Brains Through Time

Georg F. Striedter is Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at the University of California, Irvine. He is the author of Neurobiology: A Functional Approach (2015) and Principles of Brain Evolution (2004). R. Glenn Northcutt is Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the Unviersity of California, San Diego.

Chapter 1 - Reconstructing History: Aims and Methodology
1.1 - Comparative Approaches Outside of Biology
1.2 - The Comparative Method in Biology
1.3 - Comparative Approaches in Neurobiology
1.4 - The Importance of Natural History

Chapter 2 - The origin of vertebrates: invertebrate chordates and cyclostomes
2.1 - The Origins of Neurons and Nervous Systems
2.2 - Basal Vertebrates and their Closest Invertebrate Relatives
2.3 - The Paleoecology of Early Chordates
2.4 - The Major Sense Organs of Early Vertebrates
2.5 - Movements and Motor Control
2.6 - Early Vertebrate Brains
2.7 - Developmental Mechanisms for Evolving a "New Head"
2.8 - The Question of Novelty in Evolution

Chapter 3 - The origin of jaws and paired fins: the age of fishes
3.1 - Extant Jawed Fishes and Their Brains
3.2 - The Paleoecology of Early Gnathostomes
3.3 - The Sense Organs of Early Gnathostomes
3.4 - Gnathostome Movements and Motor Control
3.5 - The Brains of Early Jawed Fishes
3.6 - Evolutionary Changes in Telencephalic Connections
3.7 - Functional Synthesis

Chapter 4 - The Invasion of Land: Lobe-finned Fishes and Amphibians
4.1 - The Lobe-finned Vertebrates
4.2 - Challenges and Opportunities on Land
4.3 - Sense Organs for Use on Land
4.4 - Movement On Land
4.5 - The Brains of Early Tetrapods
4.6 - Functional Organization of Early Tetrapod Brains

Chapter 5 - The Conquest of Land: Amniote Origins and the Age of Reptiles
5.1 - Early Amniotes and Extant Sauropsids
5.2 - Ecological Challenges for Early Amniotes
5.3 - Enhanced Sense Organs
5.4 - Changes in Motor Patterns and Control
5.5 - Changes in the Brains of Sauropsids
5.6 - Novel Forebrain Circuits and Functions

Chapter 6 - The rise of endothermy: Mammals, but also birds
6.1 - Extant Mammals
6.2 - Stem Mammals
6.3 - Synapsid Brain-body Scaling
6.4 - Paleoecology, Physiology, and Behavior
6.5 - Modified Sensory Abilities
6.6 - Breathing, Chewing and Moving Around
6.7 - Brain Enlargement and Reorganization

Chapter 7 - Synthesis: Patterns and Principles
7.1 - Major Transitions in Vertebrate Phylogeny
7.2 - General Patterns of Evolutionary Change
7.3 - Trends in the Evolution of Brain Size
7.4 - The Evolution of Brain Region Size
7.5 - Changes in the Basic Plan of Vertebrate Brains
7.6 - Conclusion: Natural History through Time

Appendix
Index