Book contents
- Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms
- Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I Evolution of Learning Processes
- 1 Learning and Memory in the Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans
- 2 Adaptive Evolution of Learning and Memory in a Model Lineage
- 3 Learning in Insects: Perspectives and Possibilities
- 4 Experimental Evolution and Mechanisms for Prepared Learning
- 5 Evolutionary Processes Shaping Learning Ability in Insects
- 6 Brain and Spatial Cognition in Amphibians
- 7 Pavlovian Conditioning, Survival, and Reproductive Success
- 8 Compensatory Responses to Wildlife Control
- 9 Relational Memory Functions of the Hippocampal Pallium in Teleost Fish
- 10 Mechanisms Underlying Absolute and Relative Reward Value in Vertebrates
- 11 The Optimality of “Suboptimal” Choice
- 12 A Behavior Systems Framework
- 13 Dissociable Learning Processes
- 14 Social Learning Strategies
- 15 How Learning Affects Evolution
- Part II Evolution of Memory Processes
- Index
- References
4 - Experimental Evolution and Mechanisms for Prepared Learning
from Part I - Evolution of Learning Processes
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 May 2022
Book contents
- Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms
- Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I Evolution of Learning Processes
- 1 Learning and Memory in the Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans
- 2 Adaptive Evolution of Learning and Memory in a Model Lineage
- 3 Learning in Insects: Perspectives and Possibilities
- 4 Experimental Evolution and Mechanisms for Prepared Learning
- 5 Evolutionary Processes Shaping Learning Ability in Insects
- 6 Brain and Spatial Cognition in Amphibians
- 7 Pavlovian Conditioning, Survival, and Reproductive Success
- 8 Compensatory Responses to Wildlife Control
- 9 Relational Memory Functions of the Hippocampal Pallium in Teleost Fish
- 10 Mechanisms Underlying Absolute and Relative Reward Value in Vertebrates
- 11 The Optimality of “Suboptimal” Choice
- 12 A Behavior Systems Framework
- 13 Dissociable Learning Processes
- 14 Social Learning Strategies
- 15 How Learning Affects Evolution
- Part II Evolution of Memory Processes
- Index
- References
Summary
Decades of research contend with the notion that animals come prepared by evolution to learn about some stimuli and responses better than others. Biological preparedness – and contrapreparedness – can influence how potential information is acquired, processed, and used in decision-making. Theory predicts that preparedness is the result of patterns of reliability of stimuli in predicting reward across the evolutionary history of the lineage. The evolution of preparedness can be tested experimentally, and also by considering the natural history and the pattern of reliability of stimuli and rewards for a given species. We present predictions as well as explanations for how evolution can prepare animals to make choices about their environment. Why animals learn some things better than others is at the heart of what makes behavior adaptive and by working from relatively simple theory it is possible to directly test these hypotheses and analyze traits both underlying and evolving with prepared learning.
Keywords
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- Chapter
- Information
- Evolution of Learning and Memory Mechanisms , pp. 71 - 88Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022
References
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