle

the properties of a specific language.

This includes investigating the anatomical

and physiological processes in the infant

brain, and relating them to the adult brain.

The challenge facing CALACEI straddles

many disciplines, and the project partners are

a diverse collection of experts in psychology,

physiology, linguistics, physics, medicine and

the functional imaging of the brain. This range

of expertise comes from the International

School for Advanced Studies, in Italy,

The Berlin NeuroImaging Center in Germany,

The Max Planck Institute of Human Cognitive

and Brain Science, in Germany, and The

Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development

in the UK.

Viewing the infant brainIn recent years, several methods have been

developed to visualise which parts of the

brain are most active during specific tasks.

Some of these brain imaging processes,

especially functional near-infrared optical

topography and electroencephalography,

will be used for a range of studies in this

project. For example, one approach will

explore how the brains of newborn babies


12

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleUniversal and Specific Propertiesof a Uniquely Human CompetenceTools to Study Language Acquisition in EarlyInfancy: Brain and Behavioural Studies

CoordinatorInternational School for AdvancedStudies, Cognitive Neuroscience, SISSA (Italy)

Partners• Berlin NeuroImaging Center (Germany)• Max Planck Institute of Human Cognitive and

Brain Science (Germany)• Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development

(United Kingdom)

Further InformationProf Jacques MehlerInternational School for Advanced Studies,Cognitive Neuroscience, SISSAvia Beirut 4Trieste 34014Italyemail: [email protected]: +39 040 378 7615

Project Cost€ 1 498 000

EU Funding€ 1 498 000


The project is designed to gain knowledge ofhow human infants acquire syntax, and howa child learns to handle the properties of aspecific language.

What is more characteristically human thanour language faculty?

and infants respond to languages that differ

in their rhythmic structure. Another will look

at the response of the infant and adult brain

to vowels and consonants. Some pioneering

work with newborn infants will investigate

the extent to which they can distinguish

between different kinds of syllables.

Parts of the project will employ a form of

computing known as neural network

modelling, to represent learning processes

of the brain computationally.

One crucial aspect of CALACEI is to develop

the practical aspects of the imaging methods

to make it easier to gain more useful

information from newborn babies and

infants. Little functional imaging has been

done with very young infants due to the

absence of suitable methods. Very high safety

standards must obviously be met in any

such work, and the experimenters have to

learn how to cope with the low level of

co-operation of their young subjects.

The project is going to explore methods

to gather data from healthy babies in

a non-invasive and ecologically valid fashion.

The partners will develop some new

techniques and improve the existing ones

for gathering data from infants, and will

make this technology available to other

researchers working in this field.

Theory to build onThe CALACEI project is addressing

fundamental theoretical issues about what it

means to be human. Its end results in terms

of theoretical advancement should confirm,

refute or refine a variety of hypotheses about

the precise way in which very young human

infants acquire language skills.

With fundamental research it is not possible

to promise specific applications at such an

early stage. It is the nature of basic science,

however, that it leads on to practical and

often unpredictable applications in

the future.

Problems in learning how to use language

are both commonplace, and very debilitating.

The more we learn about how this uniquely

human process is acquired, the greater are

the chances that we will find new ways to

understand what causes these (develop-

ment) problems and how to correct them.

The research also addresses the challenges

facing a multilingual society, such as the

European Union. Decisions about teaching

several languages at different ages can be

made with more confidence when the

processes underpinning language acquisition

are properly understood.

“What is more characteristically human than our ability to speak?”

13

NESTPathfinder

THE POWER OF WORDS

C H L A S C

The written and spoken word

is one of man's greatest assets.

Our capacity to master complex

languages could even be the key

to understanding why human

cognitive ability far exceeds that

of other animals, including other

primates. The CHLaSC project

intends to examine this issue

in depth by implementing an

innovative research approach that

could lead to improvements in

the diagnosis and treatment of

people, especially children,

with language impairments.One of the most remarkable joys a parent

may experience is hearing their child

utter their first words. The creation and

use of language is a fundamental human

quality. It enables us to communicate, to learn,

to create works of art – the possibilities are

endless.

Yet humans are not the only creatures on

Earth to possess a system of communication.

Whales, apes, birds, even reptiles have their

own systems. So why has man managed to

accomplish so much more than everything

else roaming the planet?

This is the question posed by the CHLaSC

consortium. Much of the answer may lie in

the level of complex syntactic processing

that humans are capable of. How much does

complex syntactic processing contribute to

human nature? Rather than rely on a strictly

linguistic approach to the problem, the

CHLaSC consortium includes experts in human

cognitive development, animal cognition and

anthropology as well as in semantics and

language acquisition. The goal of CHLaSC

is to measure the complexity of syntactic

processing in apes and humans, including

infants and children, and to test whether

non-linguistic skills are correlated with

syntactic processing.

Linking language and cognitionThe CHLaSC consortium, led by Germany’s

Centre for General Linguistics, asserts that

there is a stronger link between language,

specifically linguistic semantics, and cognition

than previously thought. Rather than simply

existing as a separate cognitive system,

language is believed to play an important

role in connecting all human cognitive

systems.

In order to fully investigate this hypothesis,

several different groups of research will be

evaluated. Man will be compared with his

closest primate relative, the chimpanzee.

Meanwhile, children of various ages will be

examined to understand how linguistic skills


14

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleCharacterising Human Language by StructuralComplexity

CoordinatorCentre for General Linguistics (Germany)

Partners• University of Groningen (The Netherlands)• University of Manchester (United Kingdom)• University of Potsdam (Germany)• University of St Andrews (United Kingdom)

Further InformationDr Uli SauerlandCentre for General LinguisticsSchützenstr. 1810117 BerlinGermanyemail: [email protected]: +49 30 20192402




evolve over time. The effects of delays in

language acquisition will be analysed using

children affected by Specific Language

Impairment (SLI). Deaf subjects will highlight

discrepancies between spoken language

and sign language. Finally, members of the

Pirahã tribe from South America, who have

developed their own language in relative

isolation, will reveal any possible socio-cultural

effects.

This work will be supported by formal grammar

theory, in particular the Chomsky-hierarchy of

grammar complexity. The impetus comes

from a previous study performed by one of

the CHLaSC consortium members which

revealed that tamarin monkeys could not

learn a higher order grammar. CHLaSC will

investigate Artificial Grammar Learning in

depth in all the aforementioned groups.

Central to CHLaSC is the idea that language

is not an independent cognitive entity.

Hence, its study should address its relationship

with other systems. The means to be

employed for this part of the project are

semantic models, which relate words and

phrases to objects and situations.

Again, the CHLaSC workplan will build on

past research by focusing on the level of

complexity of semantic models and the

degree to which they are language specific.

The focus will be on the complexity inherent

in recursive linguistic processes. This feature

of human language allows for an infinite

number of sentences. A prime example of

recursion is sentence embedding, where

several stand-alone phrases are combined

with one another. Embedded sentences will

be contrasted with evidentials. Evidentials

are not recursive, but do express something

similar to sentence embedding.

Deep in the AmazonHidden away in the Amazon, the small tribe

of Pirahã natives represents a unique research

opportunity. Their language has been

described as lacking sentence embedding,

possessing only evidentials. The CHLaSC

team, which boasts a Pirahã expert with over

two decades of field experience, will explore

whether or not the Pirahã can learn complex

grammar constructs. Novel techniques

developed by experts studying child language

will employed in the Amazon to answer this

important question.

Syntactic complexity is often correlated with

non-linguistic complexity. For example, nearly

all languages enable their speakers to

express the concept of numerosity. However,

only (non-Pirahã) adult humans are able to

grasp and communicate exact numbers. In

addition, it has been shown that acquisition

of the Theory Of Mind (TOM) may coincide

with mastery of sentence embedding in young

children. These findings have inspired the

CHLaSC consortium to construct a non-verbal

TOM test to be administered to the Pirahã

as well as children affected by SLI and deaf

children that learned sign language at a

relatively late age.

Approximately 7% of children worldwide

are hampered by SLI, while deafness, autism

and other related disorders affect smaller

percentages. It is hoped that the fresh

approach of uniting linguistic semantics with

cognitive science in CHLaSC will help generate

new ideas for speech therapy to assist those

afflicted by these disorders as well as their

families.

“Why has man managed to accomplish so much more than everything else roaming the planet?”

15

NESTPathfinder

UNDERSTANDING THE ORIGINS OF THE HUMAN MIND

E D C B N L

How humans and animals think

and communicate differently

could have something to do with

the way that the brain has

developed over millions of years,

adapting to different stimuli.

Until now, studies on lateralisation

have concentrated on humans,

but the EDCBNL scientists will

broaden this research to examine

brain and behavioural asymmetries

across a range of species to

establish how they evolved

and how they actually work. Three very important characteristics of

our species – language, right-handedness

and tool use – have been traditionally

associated with a single and (allegedly)

unique characteristic of the human brain:

hemispheric specialisation (brain lateralisation

or asymmetry). This is where the left- and

right-hand side of the brain work together

or alone to control different functions. For

instance, in most right-handed individuals of

our species the brain mechanisms for

language production are to be found in the

brain’s left hemisphere.

Although research on human brain

lateralisation has a long tradition (in excess

of 140 years), scientists only recently realised

that they had mistakenly assumed lateralisation

was a uniquely human attribute.

Recent research has suggested that it is, in fact,

widespread among vertebrates and not at all

unique to the human brain. There are gaps in

our understanding of brain lateralisation

because the great majority of asymmetry

studies have been performed on humans.

Taking a good look into the brainUntil now, it has not been possible to carry

out deeper experimental analyses. By using

data from related studies carried out by the

psychology, neuroscience and developmental

biology communities, scientists can now

broaden their research to examine brain

function across a range of species and establish

how it actually works and has evolved.

In the last few decades a number of studies

have shown that humans and animals use

their left-right brain function in a similar way

to carry out tasks. Emotional and cognitive

tasks studied in the laboratory often reveal

interesting asymmetries related to vision,

hearing and other senses, as well as

asymmetries in motor behaviour. Seeing

or hearing on one side is sometimes better

than on both sides, and our behaviour is


16

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleEvolution and Development of Cognitive, Behavioural and Neural Lateralisation

CoordinatorUniversity of Chieti (Italy)

Partners• University of Trieste (Italy)• University of Padova (Italy)• University of Groningen (The Netherlands)• Institute of Evolutionary Sciences/CNRS (France)• University of Sussex (United Kingdom)• University College London (United Kingdom)• University of Chile (Chile)

Further InformationProf Luca TommasiUniversity of ChietiDepartment of Biomedical SciencesVia dei Vestini 3166013 ChietiItalyemail: [email protected]: +39 871 355 4163




An instance of asymmetric forebrain morphology in a fish. Axon terminals from left-sided habenular neurons in blue andright-sided axon terminals in red (the greenlabelling is the nearby oculomotor nucleus). © S. Wilson, University College London

An Inuit preforming the traditional way to cutmeat while eating: holding a piece of meatwith the teeth and the left hand.© American Museum of Natural History, takenaround 1914-1917, at Etah

often displaced towards one side in order to

increase our sensory processing efficiency.

These observations are revealing signatures

of hemispheric lateralisation, and it has been

supposed that they might have evolved to

maximise efficiency in interaction among

organisms. Using human and animal refer-

ences to understand which areas of the

brain do what and how they work together,

and conducting further gene research to

find out what kind of changes occur pre-birth,

should lead to us understanding the causes

of such disorders as schizophrenia, depression,

autism and dyslexia.

Coordinated by Italy’s University of Chieti,

the EDCBNL project will bring the biological

and behavioural science communities

together to study the effects of lateralisation

on cognitive, emotional and social behaviour.

Ultimately, the project’s findings could lead

to the understanding of the origins of the

human mind.

Advanced imaging reveals the brain in actionEDCBNL will research biological evolution,

cognition, behaviour, neuroscience and

development. It will attempt to create

a model of how lateralisation evolved, and to

conduct behavioural and cognitive

experiments on humans and animals to

shed light on the different evolutionary,

developmental and social aspects that may

have led to this specialisation forming.

These hypotheses will then be tested using

a range of behavioural tasks and advanced

brain imaging techniques, such as functional

magnetic resonance imaging, that will show

the human brain in action as it carries them out.

Certain emotional responses in animals will

be studied and used to find out how humans

respond to similar stimuli. Computing

technology combined with advanced infrared

sensor technology (telethermography) will be

used to record skin temperature of a behaving

subject to find out how the brain controls

the nervous system. Research in this area can

be developed to see how the body copes

with pain and emotion.

Gene researchEDCBNL will also determine whether various

environmental factors, such as heat and

light, have any effect on the way lateralisation

develops in both animals and humans.

Over the past few decades, biologists have

discovered that they can manipulate

lateralisation in animals by transmitting light

through embryos. There is also evidence that

in humans a too-early head position in the

womb can affect handedness.

The project will also study what role hor-

mones play on the brain’s neural system.

Exposure to testosterone in the womb has

been known to affect brain behaviour. It is

thought that a laterality gene may have a

part to play in brain dysfunction. People

lacking an X chromosome (Turner’s syn-

drome), for example, indicates a right-brain

dysfunction, while those with an extra X

chromosome, whether this is XXY (Klinefel-

ter’s syndrome) or XXX, have a left-brain

problem. So, gene research may also provide

an insight into the brain’s mechanisms. The

project will be carrying out genetic experi-

ments on laboratory animals, primarily fish

and birds.

“Should lead to us understanding the causes of such disorders as schizophrenia, depression, autism and dyslexia.”

17

NESTPathfinder

LEARNING BY IMITATION

E D I C I

Our capacity for imitation

underpins the learning of

language, technical skills,

socialisation, and culture.

The dominant North American

model says imitation is innate

– present at birth rather than

established by conditioning

or learning. The EDICI project

is testing an alternative European

model that incorporates

evolutionary, developmental

and cultural inputs to imitation.

It may reveal new ways to help

people with impaired imitative

ability, and will assist in the

design of training programmes.

The ‘Evolution, development and

intentional control of imitation’ (EDICI)

project is investigating imitation,

a fundamental aspect of human behaviour,

as part of the wide-ranging NEST PATHFINDER

initiative on ‘What it means to be human’.

The specific objectives of the project are to

answer the following questions:

1) What are the evolutionary origins of the

potential to imitate?

2) What types of experience enhance the

potential for imitation?

3) How does intentional control of imitation

change in the course of human

development?

4) Do the neuro-cognitive mechanisms that

distinguish self from others play a key role

in intentional control of human imitative

performance? and

5) Is intentional control of imitative

performance uniquely human?

EDICI is a highly interdisciplinary project.

It combines methods and insights from

the fields of ethology, evolutionary biology,

neuro-physiology, neuro-psychology, and

comparative, developmental and experimental

psychology. The partnership includes leading

international experts in these areas, from

academic research groups in Austria, the

United Kingdom, Germany and Hungary.

The project is highly original in terms of both

its theoretical and methodological

approaches. It is the first study on imitation

to compare humans, not only with other

primates, but also with birds and dogs. It is

also the first to coordinate investigation of

non-human animals, children, healthy adults

and neurological patients, and the first to

make use of techniques from ethology and

evolutionary biology, as well as from

psychology and neurophysiology.


18

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleEvolution, Development and IntentionalControl of Imitation

CoordinatorUniversity of Vienna (Austria)

Partners• Max Planck Institute of Human Cognitive and

Brain Sciences (Germany)• Institute for Psychological Research

of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Hungary)• University College London (UK)

Further InformationProf Ludwig HuberDepartment for Behavior, Neurobiologyand CognitionUniversity of ViennaAlthanstrasse 14A-1090 ViennaAustriaemail: [email protected]: +43 1 4277 54509




The potential for imitation has evolved in awide range of species.

Imitation is a key part of growing up.

Challenging the American modelEurope is the home of evolutionary theory,

ethology and genetic epistemology, and was

the site of the earliest scientific research on

imitation. Despite this historical engagement,

however, understanding of imitation in

humans is currently dominated by a North

American model, which claims that imitation

is an innate ability. The EDICI project builds on

Europe’s historical strengths in the field to test

a distinctively European model of imitation,

using world-class European facilities and

expertise. The key features of this European

model are that it incorporates the significance

of evolutionary, developmental and cultural

factors into our understanding of imitation.

The latest and most precise behavioural and

imaging techniques are being used to test

samples of non-human animals, infants,

healthy adults and neurological patients.

Marmosets, social birds and domesticated

dogs have been selected as the non-human

subjects of the study because they are each

related to humans in a different way.

Alongside many other techniques, functional

magnetic resonance imaging is being used

with healthy adults to investigat the types of

experience that enhance imitative potential,

and to identify the way in which localised

activity within the brain is related to imitation

and activities that do not involve imitation.

One key target of the work with humans

is to measure the strength of an individual’s

potential to imitate, and their capacity to

regulate the expression of this potential in

overt imitative performance. These are

examples of aspects of imitation which

could reveal that imitation is more subtle

and complex than just an innate ability.

Break-throughs with wide applicationsThe project partners expect to make major

breakthroughs in understanding the

evolutionary, developmental, cognitive and

neurological bases of imitation. In keeping

with the often wide-ranging consequences

of basic science, they also believe that their

integrative approach will have a broader

impact on model-building in evolutionary

psychology and cognitive neuroscience.

In contrast with the North American

conception, the European model of imitation

developed by this project emphasises the

role of experience in the development of

imitation. For this reason, the work will

contribute to the design of social and

technological skills training programmes,

and to new ways to help children and adults

with impairments in imitative ability.

“The EDICI team’s integrative approach will have a broader impact on model-building in evolutionary psychology and cognitive neuroscience.”

19

NESTPathfinder

RULES FOR HUMANITY

FA R

What makes humans different

from other animals? Obvious

differences include our ability for

complex communication using

language and our use of logic and

mathematics for reasoning.

Researchers would add our ability

to identify abstract relationships

that go beyond clearly perceived

similarities. These aspects of

human cognition are thought

to be based on rules, so the FAR

project is examining the origin

and mechanism of rule-based

systems. The results may be used

in education, medicine and

artificial intelligence.

The FAR project: From associations to

rules in the development of concepts, is

studying how humans and other

species learn concepts, as part of the NEST

initiative on ‘What it means to be human’.

The project brings together five teams of

researchers from the United Kingdom, France,

the Netherlands and Greece. It is harnessing

expertise in animal cognition and evolutionary

theory, infant and child development, adult

concept learning, neuro-imaging, social

psychology, neural network modelling,

and statisticalmodelling.

The partners are looking specifically at the

transition from associative cognition (based

on similarities) to rule-based cognition, in

the context of learning concepts – the primary

cognitive means by which we organise

things in the world. Any species lacking this

ability would quickly become extinct. In

humans, however, rule-based cognition

reaches a level of complexity that makes our

language, logic and other unique cognitive

powers possible.

Six objectivesThe first objective of the project is to develop

a computational model of rule-based concept

learning, both within individuals and

throughout the course of evolution. Neural

network computer simulations are being used

to explore alternative evolutionary scenarios.

A second goal is to establish statistical rules

to enable rigorous discrimination between

rule-based and similarity-based classification

behaviours. This approach is designed to

overcome problems experienced with tradi-

tional methods based on simply talking to

participants. These exclude non-verbal factors

and rely on questionable assumptions about

the accuracy of participants’ reports.

Next, the partners are trying to establish the

conditions under which human adults show

rule-based or similarity-based concept learning.

There are competing theories in this area,

and the work of FAR will help to identify the

most valid approach. Objective four looks at

the emergence of rule-based as opposed to


20

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleFrom Associations to Rulesin the Development of Concepts

CoordinatorBirkbeck, University of London (United Kingdom)

Partners• Université de Bourgogne (France)• University of Crete (Greece)• University of Amsterdam (Netherlands)• University of Exeter (United Kingdom)

Further InformationDr Denis MareschalCentre for Brain and Cognitive Development,School of PsychologyBirkbeck, University of LondonMalet StreetLondon WC1E 7HX UKemail: [email protected]: + 44 2076316312




Neural imaging will be used to investigaterule-based cognitive reasoning in humans.

Computational models developed by the project should explain the differences in cognitive mechanisms.

similarity-based concept learning during

evolution, by analysis of different species.

This will establish whether differences

between previous results in humans and birds

are due to mammal/bird or human/non-human

differences. It will also reveal whether

human/non-human differences are due to

human use of language.

The fifth objective is examining the

emergence of rule-based learning in

humans as they make the transition from

infancy to adulthood. Studies of infants and

children are being used to clarify and extend

recent results in this area.

Finally, the partners want to use modern

techniques such as neuro-imaging to learn

about the neural basis of rule-based concept

learning in humans. They want to know

what is actually going on in the brain.

Hopesand aspirations The FAR project is basic science, but the

partners have some specific hopes for the

theoretical and practical benefits it may bring.

They expect to clarify whether rule-governed

cognition is indeed uniquely human, as is

commonly believed. They also hope to identify

the conditions under which human adults

rely on rules to learn concepts. And the

computational models they develop should

reveal plausible mechanisms for how

changing environmental pressures cause the

emergence of different cognitive systems.

From a more practical point of view, the

project should determine the best way to

present visual, auditory and linguistic

information to ensure that people store and

retain this information. This may have

important educational implications – after

all, understanding how best to present and

organise material to optimise learning is of

crucial relevance to society as a whole.

Understanding the neural basis of concept

learning may also suggest better medical

and remedial strategies for treating semantic

disorders. And in technology, understanding

when rule or association use is optimal,

from a human perspective, may improve the

design of robotic and artificial intelligence

applications intended to mimic human

functions.

“Understanding how best to present and organise material to optimise learning is of crucial relevance to society as a whole.”

21

NESTPathfinder

COOPERATION FOR SURVIVALAND PRESTIGE

G E B ACO

Do we have genes for cooperation?

The ability to work together is so

important for humans, and many

animals too, that it plays a big

part in evolution. The GEBACO

project aims to discover the

genetic roots of cooperation and

compare these across several

species. The researchers expect to

find that human cooperation

has a social dimension that other

animals do not share. GEBACO

will include a series of the largest

studies ever undertaken on

human cooperation, and will

improve our understanding

of human relationships.

Without cooperation, human civilisation

could not exist. Yet we have failed to

achieve world peace or agree on

what to do about climate change – and often

we don’t even get on with our neighbours.

Cooperation is clearly a subject it would pay

for us to know more about.

The GEBACO project will teach us a great deal

about the evolutionary basis of cooperation

in both people and animals, and might even

show us how to cooperate better.

Understanding cooperation might shed light

on why some people find it hard to form

long-term relationships, for instance, or do

things that others see as irresponsible.

In particular, GEBACO aims to show that while

cooperation in animals is driven largely by issues

like food and breeding, human cooperation is

more complex, and may involve factors such

as what other people think of us.

This novel approach goes against the prevailing

scientific view that, even in people, cooperation

is a ‘hard-wired’ survival mechanism.

The ground-breaking nature of GEBACO

seeks to understand cooperation from the

viewpoints of many different disciplines, and

through a framework that accommodates

both human and animal cooperation. And not

least, thanks to the Internet, the project’s

surveys of human cooperation are planned

to be the largest undertaken on this topic.

Impressing the neighbours?Even in animals, the drivers for cooperation

can be complex. Animal behaviour specialists

know that some species are naturally

cooperative, while others are not – even

though they may be closely related to

cooperative species or share a similar ecological

niche. An example from the world of birds

concerns two species of penduline tit. In the

Cape penduline tit, two parent birds cooperate

to feed their young. In the Eurasian penduline

tit, one parent (male or female) often abandons

the nest for a new mate, leaving the other to

bring up the young.

Although scientists do not yet understand all

the details, the usual assumption is that we

can explain the different approaches to

cooperation in animals in terms of evolutionary


22

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleToward the Genetic Basis of Cooperation

CoordinatorUniversity College London (United Kingdom)

Partners• University College Dublin (Ireland)• Centre d’Ecologie et Physiologie Energétiques

(France)• Eötvös University (Hungary)• University of Groningen (The Netherlands)• Tampere University Hospital (Finland)• University of Szeged (Hungary)• University of Bath (UK)• University of Exeter (UK)

Further InformationProf David SkuseUniversity College LondonBehavioural and Brain Sciences Unit, Institute ofChild Health30 Guilford StreetWC1N LondonUnited Kingdomemail: [email protected]: +44 (0)207 831 0975




Vervet monkeys will be studied in GEBACO.

Humans cooperating in rowing.

fitness. If working together means more food

or better breeding success, then animals will

cooperate. If selfishness brings bigger

rewards, cooperation is unlikely.

This ‘rational’ approach to cooperation is also

found in people; helping someone, for

example, might yield reciprocated help in

the future or a reward that otherwise could

not have been achieved alone. It is tempting

to believe that we might also cooperate

because it makes other people think well of us

or simply makes us feel good about ourselves,

but this is not yet a standard scientific view

of cooperation.

Accordingly, GEBACO aims to find out

whether people and animals have separate

‘hard-wired’ and ‘learned’ approaches to

cooperation, and if so, how each is influenced

by genetics. In fact, the researchers assert

that cooperation is likely to be a complex

function of several different mechanisms,

each with different evolutionary origins.

Broad-brush approachThe previous research focus on single

species has hindered our understanding of

cooperation as a whole, say the GEBACO

team. This project will span both species and

academic disciplines. The latter includes

human cognitive neuroscience, ethology,

behavioural ecology, sociobiology, molecular

genetics, primatology and game theory.

As well as humans, the scientists will study

monkeys, rats, mice, rooks and penduline tits.

They aim to develop a uniform framework

that allows cooperation to be measured and

compared across species.

The studies of human cooperation will begin

with twins – a standard technique for

disentangling the effects of inheritance from

those of our environment. Eventually, the

researchers plan to use Internet-based tests

to study very large numbers of people in the

United Kingdom and Finland.

To help distinguish different drivers for

human cooperation, the researchers also

plan to study autism. The working assumption

is that autistic people have few problems with

‘hard-wired’ or ‘strategic style’ cooperation,

but are less likely to use the ‘social reward’

variety of cooperation. The scientists also

plan to work with children to show how

their cooperative abilities change as they

grow older.

To measure cooperation in people and in

some of the animal experiments, the

researchers will use modified versions of well-

known games such as the ‘iterated prisoner’s

dilemma’. In such tests, subjects decide

whether to cooperate for mutual rewards or

betray other players for the chance of a bigger

reward. More complex tests will look at how

traders cooperate in commodities markets.

Brain scanning techniques such as functional

magnetic resonance imaging may help to

reveal the existence of ‘strategic style’ and

‘social reward’ cooperation by showing that

different brain regions are involved. Ultimately,

the researchers would like to identify a small

number of genes that play key roles in

cooperation, and to show whether or not

these have been conserved throughout the

evolutionary process. We won’t turn out to have

a single ‘cooperation gene’, but thanks to

GEBACO, we may soon understand a little more

about how to get on with the neighbours.

“Subjects decide whether to cooperate for mutual rewards or betray other playersfor the chance of a bigger reward.”

23

NESTPathfinder

EXPLORING THE EVOLUTIONOF SPEECH AND MANUAL DEXTERITY

H A N D TO M O U T H

Humans are uniquely reliant on

language and on the intelligent

use of tools. Together, they are

among the key reasons why our

species has been so successful.

But their evolutionary origins are

uncertain. The Hand to Mouth

consortium project brings

together archaeologists and

psychologists in an attempt to

establish just how we evolved our

capacities for communication and

for manual dexterity. The period when human language

emerged is one of the mysteries of

science. One of the major features of

human brains associated with language use

is lateralisation.

In other words, the two halves of the brain

do not mirror each other completely.

In particular, language-based brain functions

such as motor control and meaning/

association for words are typically focused

on the left side of the brain and contribute

to brain asymmetry. Most humans are also

right-handed, implying that the left side of

their brains is also more effective in controlling

the kinds of fine, rapid sequentially-ordered

movements of the hand which we see in

skilled tool use.

The emergence of human languageVery recent work has also identified a

lateralised brain system (the mirror neuron

system) which ought to facilitate imitative

learning of tool use, and which overlaps with

the areas of the brain known to be involved

in speech processing. This suggests an

intriguing possibility – the evolution of some

structural properties of human language

may have depended on pre-existing circuits

for ‘reading’ the behaviour of others directly

from their manual gestures.

Understanding these relationships is a job

for neuroscientists, but specifying a timeline

for the emergence of human capacities in

these two domains is a job for archaeologists

and physical anthropologists. So, can

physiognomy and the early use of tools tell

us anything about how spoken language

evolved in humans, or if humans were

pre-adapted to language in some way?

The Hand to Mouth consortium will define

the tools needed to specify a timeline for the

emergence of human language and manual

dexterity.


24

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleA Framework for Understanding the Archaeological and Fossil Records of Human Cognitive Evolution


Partners• University of Southampton (United Kingdom)• Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales

(France)• Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

(France)• University of Parma (Italy)

Further InformationDr James SteeleUniversity College LondonInstitute of ArchaeologyAHRC Centre for the Evolution of Cultural DiversityInstitute of ArchaeologyGordon Square 31-34WC1H 0PY LondonUnited Kingdomemail: [email protected]: +1 44 2380 593032




The hyoid bone of a chimpanzee, which lies at the root of the tongue and below which thelarynx is suspended. Does the form of thisbone indicate the shape of the vocal tract?

Replication of early stone tools: the experimental setup for a kinematic analysis.

Understanding brain processesthrough the use of toolsOne focus of their work will be on tool use.

Current evidence suggests that about

2.6 million years ago, early hominins made

the transition from using unmodified stones

as tools (in the pattern of modern wild

chimpanzees) to actually modifying stone to

improve its function as a tool.

Tool use is a social process which must be

passed between generations through social

learning. But how do we ‘read’ the intentions

of other tool-users as we watch and learn

from them? What aspects of motor control in

tool use are the most difficult to learn, and

what does that tell us about brain processes?

The consortium will replicate ancient stone

tools experimentally, and analyse these aspects

of the task using modern human subjects.

Evolution of speech at the root of the tongueThe second focus of work will be on motor

control in speech processes. Utterances are

formed in the brain’s language areas and are

articulated in the vocal tract (mouth, tongue

and larynx), which in humans takes on

a unique form.

The vocal folds and the root of the tongue

are located unusually low relative to the roof

of the mouth. This means that we can form

vowel sounds by distorting the shape of the

tongue in this (vertical) posterior segment,

as well as in the horizontal segment within

the oral cavity proper.

As a result, we can produce a greater range of

basic speech sounds, and thus more complex

utterances. Some experts argue that this

morphology must have evolved for speech

because it carries a cost – an increased risk of

choking to death by accidentally drawing

food into the airway. Can we diagnose the

form of the vocal tract from the skeletal

remains of earlier hominins, and in doing so

deduce their capacity for language?

The consortium will attempt to reconstruct

vocal tract shapes of fossil species from their

fragmentary remains, and use this data to

constrain a computer model of potential

speech production.

To draw these studies together, the consortium

will hold an international meeting to review

current knowledge of the brain processes

involved in human tool use and human

language, and their inter-relationship.

The Hand to Mouth consortium unites

leading researchers in various fields across

Europe. The central question being explored

(the evolution of speech and manual dexterity)

is based on a linked set of observations

made by these European research groups.

The project is coordinated by the AHRC

Centre for the Evolution of Cultural Diversity

with partners from France, Italy and the

United Kingdom.

“The evolution of some structural properties of human language may have depended on pre-existing circuits for ‘reading’ the behaviour of others.”

25

NESTPathfinder

BUILDING A COOPERATIONNETWORK

I N CO R E

Cooperation is an essential

component of most human and

non-human societies, from insects

to mammals, reaching the highest

level of sophistication in primates.

Why we cooperate is one of the

largest questions confronting

evolutionary psychologists today.

The three-year INCORE project

will bring together diverse

disciplines – from econometricians

and evolutionary biologists to

primatologists – with a view

to build a road map for future

European research in cooperative

behaviour.

Understanding the process of cooperation

is a complex task, founded on a multi-

tude of questions. Why do people get

together and cooperate with one another even

when it is not in their individual best interests to

do so? To what extent is cooperation influenced

by our genes? After all, living things are

designed to behave in ways that enhance

the chances of their own genes surviving

and replicating.

The fact that cooperation is observed in

(and is critical to the survival of ) so many

diverse species suggests there are important

genetically modulated mechanisms. If so,

individual differences in cooperativeness

could reflect genetic variability and, therefore,

be heritable. Perhaps there are multiple genetic

influences; some shared with other animals,

and others which are uniquely human.

How and why we cooperate has long provided

a puzzle for evolutionary biology. It has given

rise to a number of competing and comple-

mentary theories. Two of the most well-known

are William Hamilton’s theory of kin selection

(proposing that we help out members of our

own family because they carry a high

proportion of our own genes) and Robert

Trivers’ theory of reciprocal altruism (proposing

that self-sacrifice in the interest of strangers

could be understood as self-interest providing

there was a chance the beneficiary would

repay the deed in the future).

The former theory can successfully explain

much of the cooperation we see in the animal

world. However, altruism toward unrelated

individuals is a uniquely human characteristic.

In modern human societies, humans direct

help towards unrelated individuals as well as

cooperate in large groups of people who

share few, if any, of their genes.

Removing barriers to researchAt present, European research into cooperation

is scattered over a large number of diverse

disciplines and research units. In the past,

exchanges between researchers in these


26

AT A GLANCE

different disciplines have been limited.

Physical distances between groups that

would otherwise be natural research partners

have hindered collaboration, but there is

also little interdisciplinary dialogue between

those studying humans, birds, primates and

insect societies.

The INCORE project is removing these barriers.

By gathering together 27 different research

groups working in this field from across the

EU, it is trying to move cooperation research

forward and publicise its potential. The scale

and diversity of human cooperation has

relevance for anthropology, economics,

evolutionary biology, mathematics, political

science, primatology and psychology.

Resources from four major cross-European

consortia (GEBACO, EDICI, TECT and REFCOM),

which are currently conducting research into

all aspects of cooperation, will be networked

and made available as an education resource.

INCORE will facilitate the creation of multi -

disciplinary teams to create much more

effective ways of examining and applying

theories about the origins of cooperative

behaviour. INCORE’s mission is to foster inter-

disciplinary discussion about how cooperation

works in today’s human societies, creating

debate about how cooperation evolved

(genetically and culturally) and how best to

measure human cooperation in order to

trace its genetic origins.

This pan-European collaboration will pull

groups that are currently working in relative

isolation into the mainstream; much impressive

work is being done in this field by universities

within the new Member States of the EU.

They will take part in a range of brainstorming

meetings that will foster innovation and

expansion of the excellent research already

being done within those countries. INCORE

will strengthen the European research base and

will create a roadmap for future European

research into genomics and cognitive neuro-

science, linking them to social and cultural

influences on cooperative behaviour.

Developing new research talentPerhaps most importantly, the project hopes

to reach out to researchers who are not yet

part of an EU-funded consortium. This should

provide young scientists from Eastern Europe

with the opportunity to learn about openings

available within the cooperation research

community. The consortium specifically

plans to use the cutting-edge nature of the

research in order to reach out to groups in

other countries, such as Israel.

INCORE also aims to forge academic links

between diverse research labs, creating visiting

fellowships and establishing training work-

shops. Summer schools will give students

the opportunity to follow lectures from

some of the best teachers from many different

disciplines. This will also provide them with

the opportunity to discuss their own

research plans with their peers working in

other disciplines.

Ultimately, work produced by this unique

collaboration network will lead to an answer

to the big question: why did cooperation

evolve in humans? In human evolution, survival

of the fittest may simply mean we learn to

work together or we die.

“Work produced by this unique collaboration network will lead to an answer to the big question: why did cooperation evolve in humans?”

Official TitleIntegrating Cooperation Research across Europe


Partners• University College Dublin (Ireland)• CNRS/CEPE (France)• IIS/CNRS (France)• University of Paris X (France)• Eötvös University (Hungary)• University of Szeged (Hungary)• Collegium Budapest (Hungary)• University of Debrecen (Hungary)• University of Groningen (Netherlands)• Tampere University (Finland)• University of Bath (United Kingdom)• University of Exeter (United Kingdom)• Liverpool John Moores University (United Kingdom)• University of Nottingham (United Kingdom)• University of St Andrews (United Kingdom)• University of Central Lancashire (United Kingdom)• University of Bristol (United Kingdom)• University of NKUA (Greece)• University Autonoma (Spain)• Babes Bolyai University (Romania)• Charles University (Czech Republic)• University of Vienna (Austria)• University of Lausanne (Austria)• Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive

and Brain Sciences (Germany)• UHF University (Germany)• University of Bialystok (Poland)

Further InformationProf David Skuse – University College LondonBehavioural and Brain Sciences Unit30 Guilford StreetGB-WC1N 1EH London – United Kingdomemail: [email protected] – fax: + 32 2 2993173

Project cost EU funding€ 1.2 M € 1.2 M

Project reference Contract No 043318 (NEST)

27

NESTPathfinder

WHAT IT MEANS TO COMMUNICATE

N E S TCO M

Recent NEST projects have

produced a great deal of new

knowledge on verbal and visual

communication in humans.

NESTCOM will analyse and

integrate these results, with an

emphasis on the underlying

neural organisation of the brain

that supports multimodal

communication. A particular

focus is the role played by mirror

neurons. A better understanding

of neural multimodal

communications may help

provide better neurocognitive

models, improve speech and

visual recognition in machines

(which are still far behind human

performance), and lead to more

intelligent embodied robots.

What does it mean to communicate?

Many NEST projects have explored

verbal and visual communication in

humans as well as motor actions. They have

explored a wide range of topics, including

learning by imitation, the neural origins of

languages, and the connections between

verbal and non-verbal communication. Now,

NESTCOM is setting out to analyse these

results to contribute to the understanding of

the characteristics of human communication,

focusing specifically on their relationship to

computational neural networks and the role of

mirror neurons in multimodal communications.

Mirror neurons are important as they are the

smallest entities for multimodal integration in

the brain. They fire when a primate performs

an action that brings a reward or sees another

primate taking that action. These neurons

can effectively be activated from different

modalities – motor, visual or auditory. Moreover,

they fire independently whether it is a primate’s

own visual, auditory or motor area that is

active or that of another primate.

These neurons were first identified in the

monkey brain in specific cortical areas, the

pre-motor areas. The key area is known as

Broca’s in humans and plays an important

role in human speech, offering the possibility

that the development of speech in children

may involve some understanding of the reward

system in another mind. It also suggests that

mirror neurons are central to action imitation

and communication development.

So, comprehension of the actions of mirror

neurons is very important for understanding

more of what makes communication work

and how language can actually be based

both on vision and on actions.

Improving recognition technologyAn holistic analysis of the results of relevant

NEST projects may also contribute to

improving speech-recognition technology

as machines still lag behind that of human

performance. For example, the technology is

substantially limited in applications such as


28

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleWhat it Means to Communicate

CoordinatorUniversity of Sunderland (United Kingdom)

Partners• MRC Cognition and Brain Unit (United Kingdom)• University of Parma (Italy)

Further InformationProf Stefan WermterUniversity of SunderlandSchool of Computing and Technology, Centre for Hybrid Intelligent SystemsSt Peters WaySR6 0DD SunderlandUnited Kingdomemail: [email protected]: +44 191 515 3553

Project cost€ 249 360

EU funding€ 249 360


The NESTCOM project examines what itmeans to communicate based on neural, psychological, computational, linguistic androbotic evidence.

verbal instructions in the relatively constrained

environment of a car, where only a restricted

number of words can be recognised currently.

In an unconstrained noisy environment,

such as a railway station, human speech

recognition is still much better than machine

recognition. There is little reliable technology

available that is capable of identifying a cry

for help in an open and noisy environment.

On the visual side, some reasonable recogni-

tion machinery that uses statistical methods

already exists. Nevertheless, it is a difficult

problem even now for machines to analyse

three-dimensional structures in vision; the

human eye and the human visual system still

perform much better in difficult situations

under various light conditions than machine

vision.

Mirror neurons are also involved in the third

modality, motor actions. A child quickly learns

how to grasp things, even if it takes a year or

two. This is a very complicated process with

a machine, since, with all the degrees of

freedom that humans have, it is extremely

difficult to carry out coordinated grasping

controlled by the brain as well.

The hope is that by improving understand-

ing of the role of mirror neurons and the

underlying concepts of the relevant cortical

neural networks, it will be possible to better

understand the integration of speech, visual

identification and action at a neural level to

improve the learning performance of intelli-

gent robots in the long-term.

Knowledge through informationintegrationThe NESTCOM consortium comprises a group

of neurophysiologists (the first to identify

mirror neurons in the monkey brain) and

a team offering language communications

and neuropsychology expertise. The project

is coordinated by a team from the University

of Sunderland whose neural network

know ledge and involvement in the

development of hybrid intelligent systems

will make it possible to explore neural theories

on real robots.

The project’s overall objective will be to

obtain a unified collection of results from

relevant NEST projects focused on neural

multimodal communication, covering both

verbal and visual aspects. An important part

of NESTCOM activities will be to disseminate

this information to other research groups

and interested members of the public.

The results will be publicised widely with the

intention of producing an interdisciplinary

scientific roadmap that will contribute to

a better understanding of the neural,

computational and social aspects of

communication.

The work produced through NESTCOM will

benefit future investigations in higher neuro -

cognitive faculties and how they relate to

human communications. Analysing and

integrating relevant NEST results should also

lead to a better understanding of speech,

vision and motor actions in the long-term

and, ultimately, better embodied robots.

“A unified collection of results from relevant NEST projects focused on neural multimodal communication.”

29

NESTPathfinder

WHAT IS HUMAN IN HUMANCOMMUNICATION?

N E U R O CO M

Language and communication

are essential human faculties,

but what are their uniquely

human components? To highlight

these elements while exploring

the functional architecture of

the human brain, the Neurocom

project will combine behavioural

testing with cutting-edge

neuro-imaging. The project’s

originality lies in the integration

of the biological and cognitive

levels in a developmental and

evolutionary perspective.

Its impact may extend to many

fields, from human medicine to

robotics.

The Neurocom project is part of the

NEST-PATHFINDER initiative ‘What it

means to be human’. Its focus is language

and communication, two eminently human

abilities with roots in both early child

development and the evolutionary origins

of our species. In Neurocom, experts from

a wide range of fields have joined forces:

linguists, psychologists, ethologists,

neuroscientists, and cognitive scientists.

Their aim is to distinguish, within human

communication channels, major human-

specific components and the neural circuitry

that supports them in the cortex of the

human brain.

Aware of the progress made in linguistics and

cognitive science, thanks to the integration

of developmental data and interspecies

comparisons at the behavioural level, the

project partners predict a further great leap

forward once the neural level is woven into

the picture. Today, advances in neuro-imaging

are providing powerful tools for visualising

the brain as it performs complex functions

such as learning, or making sense of

someone’s utterances or actions.

The Neurocom partners are eager to exploit

these tools and to begin integrating all that

is known about language and communication,

as it relates to the emergence of the human

species and to individual human development.

Comparing and integratingTo tackle the developmental and evolutionary

aspects of human language and

communication, the Neurocom consortium

compares human adults with babies,

and humans with non-human primates

(macaques). Teams pursue the following

specific objectives: to map the neural

substrates of three communication channels

(speech, calls, and gestures); to find the

neural substrate of speaker invariance; to

study understanding of intention in humans

and babies, and investigate monkeys’

interpretation of actions; to study

communicative referential cues (gaze shift

and pointing), their substrate, and their role


30

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleNeural Origins of Languageand Communication

CoordinatorKatholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)

Partners• Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences sociales

(France)• Universita degli Studi di Parma (Italy)• Institut national de la Santé et de la Recherche

médicale (France)• Institute for Psychological Research

of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Hungary)

Further InformationProf Guy OrbanLaboratory of Neuro- and Psychophysiology,Katholieke Universiteit LeuvenCampus Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49B-3000 LeuvenBelgiumemail: [email protected]: +32 16 345 993




Not all aspects of communication are uniqueto humans.

New neuro-imaging techniques can developunderstanding of brain function when carry-ing out complex tasks.

in learning new words; to investigate the

neural processing of hierarchical structures

in syntax and the neural substrate involved

in learning an artificial grammar.

The work combines behavioural testing with

neuro-imaging. Many experiments involve

mapping and monitoring brain regions that

become activated and – possibly – show

adaptation in subjects placed in a learning

context (with or without communicative

referential cues) or exposed to speech, calls,

gestures, or videotaped action sequences.

The neuro-imaging techniques used for this

approach include functional magnetic

imaging (fMRI, performed on all categories

of subjects), nearinfrared spectroscopy

(on babies), and singleneuron recording

(on monkeys).

Impact and prospects Neurocom will yield, for the first time, an

informed view of which major components

of language are truly unique to humans.

It will generate new knowledge on the

functional architecture of the human cortex,

and in some cases it will shed light on

neuronal operations performed in cortical

regions that ‘light up’ in imaging

experiments. By highlighting the relationship

between the human cortex and that of

the macaque, the work will make it possible

to integrate into human studies all the

knowledge available about cortical function

in this non-human primate.

The knowledge gained within Neurocom will

have a major impact on our understanding of

neuronal changes in brain diseases, which

represent 35% of the disease burden in

Europe. In addition, the project is likely to

pave the way towards using fMRI in monkeys

to explore the interactions of potential drugs

with the neural substrates of cognitive abilities.

In the field of fMRI, Neurocom will yield

technological improvements contributing to

the further development of this technique as

a diagnostic tool.

Other fields also stand to benefit from

the results of this project. One of them is

education, thanks to the project’s focus on

development and learning. And Neurocom’s

impact is likely to extend still further,

to engineering fields such as speech

recognition, image understanding,

and robotics.

“Neurocom will yield, for the first time, an informed view of which major components of language are truly unique to humans.”

31

NESTPathfinder

A TWIST IN THE BRAIN CONFERS THE POWER OF SPEECH

PAU L B R O C A I I

Humans speak while great apes

do not – the ability to communicate

with language is the essence of

being human. So what is the key

difference in the brain?

Nineteenth century neurosurgeon

and anthropologist Paul Broca

hypothesised that asymmetry

defines the human brain.

The PAULBROCA II project will

investigate the impact of this

hypothesis through comparative

studies of skull and brain

structures in man and apes.

The key question is: what

relatively abrupt change led to

the power of speech?

The fact that the human brain is bigger

than that of the ape cannot solely explain

why we have language. Elephants,

whales and even dolphins have bigger

brains than us, yet they do not seem to talk

in remotely the same way. An explanation is

needed and this is the starting point for the

PAULBROCA II project.

Archaeological records suggest that our ability

to represent in symbols dates back to less

than 100 000 years. Evidence found in the

early 1990s in the Blombos cave on the

Southern Cape coast of South Africa is crucial,

showing the use of symbols from some

90 000 years ago. This is close to estimates of

the life of modern Homo sapiens (of 100 000

to 150 000 years).

So, there are no clear indications – though

they may well be lost – that the capacity for

speech dates back to the species before

Homo sapiens. Earlier hominids (such as

Homo erectus and Homo ergaster) used

tools, and to a certain extent, great apes use

tools, but it is not clear that they are repre-

senting things as symbols that have meaning.

Therefore, the advent of language was sudden,

and relatively recent. So what could have

caused it? Some change in brain function

had radical effects but happened quickly.

This is consistent with a ‘saltationist’ view of

evolution (evolution occurs by jumps rather

gradually over long periods of time). This is

one of the principal interests of PAULBROCA II.

Asymmetrical difference What is this defining characteristic of the

modern human brain? Asymmetry is the only

candidate and it is a controversial one. Some

authors maintain that similar asymmetry is

found in great apes, other primates and even

rodents and fruit flies! PAULBROCA II aims to

determine if it is, in fact, true that a single

anatomical characteristic distinguishes the

human brain by investigating skulls, scans

and brain tissues.


32

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleThe Evolution of Cerebral Asymmetry in Homo Sapiens

CoordinatorRoyal Museum for Central Africa (United Kingdom)

Partners• Central Africa Museum (Belgium)• University of Liverpool (United Kingdom)• Karolinska Institutet (Sweden)• Technical University Darmstadt (Germany)• Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)• University of Utrecht (Holland)

Further InformationProf Timothy CrowRoyal Museum for Central AfricaSANE POWICWarneford Hospital, Roosevelt DriveOX3 7JX OxfordUnited Kingdomemail: [email protected]: +44 186 545 5922

Project cost€ 1 099 999.98

EU funding€ 1 099 999.98


A deformation grid placed over the image of a fossil skull of Homo sapiens to form a coordinate system that can be used to quantify structural change between species.

The influence of the ‘torque’ (the bias from R anterior to L posterior) on inter- and intra-hemispheric transmission in man compared to other primates. The brain ofHomo sapiens is effectively 4-chambered (R and L anterior, and L and R posterior) with respect to areas of heteromodal association cortex as compared to the 2 chambers (anterior and posterior) of the great apes and other primates.

The nature of the asymmetry is crucial. The

engineering term ‘torque’ (defined as a force

that tends to cause rotation) has been

adopted to describe the asymmetry found in

the human brain from right frontal to left

occipital, or right anterior to left posterior.

This can be interpreted as a ‘twist’ that

describes a bias across the anterior-posterior

axis of the brain.

As the two hemispheres are closely similar in

weight and volume, the difference seems to

be due to a change in shape. The cortex or

outer lining of the brain has evolved the

most recently and is responsible for ‘higher’

functions. A significant new idea is that the

cortex on one side is thinned and broadened

(‘ballooned’), relative to the other. It seems

that the connections on the two sides have

changed.

The cortex is made up of large numbers of

cells distributed in layers that are not clearly

distinct but governed by statistical principles.

The key cell is the pyramidal that sends

axons or fibres out of the cortex. Importantly,

these are always arrayed in the same direction,

a direction defined by the fibre that goes out

of the cortex – the axon and the dendrite or

collecting surface for the cells – that goes in

the opposite direction, towards the surface

of the cortex.

When the cortex thins and broadens, the

extent of the apical dendrites – the fibres

going towards the cortex surface – is

reduced relative to another input, the basal

dendrites at the level of the cell itself.

Thus the ratio of basal to apical dendrites

alters in favour of the basal dendrites; a simple

change that could be fundamental.

This means that while in other animals

transmission is equally likely in either direction,

in man it is biased in one. This is a focal point

that the project hopes to determine.

Human specificIf it can be demonstrated that asymmetry

(or some aspect of it) is human specific,

then we have the key change that gave us

language. The PAULBROCA II project has

therefore assembled a cross-disciplinary team

to examine both the fossil and anatomical

aspects. This work brings together the

following two groups.

On the one side, a museum curator of mammals

with a collection of skulls and images of

brains that include chimpanzees, gorillas and

orang-utans; a palaeontologist interested in

the differences between Neanderthal and

modern human brains that can be estimated

from fragmentary evidence of fossil skulls;

and an image analyst concerned with methods

of assessing asymmetry.

On the other, a group concerned with studies

of brain anatomy using microscopes.

These include scientists with expertise in

cellular structure on the two sides of the

brain (in particular, in areas related to

acoustic function in the superior temporal

lobe), and an expert concerned with fibre

connections between the two hemispheres

(specifically their density changes in relation

to asymmetry). These scientists will compare

cell densities, sizes and shapes in and the

fibre connections between the hemispheres,

in Homo sapiens and the chimpanzee.

“If it can be demonstrated that asymmetry is human specific, we have the key change that gave us language.”

33

NESTPathfinder

EXPLORING THE ORIGINS OF THE HUMAN MIND

P K B 140404

Studying the evolutionary

pathways that have led to the

emergence of the human mind

provides a fascinating insight into

the history of what has made

– and what makes us – unique in

the animal world. A NEST project

aims to pinpoint the molecular

basis and evolutionary origins of

our cognitive abilities, by

comparing humans and apes.

Through an ambitious attempt

to progressively introduce human

cognition genes into transgenic

mice, the consortium plans

to explore the ‘birth’ of the

human mind.

Our advanced ability to think, to express

emotions and to influence the behaviour

of those around us is part of what

makes the human mind unique. These higher

cognitive functions have evolved through

major changes in the structure, functional

complexity and size of the brain at different

points along the evolutionary tree that links

us to monkeys and apes. Identifying the

molecular basis for these changes is key

to understanding which cognitive abilities,

and their corresponding genes, are unique

to humans.

The NEST PKB140404 project, part of the

PATHFINDER initiative to investigate ‘What it

means to be human’, will use an integrated

approach, bridging cognitive neuroscience

and molecular evolution, to probe the

differences between the brains of humans

and their closest relatives, the apes.

The consortium’s multidisciplinary research

teams, combining skills in molecular and

evolutionary biology, bioinformatics, clinical

psychiatry and neuroscience, aim to

reconstruct the history of the evolutionary

changes that led to the emergence of the

human mind as it is today. In a three-pronged

approach, each team will look for turning

points in the development of the human

mind by stud ing different stages in the

molecular process.

Pinpointing molecular changeThe Swiss group will search for recently

evolved genes that have arisen through

retroposition – a type of gene duplication –

and that are associated with cognitive abilities.

A burst of retroposition started around the

time when the group comprising humans,

apes and Old World monkeys branched off

on the evolutionary tree. Some of the new

genes created by this evolutionary process

enabled new neurological functions and

resulted, through positive selection, in the

development of higher cognitive abilities.

The German group will use advanced

micro-array technology to scan genes


34

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleMolecular Evolution of Human Cognition

CoordinatorMax Planck Institute forEvolutionary Anthropology (Germany)

Partners• Center for Integrative Genomics (Switzerland)• Babraham Institute (UK)

Further InformationProf Svante PääboMax Planck Institute for EvolutionaryAnthropologyDepartment of Evolutionary GeneticsDeutscher Platz 6D-04103 LeipzigGermanyemail: [email protected]: +49 341 3550 555




Common parts of our evolutionary pathwaymeans we can learn much about our cognitive abilities from studying apes.

Identifying dysfunctional genes which causebrain diseases will help develop treatments.

shared by humans and apes to look for those

expressed differently in each species’ brain.

As some differences in expression can lead

to changes in gene function, the project’s

challenge is to identify which of these

differences are associated with changes

in cognitive ability and whether they could

be responsible for the human brain’s

uniqueness.

A third approach, by the British group, will

identify which genes dysfunction in human

diseases like schizophrenia, by comparing

post-mortem brain samples taken from

schizophrenia patients with those from

a healthy control group, and with those from

the corresponding region of the ape brain.

Schizophrenia is characterised by a reduced

ability to understand and manipulate the

mental representations of others. As this and

other cognitive abilities affected by the

disease are less developed or not present in

apes, it is likely that the human genes

associated with schizophrenia play a pivotal

role in human cognition.

Setting us apartThis project has the potential to unravel

several of the mysteries surrounding the

birth of the human mind, by revealing and

dating some of the genetic changes that

have contributed to our shared heritage and

set us apart from other species. An important

step in validating the project’s findings will

be confirming the function of the candidate

human cognition genes identified by the

three complementary approaches. To do

this, the consortium will carry out in vivo

studies using transgenic mice carrying the

human gene and compare their resulting

phenotypes with mice carrying an equivalent

gene from the ape genome.

In the long term, they hope to show that

replacing a sufficiently large number of

mouse genes with their human counterparts

will lead to altered behaviour in the mice

and provide further insights into genetically

regulated human cognitive faculties.

This ambitious reconstruction of the

evolutionary history of human cognitive

abilities will set the standards for new work

in the area. The consortium will explore new

horizons in cognitive science and should

make an important contribution to solving

the enigma of human nature.

“The consortium plans to explore the ‘birth’ of the human mind, through an ambitious attempt to progressively introduce human cognition genes into transgenic mice.”

35

NESTPathfinder

COMPARING THE SHARING OFKNOWLEDGE ACROSS SPECIES

R E F CO M

The capacity to communicate

verbally and non-verbally about

things in the environment is a key

element of human cognitive

prowess. To understand which

aspects of this skill are uniquely

human, the Refcom project will

compare the complexity of

messages conveyed by different

species – from a dolphin’s whistle

to a gorilla’s gesture to a child’s

words – in an unprecedented

attempt to trace the different

evolutionary origins of referential

communication across the animal

world.

Many of the advances made by

humankind have relied on a

sophisticated ability to share

knowledge. The versatility of human

communication, and in particular the

capacity to communicate verbally and

non-verbally about things in the environment,

is one of the unique features of the human

species. However, a wide variety of other

animals, in groups as evolutionarily distant

as bees, dolphins and dogs, also exhibit

some form of this referential communication

at lower levels of sophistication. Scientists

are now proposing that human referential

communication is not a single ability but

a complex function resulting from the

integration of a variety of skills and capacities

with different evolutionary origins.

Refcom, part of the PATHFINDER initiative to

investigate ‘What it means to be human’, is a

highly ambitious multidisciplinary project,

associating eight European laboratories,

which aims to trace these evolutionary origins.

By comparing referential communication

skills in diverse animal species, in the wild

and in captivity, with those of children, they

hope to contribute to a comprehensive

understanding of the origins of this key cog-

nitive ability.

From gesture to wordThe strongest evidence for referential

communication in non-human primates

comes from wild monkeys which use various

types of predator-specific alarm calls.

Some species are able to encode aspects

such as the severity of an attack and

interpret the meaning of other primate and

non-primate alarm calls. Interestingly,

there is much less evidence for vocalised r

eferential communication in our closer

relatives, the apes.

One possible explanation is that their limited

ability to modify their voices has led them to

specialise in a referential communication

based on gesturing. By looking for evidence

of referential signals in wild monkey calls and


36

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleOrigins of Referential Communication

CoordinatorUniversity of St Andrews (UK)

Partners• University Paris X (France)• Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary

Anthropology (Germany)• Eötvös University (Hungary)• Semmelweis University (Hungary)• Swiss Academy of Sciences (Switzerland)• University College London (UK)• Reading University (UK)

Further InformationDr Juan Carlos GómezSchool of Psychology, University of StAndrewsSouth Street w/nSt. Andrews KY16 9JUUKemail: [email protected]: +44 1334 463042




Refcom will study the different forms of communicating complex messages in species. © Miguel A. Gomez

Complex messages may also be transmittedwithin non-primate species.© Adam Miklosi & Eniko Kubinyi

exploring the communicative function of

vocal and gestural repertoires in bonobos

and gorillas, the Refcom project aims to test

the diversity of communication skills that

have evolved in different primate groups,

and that may underlie our own abilities.

To answer questions about what sort of

social and environmental challenges may

have caused referential communication to

arise independently on other branches of

the evolutionary tree, the consortium will

also study the abilities of non-primate species

– dolphins, parrots and dogs –

to communicate referentially using both

natural signals and those learnt through

human contact.

One of the project’s key challenges will be to

identify what features make human referential

communication unique, by comparing the

performances of children with apes, dogs

and parrots when faced with an identical

task requiring referential skills. The inclusion

of autistic children in this exercise will help

to determine which communication skills

are impaired in this debilitating condition.

To complete the cross-disciplinary approach,

consortium members will also explore

the genetic and neural basis for referential

communication in the dog.

A unified conceptual frameworkThe Refcom project aims to provide the

most comprehensive analysis to date of the

components of referential communi-cation

within an evolutionary framework. Its

unprecedented data collection from a

diverse set of animal species, using common

methodological principles and a unified

conceptual framework, will provide a major

opportunity for European researchers to

understand how our unique cognitive abilities

fit into the schema of adaptive evolutionary

history. The consortium also hopes to generate

more applied outcomes through a better

understanding of cognitive impairments

such as autism, leading to the development

of new tools for improved diagnosis and

treatment.

Through its cross-disciplinary approach,

the consortium will forge new links and

address persistent conceptual barriers that

have prevented progress in the past.

The important contributions of two

Hungarian institutions will help to integrate

them into a wider European framework for

research at a crucial stage in their country’s

incorporation into the EU.

“The Refcom project aims to test the diversity of communication skills that have evolved in different animal groups.”

37

NESTPathfinder

SIGNING UP TO BE HUMAN

S E D S U

An advanced ability to use

and interpret signs is one of the

characteristic features of human

beings, setting us apart from

the rest of the animal world.

Through the SEDSU project,

European specialists in human

and primate cognition will study

how sign use changes with

the evolutionary development

of species and within individual

development. A better

understanding of the different

factors underlying sign

acquisition in humans will have

important implications for social

and educational policies.

The question of what makes us human

has occupied the minds of philosophers

and scientists across the centuries.

Recent advances in genome sequencing

have made the debate even more pertinent,

as we now know that the quantitative

genetic differences between us and many

other mammalian, particularly primate, species,

are extremely small. The SEDSU project aims to

provide one answer by demonstrating that

what characterises humans is their advanced

ability to engage in sign use.

By studying the relationship between five

distinct cognitive domains and their roles in

the development of sign use and language,

the project team will show how sign use

changes, both with the evolutionary

development of species and within the

lifestage development of individuals. The five

domains – perception and categorisation;

iconicity and pictures; spatial conceptualisation

and metaphor; imitation and mimesis; and

inter-subjectivity and conventions – are each

characterised by a developmental profile

linked to a distinct semiotic process,

such as the use of pictorial representations

or gesturing. Using an interdisciplinary

approach and a specially developed set of

analytical tools, the team hopes to

demonstrate that the transition from one

developmental stage to another can be

explained by the acquisition of a cognitive

ability to use more advanced forms of signs,

and to differentiate between the sign itself

– such as a word or an abstract symbol –

and what it represents.

Multi-dimensional intelligenceThe human brain and its mental faculties

have been influenced throughout their

evolution by a wide range of selection

pressures including physiological, cultural

and environmental factors. Non-human

primates, though very close to humans in

genetic terms, have experienced differing

selection pressures through evolution and

this is reflected in their varying capacities to

use signs. The SEDSU project brings together


38

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleStages in the Evolution and Developmentof Sign Use

CoordinatorGoldsmiths’ College, London (UK)

Partners• INCM-CNRS (France)• Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary

Anthropology (Germany)• ISTC-CNR (Italy)• Lund University (Sweden)• University of Portsmouth (UK)

Further InformationProf Jules DavidoffGoldsmiths’ CollegeCentre for Cognition, Computationand CultureLewisham Way, New CrossLondon SE14 6NW UKemail: [email protected]: +44 20 7919 7873




Recognition and understanding of signs hasevolved differently in different primate species.

A key characteristic in humans is the abilityboth to separate the meaning of a sign fromits identifiable form.

three major primate laboratories along with

three laboratories with expertise in the study

of the origins of higher cognitive processes

in humans.

Cognitive and developmental psychologists

will work alongside primatologists, linguists,

anthropologists, philosophers and semioticians

in a comparative analysis of sign use in

humans, in monkeys and in apes. The influence

of cross-cultural selection pressures in humans

will be studied through comparative studies

of the five cognitive domains within human

populations in Namibia, Amazonia, Thailand

and India. In this way the project hopes

to explore human universality and cultural

variation.

Whilst our species carries with it the history

of its evolution, each person’s mind is the

unique creation of a process of individual

development resulting from interactions

between genetic, environmental and socio-

cultural factors. To capture the influence of

these factors in the development of sign

use in humans, the SEDSU team will study

groups of children at different stages of

development, as well as those affected by

autism and deafness who may use and

acquire sign use in different ways.

Towards a new theory of semioticsBy comparing the development of sign use

under different social and cultural settings,

the SEDSU project has the potential to make

important contributions to policies

concerning child-rearing and educational

practices, particularly at the pre-school level,

in both developing and more developed

countries. The project also has implications

for the more clinical aspects of social and

educational policy, and will inform the

debate on the need for special educational

provision for children with autism or

impaired hearing. Ultimately, the SEDSU

project team hopes that its findings, based

on sound empirical studies, will contribute

to a re-evaluation of the current theoretical

basis of semiotics and provide the foundations

for a new coherent theory of semiotic

development. Whilst the project does not

explicitly target the evolution of language,

it should also inform this area of debate

because of the necessary continuum

between sign use and evolved language.

“The team hopes to demonstrate that the transition from one developmental stage to another can be explained by the acquisitionof a cognitive ability to use more advanced forms of signs.”

39

NESTPathfinder

UNDERSTANDING HUMANNAVIGATION

WAY F I N D I N G

Spatial orientation and memory

are key functions that help us

to operate in a complex world.

A European research consortium

will retrace the evolutionary

history of these cognitive skills

and show how individuals adapt

their navigational strategies

to circumstance. A more in-depth

understanding of how humans

make sense of space will provide

invaluable information for

environmental planning and

design, and lead to improved

solutions for people with

impaired spatial abilities.

Finding your way home, remembering

where you left the car keys or directing

someone to the nearest hospital are

examples of highly complex cognitive tasks

based on spatial memory and orientation.

Without these functions, navigating through

daily life would be impossible. Our ability to

construct spatial representations of the

outside world, and to store them in our

memory is likely to underlie many other

higher cognitive functions in humans,

such as decision-making and planning.

Many other animals possess the ability to

navigate around their environment,

but there are certain higher-order features

of the human system, such as the ability to

communicate spatial information verbally,

which are uniquely human. The Wayfinding

project will contribute to the NEST

PATHFINDER initiative to investigate ‘What it

means to be human’, by exploring the

particularities of the cognitive organisation

of spatial memory and orientation in

humans from an evolutionary perspective.

This European consortium, bringing together

six laboratories working in psychology,

physiology, biology, neuroscience,

anthropology and artificialintelligence,

aims to map differences in spatial ability,

both between humans and other species,

and within human populations.

Taking a perspectiveHow we perceive and remember the loca-

tions of objects is multi-faceted and

depends on circumstances. In their most

advanced, abstract form, our spatial repre-

sentations help us to create mental images

of what other eyes might see from a differ-

ent perspective. But it is likely that the

human cognitive system has also preserved

the evolutionary history of spatial abilities

and may at times rely on much simpler navi-

gational mechanisms.

The Wayfinding project will explore these

different mechanisms and attempt to map

their evolutionary hierarchy and neural basis,


40

AT A GLANCE

Official TitleFinding your Way in the World - on the Neurocognitive Basis of Spatial Memory and Orientation in Humans

CoordinatorUtrecht University (The Netherlands)

Partners• Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics,

Tübingen (Germany)• University College London (UK)• LIMSI CNRS, Orsay (France)• Collège de France, CNRS, Paris (France)• Fondazione Santa Lucia, University of Rome (Italy)

Further InformationProf Dr Albert PostmaHelmholtz Institute of the Social ScienceFaculty, Utrecht UniversityHeidelberglaan 23584 CS UtrechtThe Netherlandsemail: [email protected]: +31 30 253 4511




Human understanding of spatial location setsus apart from other species.

Neural imaging will help develop understand-ing of human spatial awareness.

using a combination of experimental

cognitive tests and neuro-imaging

techniques in rats, monkeys and humans.

Once their place in the hierarchy is

confirmed, the project will concentrate on

those mechanisms considered uniquely

human, such as perspective taking.

Intriguing evidence suggests that humans

can shift from one navigational strategy to

another according to requirements.

Comparing the ways healthy volunteers

handle spatial tasks with those suffering

from visual or selective neurological

impairments will provide researchers with

a fascinating insight into which parts of the

brain process the different navigational

mechanisms, and whether an impairment

affecting one mechanism triggers a shift to

an alternative strategy. The use of functional

neuro-imaging techniques will help to

pinpoint the neural circuitry activated

by verbal and visual inputs during the

different tasks.

To complete their overview of how spatial

memory and orientation have evolved in

humans, the consortium members will study

the influence of gender, age and culture on

performance in certain spatially related tasks.

Towards design for navigationThis project will make a significant scientific

contribution to the quest to understand

how different elements of the human

cognitive system are organised and function

together.

A better understanding of how the human

navigational system works has important

social and practical implications, too.

Elementary educational programmes will be

one area to benefit from a greater insight

into the development of children’s visual and

spatial abilities. Likewise, the project outcomes

should help to find solutions for those con-

fronted with problems in spatial orientation

– the elderly, the visually impaired, and

patients suffering from brain damage or

Alzheimer’s disease – tocope better with

everyday life.

Future technical applications will include

artificial navigation systems and virtual

reality tools calibrated to take into account

variations in human performance. On a

broader scale, the consortium hopes that

the project will also yield invaluable

knowledge for city planners, architects and

designers, making it easier for us to find our

way through space, whether in the corridors

of a new building or in the virtual labyrinth

of a computer interface.

“A better understanding of how the human navigational system works has enormous social and practical implications.”

41

European Commission

EUR 22427 – What it Means to be Human – A NEST Pathfinder Initiative

Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities

2007 – 41 pp. – 21.0 x 29.7 cm

ISBN 92-79-03833-8

How to obtain EU publications

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