Daniel H. Lende

Greg Downey

The brain and the nervous system are our most cultural organs. Our nervous system isespecially immature at birth, our brain disproportionately small in relation to its adult size andopen to cultural sculpting at multiple levels. Recognizing this, the new field of neuroanthropologyplaces the brain at the center of discussions about human nature and culture. Anthropology offersbrain science more robust accounts of enculturation to explain observable difference in brainfunction; neuroscience offers anthropology evidence of neuroplasticity's role in social and culturaldynamics. This book provides a foundational text for neuroanthropology, offering basic concepts andcase studies at the intersection of brain and culture. After an overview of the field and backgroundinformation on recent research in biology, a series of case studies demonstrate neuroanthropology inpractice. Contributors first focus on capabilities and skills -- including memory in medicalpractice, skill acquisition in martial arts, and the role of humor in coping with breast cancertreatment and recovery -- then report on problems and pathologies that range from post-traumaticstress disorder among veterans to smoking as a part of college social life.

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