According to the human evolution articles, bipedalism probably evolved to help maneuver better in trees and reproductive success. Bipedalism also helped with the regular use of tools as both carrying devices and as implements for resource explortation. Bipedalism was able to help find more food and shelter by being able to walk longer distances. It also helped in the mating process by finding more mates.
Nature selection played a role in larger brain size possibly due to reproductive success. Primates, they argue, live in relatively large groups where an individual's survival and reproductive success depends on its ability to manipulate others within a complex web of kinship and dominance relations (Seyfarth and Cheney). Brain size is also seen to be larger in animals that are fruit-eating or omnivorous. Species that feed on fruit may have problemes in learning and memony.
Robert M. Seyfarth and Dorothy L. Cheney, "What are big brains for?" http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC123613/
This is the article I used to find out more information about bigger brain size.
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Did bipedalim evolved to help maneuver in tress? or you mean that that complemented tree maneuver with the advantage of increased bipedalims?
ReplyDeleteI agree with your reasons for why natural selection plays a role in larger brain size. Those are some good reasons.
ReplyDeleteNice post, and I believe that the harsh environments shaped the evolution of the early ancestor hominds of humans to stand upright for hunting and to reach for foliage that was higher than usual in the tree canopies and also the savannahs of foliage, too.
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