Is encephalization of the genus of Homo due to ecological or social adaptation?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47611/jsrhs.v13i2.6653Keywords:
Encephalization, Primatology, Anthropology, Social Intelligence Hypothesis, Ecological Intelligence HypothesisAbstract
Brain expansion of the early Homo has led to many debates surrounding the selective pressure that resulted in this evolution. Two of the primary arguments are the relative importance of ecological versus social factors. Also, why the other adaptive traits didn’t evolve when the early Homo species were facing survival challenges such as variable environment, but chose the development of such an energy-consuming organ? Here, I will compare and contrast the social versus ecological intelligence hypotheses and determine which is more likely to have contributed to encephalization of the genu Homo. I conclude that both hypotheses contribute to explaining why Homo became emphasized. While the social intelligence hypothesis is better to explain specifically the case of the Homo encephalization compared to the other primates, the ecological intelligence hypothesis helps explain things such as the energy requirement of encephalization and the impact of the paleoenvironment.
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