Genetics, neurocognition, MAGICAL THINKING AND RELIGION (PART 1)
By: Antonio Chávez
hnc.correo @ gmail.com
(Based on an article published in our discussion forum as part of the subject Is there a genetic predisposition to be religious? )
What we call 'religious cognition', ie 'religion' "
as a kind of interpretation of the world " (Guthrie Andresen 2001, pp
. 94-95), involves "an entire collection
behaviors and mental representations that are found in many different human groups "(Boyer & Bergstrom
2008), including, outstandingly, beliefs in gods and spirits and the rituals associated.
1 As such, religious cognition encompasses a wide number of capabilities, functions and neuropsychological states (eg agency, Theory of Mind, facial recognition, empathy,
cf.
Boyer 2003 p. 122 Table 2: A framework for a cognitive neuroscience of religion ). In this first part will explore and discuss briefly some neuro-genetic aspects relevant to these capabilities and functions.
Meanwhile, in order to clarify certain principles of argument in This article is generally assumed that any supernatural entity religious meaning and definition, that is, a supernatural agent embodied in a specific way they interact individually and collectively people (prayers, sacrifices, rituals, aimed at them expecting something in return :
God-Yahweh, Allah-gods
~ deities, angels
,
ancestors, spirits
, etc.) that are more or less involved in the observation of their behavior and / or control world around them, are representations agent whose description, definition and "psychological profile" are strictly culturally constructed and culturally transmitted, acquired and assimilated into the cognitive schema of individuals. Let me be clear then: reject the concept "God gene" (Hamer 2004
;
cf.
Zimmer 2004). And when he suggests that "religion is
natural " (Bloom 2007
, in contrast eg with
atheism), referring to cognitive biases that exist (automation, mechanics and / or innate strongly suggesting a neuroanatomy / functionality under varying genetic control) that help more or less direct one, sometimes extremely, readily available cultural concepts of religious (supernatural agents-religious, religious worldview - again in comparison with atheism or a complete lack of attribution agent about life and the world). No reference to the concept that religion is innate, or there is some genetic-neural aspect focuses exclusively on it.
Returning to the subject's brain and genes, in a global sense now known to be under genetic influence cognitive functions (cf
.
Plomin & Spinath 2002, 2004
;
Koten et al. 2009 ) or personality traits (
Penke et al . 2007), and the neuro-architecture that supports both, obviously also (
Chiang et al . 2009 ). More specifically, an ability vital to man as the
Theory of Mind (ToM) , important in religious cognition (eg Boyer 2003
p. 120; Pyysiäinen 2009
pp. 12 - 13) in fact can be considered a phylogenetic specialization (eg Allman
et al. 2002 ). In short, attribution or detection
agency (one of the cores of the ToM, even it is interchangeable concepts:
Griffin & Baron-Cohen in Dennett 2002 p. 3 ) would be a reflex mechanism
generalist (underlies both religion and science, art or life) under some degree of neuro-genetic control, while religious beliefs and rituals specific ( eg Trinidad, the reincarnation cycle or Ramadan) depend on cultural learning. This on the grounds that such cultural aspects coalesce simultaneously from simple to higher cognitive functions abstract level both in terms of mental representations as to the thoughts and social interaction, involve complex from basic processes such as perception and viscero reactions, to the elaboration of beliefs and self-monitoring of conduct with reference to the expectations of a supernatural agent and the religious community. That is, all this
, which is what makes the seemingly simple act of believing and thinking about the Trinity or participate in Ramadan, is led by many parts of the brain in many hierarchical levels of functionality and various ways of interacting and intracerebral and extracerebral to the sociocultural environment at the time and circumstances. Obviously, it is inconceivable that there is "a region", "a function" and therefore "a gene", or even many, which may cover all this as an idea or a unit of behavior that Muslims enjoy Ramadan and thus give meaning to his life and the cosmos, simultaneously rejecting the Trinity. Yes there is a unitary idea of \u200b\u200ball this (Islam), but is merely a cultural invention.
on the brain and genetic influence: relationships with religious cognition Fig. 1. Image from Thompson et al . 2002 p. 529 on mapping the genetic influences on the brain. " Note the significant genetic control in a strip comprising anatomical parietal cortices, sensorimotor and frontal . " growing
While genetics and identification of the precise role of the genome in the formation of the brain, and consequently in the behavior and cognitive abilities, the strongest evidence before this identification comes from the study of twins
(brothers formed from a single egg - MZ in Figure 1, thus being extreme genetic identity, in contrast to
twins, from different zygotes - DZ). Eg, the high similarity to the thickness of the cortex (gray matter
) or
connectomics (white matter
) Between twins, is seen as a formidable display, perhaps the only one that nature provides an easily accessible manner, most of those genetic determination. Meanwhile, from the Human Genome Project
(1990-2003) has progressed to have identified an entire region of our genome that is significantly different from other vertebrates, the HARS
(Human Accelerated Regions
). Several of these regions show high mutation rates and are associated with cortical development, such as HAR1 (
Pollard et al . 2006). Meanwhile, recent studies have already been able to identify brain patterns only human, eg, the prefrontal cortex and the perisylvian, whose developments are linked to certain gene expression that is also being profiled (
Clowry et al. 2010 p. 279).
In many non-relevant studies have shown that the volume of the hippocampus
is less associated with gene regulation (Sullivan
et al. 2001 ). This suggests that the environment can strongly influence its anatomical structure, consistently with their abilities neuroplasticity and its central role in memory consolidation and learning (
Toga & Thompson 2005 p. 10 ). This in turn is consistent with temporomedial role of this brain region in areas such as mental
time travel (MTT) , since it must be functionally capable of modulation according to changing external stimuli to be metarepresentations spatiotemporally. Eg MTT maturation into an awareness of time divided into fixed periods involves the assimilation of cultural concepts and the schedule (cf
.
Berntsen & Jacobsen 2008;
Suddendorf 1994). Similarly, this feature is particularly important hippocampal development of religious beliefs, while reciprocally connected with prefrontal cortex dorsolateral, as frontopolar area (Brodmann area 10
) supports higher levels of cognitive abstraction (Badre
et al. 2009 ).
2 Thus, "psychological architecture
responsible for religious cognition is best viewed as a mental time travel self-illusory" (
Bulbulia 2009), while there is an extremely easy
confabulatory order to rationalize and justify simple inferences, purely imaginary potential, or lack of access to unconscious processes and emotional fact that support the working logical narratives in self-belief or belief "logical." Indeed, a confluence of issues mnemonic, emotional and self-monitoring temporomedial supported by the cortex, and prefrontal inferoparietal (also the neural correlates of MTT), predominantly left prefrontal extreme cases (delusions), is the "interpreter
"brain,"
a mechanism to form hypotheses and interpretations "(Miller & Valsangkar
-Smyth 2005 , see"
the left hemisphere: PATTERNS, HYPOTHESES and delusions).
temporomedial region plays an important role in spatial awareness in conjunction the medial parietal cortex / posterior (while the first provides a sense allocentric space, the second provides a self-centered), making the development of a true "map" where they "located" representations of objects, concepts and memories, probably due of how their "place cells
" represent the physical space (
Bird & Burgess 2008). Additionally, the hippocampus is strongly connected to the cingulate cortex, forming both part of a circuit that includes the mammillary bodies and thalamus, called the Papez circuit
. It was originally dubbed the "visceral brain" in 1911 (p. 135
Besada 2010) and is part of the so-called "Limbic System", having been extended later to include the amygdala and prefrontal cortex. Interest here is studying the genetic neurophysiological depression (
SLC6A4, serotonin transporter gene), has found that the amygdalo-prefrontomedial coupling depends on the variation of this gene (Heinz
et al. 2004 ). Certainly, this is a representation not only visceral but of emotion. As previously discussed
about the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), the whole system plays a role important in religion, just as emotional support (which is the aspect that emphasizes
Ramachandran eg). Note
then how agentive representation (eg God) can actually have a more or less emotional dimension, a gradient of emotional complaint and how that it depends on how abundant are the connections (or abundance of neuromodulators ) within the Papez circuit. Although in fact play an important role reading religious symbols of strong socio-emotional meaning (of which there is evidence suggestive of having a role in religion:
Alcorta & Sosis 2005 ) or indoctrination (ie the environment, played an obvious role as already mentioned neuroplasticity and lower hippocampal gene regulation), the predisposition to instill a greater or lesser emotional depth a cognitive process, acquires primary importance. An illustration of this is that a specific aspect such as religious meditation is supported by a complex interaction, neurochemically mediated between the hippocampus and cortex (cf
.
Newberg & Iversen 2003 p. 286): the most likely such mediation is a phenotypic trait (neurophysiological) variable among individuals, and specific cultural acquisitions as a meditation technique (which indeed it may have religious significance and not have it) simply modulate.
The corpus callosum in the anterior region, called the genu
and interconnecting the frontal lobes left / right, is more susceptible to environmental influences, eg the posterior (which connects the parietal lobes), "
perhaps reflecting the continued maturation of the frontal cortex well into adulthood "(
Toga & Thompson 2005 p. 11 with respect to studies of Pfefferbaum et al
. 2001, Sowell et al
. 1999; Gogtay
et the . 2004). This is a fact that is interesting respect to natural right prefrontal imbalance in the dopamine system and magical thinking (see here
) and left about narrative interpretations as discussed above. Again, it is plausible that the interplay between these aspects can be easily modulated neurocognitive socio-culturally, eg for channel and prefrontal function in the evaluation of religious beliefs to a given schema.
Indeed, earlier in "
MENTAL JOURNEY IN TIME ('MENTAL TIME TRAVEL') AND RELIGIOUS COGNITION " referred studies showing that the degree of genetic influence varies in different brain regions. It is of fundamental interest is greatest such influence with respect to spatial and motor system (fronto-parietal), visual (occipital-temporal) and limbic (
Schmitt et al . 2008 pp. 1742-1744). Also, as expected,
Toga & Thompson (2005) showed that classical language areas (Broca: speech, Wernicke: understanding) have similar neuro-genetic characteristics, while, on the other hand sensorimotor regions and occipito-parietal , but not frontal, additionally appeared more genetically influenced than twins twins (
ibid. p. 10), which indicates that within these same regions there are degrees of genetic association. In the same article on the MTT must be remembered that the
connectomics necessarily or white matter, this is the set of neural fibers that travel from one region to another and from one brain hemisphere to the other, forming a dense and complicated substrate authentic organic wires shows a pattern of increasing genetic influence of a lesser degree in the anterior or front of the brain, to a greater extent in the posterior, right parietal cortex and the visual (occipital) (
Chiang et al . 2009 ), while the interconnection between the parietal cortex left and right is also under greater genetic influence than the frontal cortex of both hemispheres (see also Fig
Item 3 above).
In this regard, I could easily notice that natural selection has resulted in a 'visual discrimination → motor action' quickly and effectively at the expense of interesting adaptive error as an optical illusion or bias exaggerated agentive / causative under certain circumstances, such as to the sense of loss of control. Indeed, eg with respect to cortical thickness has been found that the primary visual cortex (V1) has strong genetic correlations with posterior sensory regions and motor areas, whereas the anterior temporal region correlated with the anterior frontal but not V1, and the front half with the inferior parietal (
Rimola et al . 2010). In the second half of this paper will argue this perspective by analyzing biological basis of a demonstrated "need motivational
control", which is what, ultimately predisposes us unnoticed, daily and spontaneously to the magical thinking (
Pronin et al . 2006), regardless of sociocultural context, geographic, age, or science education (Cf
.
Shweder 1977;
Diaconis 1986;
Harris 1997;
Rosengren & Johnson 2000;
Elkan 2001;
Schultheiss & Brunstein 2010).
has been noted previously (
here and here) that the human brain (with clear phylogenetic evidence observed in primates) show lateralized specializations for spatial awareness (right hemisphere) and language (left), which respond to specific perisylvian connective tracts. Come together as suggesting that neurocognitive-evolutionary basis of supernatural agents
as consisting in an overlap between spatial and social cognition:
attribution of social meaning and emotional space ('immaterial mind'). However, this system is correlated with perisylvian
default network (
Figure 2 below illustrates the correspondence). Indeed, this is a very suggestive position
also raised in that article and another latest , the importance to the agency and the
MTT default network: a circuit that temporoparietal-frontomedial activity is evident when we make no mental task or even while we sleep. This, coupled with broad overlapping between agency / MTT /
default network suggests that the agent is a primarily automatic process (involuntary
:
Dennett 2011), spontaneous and constant.
certainly going to be inevitable agentivizar much of the world around us, if not entirely, with trans-spatial scope (due to the overlapping), as happens in many religious worldviews. Neurocognitive function in such a compulsive nature should be under genetic control: in fact, the default network
shows a doubly complex genetic influence, both for connectivity between subregions that compose it, as neuroanatomical variations of the same sub-regions (Glahn
et al. 2010 ). With significant sample of 333 individuals from pedigrees linked (which gives greater accuracy in identifying the degree of heritability of cognitive features), the authors conclude that "
genetic factors rather than environmental influences connectivity via network "(ibid
. p. 1226). This study opens the doors to work to identify the precise causal genes here, eg the thalamocortical axis (
Lokmane & Garel 2011). After some comments return to this point.
Fig. 2. Compare (A) the right hemisphere perisylvian network (adapted from Gharabaghi \u200b\u200b et al. 2009 ) with (B) regions identified as genetically heritable in the default network (adapted from Glahn et al . 2010 , yellow, posterior cingulate / precuneus, pink: temporal / parietal, blue, medial prefrontal, green, parahippocampal, red, cerebellum), and also with the neural substrates of (C) prospecting and (D) the ToM (adapted from Buckner & Carroll 2007 ). 
Fig. 3. Incidentally, note also in Gharabaghi \u200b\u200b et al. 2009 p. 3-4/Fig. 2, how the perisylvian network, present in all 12 individuals studied, however, shows certainly noticeable individual variations (eg Catani et al. 2007 ) with respect to how connected are some regions with others within this network: it could account, importantly on the agent and its neural basis of differences between individuals with regard to 'spectrum agentive-naturalistic' (eg magical thinking, agency death foreign presence) and determination of most or less prone to issues related to religion (eg religious mystical experience, speaking in tongues, Newberg et al. 2006 ). Obviously, what I call the 'spectrum agentive-naturalistic' would be under greater genetic influence in light of the connectivity data related to the neural substrates of the agency, Tom and MTT, whose direct outputs are implicitly understood as counterfactual ( eg Boyer 2008 p. 1) or violating the laws of nature as scientifically defined (eg Tulving 2002 pp. 1-2), being then a general cognitive subject, while belief and explicit religious concepts (eg having an experience of "contact with God" in Christianity or the "trial of karma Hindu) but cultural constructions possible according to the anatomical configuration (genetically regulated) of the cortex and its connectivity, belong rather to the sphere of cultural influence on the brain and their phenotypes precisely because of the explicit and specific content. All this, directly and indirectly shapes our ability to agency. Adaptively, it must rely heavily on a rigid mechanism to route and pre-set functions and selected, eg the "formula" would be selected Shermer
under way: "
if you believe the whisper in the grass is a dangerous predator when it's just the wind (...), is more likely to survive than if you believe the whisper in the grass is just the wind when it is a dangerous predator (...).» 'Suspect and run' mechanism is a fixed pattern sensory neurobiological functioning, genetically encoded. This is not a proven fact, but it is quite likely and I think it necessarily possible, the same way that the gastric juices are released to enter the food bolus to the stomach or more dramatically evident, as when to a sudden loud noise is put in motion a mechanism for alarm. Whether such a 'suspected' to be extended to the award ('suspect') agency about thunderstorms given a fairly complex social brain like ours is just a matter of exaptation
(similarly, Boyer & Lienard
2006 ) .
If we focus on those brain regions as being under greater social control of the genome because they are the seat of the locomotive and communicative capacities of man, it becomes even easier to see what it strategically adaptive-all you have to do it with key evolutionary events such as standing and the origin of speech. But more important here is that, and I think it underestimated the value difference since the walk upright and speak the same, the fronto-parietal circuit is not only the basis of spatial cognition, but also because this process is linked to visual categorization processes in the temporal cortex, all determined to see the "outer space
intentional agent." There are good reasons to believe that come with a "
numenware 'neural wiring that supports what would be a reflection
allocation and pattern detection, causation, intention and socio-emotional messages continence in space around us. This is more than just an inevitable effect, a byproduct or an exaptation of
hypertrophic character of human social behavior: it seems that we are genetically programmed neuro-agent
space, but the adaptive evolutionary significance, it still discussed . This should be implemented in exaptation theory of religion (which it is
an evolutionary product), rather than interpreted as an adaptationist theory
religion. Since
references used in our articles are in English 99%, helps to know that F. Blonde (Professor of Complutense University and perhaps the most important popularizer neuroscientist in our language) suggests that
"
spirituality seems to be something inherent in human beings since it can cause spiritual or mystical experiences by stimulating certain brain regions ." Certainly, this is something quite consistent with the study of
Urgesi et al. (2010) , who managed to isolate the posterior parietal cortex / inferior as the substrate of self-transcendence or spirituality.
3 suggest the concept of "modularity" in this, supported also by the high degree of similarity of spirituality in twins and the likely factor neurochemical (serotonin) associate, as the authors note. In other words, spirituality is as inherent in human beings and this is understood as part of the agent (agent
space) would have a genetic basis as we know of a high degree of genetic influence in the parietal cortex. Following Blonde and as argued in our articles, the issue of conceptualizing spiritual experiences in regards to changing sociocultural aspects of learning, and is therefore a matter of acquiring non-biological, "
if it is true that there is no religion without spirituality does exist, on the contrary, spirituality without religion. "
I have to take a break about that of "modularity". Taking the example of Chavez
et al. 2010 "
empirical studies have also accommodate the hypothesis that brain function depends on the coordination of a mosaic of scattered regions of the brain functionally specialized (modules), forming a structure similar to a neural network ensembles [ ...]
A module is usually defined as a subset of units within a network, so that the connections between them are denser than connections with the rest of the network . "Meanwhile, given A classification of neural connectivity in "structural
" (physical and synapse connections and wiring that forms the white matter), "functional
" (dynamic interaction patterns) and "effective
" (causal effects between neural elements ) "
while structural connectivity (at least on time scales of seconds to minutes) is fairly stable, functional and effective connectivity can undergo rapid reconfiguration of the order of hundreds of milliseconds in the course of spontaneous activity or evoked by tasks "(Sporns 2010
). This may give us an idea of \u200b\u200bhow agency system is clearly modular, can be mechanically operated firing
perceptual categorization outputs a purely structural level of connection (eg with certain sensory information from the environment to build / shoot the attribution of mentality), and yet this same mechanism not be paralyzed by the construction of outputs
more elaborate or dependent learning and functional connective nature or effective in that they involve the interaction of various modules (eg memory + agency + emotion + narrative in the case of assimilate a new belief).
This article illustrates on the one hand, there is a genetic influence on the physical structure of the connectivity (in fact, something shown), but may decrease depending on the type, level of complexity or hierarchical organization of the connectivity (functional and effective) and rely more heavily on the influence of environment. On the other hand, this explains very well how a house could hold the same brain patterns and how disparate beliefs that psychological research has identified superstitious magical thinking or behavior ('spectrum-naturalistic agentive') in individuals classified as skeptics and open rejection of the supernatural
. The underlying assumption is therefore that, first, the agent has a conceptual character
naturalistic,
4 and second, which is a purely reflex mechanism supported by structural connectivity genetically regulated. Valga semantic contradiction, the supernatural
agency course.
5 circuit or fronto-parietal axis (FT) (although not exclusively, but also involving the temporal and occipital cortex) can be viewed from various approaches play an important role in humanization, especially in the storyline directly
sapiens , Ie, in fairly recent geological times. Here, natural selection pressures are derived in part
(1) by neuro-genetic data related to the structure of connectomics
(white matter) already seen, then,
(2) because the parietal cortex in general suffered a general volumetric expansion stronger than the frontal cortex (in fact while the difference is in terms of 'quantity', however some frontal regions, eg anterior cingulate and frontopolar or Brodmann area 10, BA10- are notorious in terms of 'quality'-cellular complexity, see "
here "and"
here), and
(3) because it suggests that this axis is precisely associated with our recent evolution is the biological substrate of human intelligence (defined as "
ability to understand complex ideas, adapt effectively to the environment, learn from new experiences, using various forms of reasoning, to overcome obstacles by thinking '
Jung & Haier 2007 , see chart at right). Assuming
not necessarily the size but especially the effectiveness of the human brain is what determines our high cognitive abilities (eg language) and intelligence so fundamental structure connectomics
respect to FT, on the one hand, while we know that if just the whales have larger brains (or that elephants have a thicker cortex) than ours, whereas the human brain gains in terms of total number of neurons and the most efficient way in which information is sent between them (ibid
. pp. 136-137). Two neuro-developmental factors appear to be necessary for determining the subject: the globularización parietal / temporal and settings connectomics
. And at least two genes,
microcephalin and ASPM
have been identified as candidates for regulation it because a first mutation causes reduced brain size (comparable to early hominids) and mental retardation, while the latter is also associated with microcephaly, apparently associated with the proliferation / differentiation neural (ibid
. p. 136). It is therefore likely that these genes, but surely not the only ones governing connectomics
and thus the functional capabilities of the FT. Additionally, there is evidence of selective pressure on these genes as recently as between 37,000 and 5,800 years, so "there
tentative support linking discrete candidate genes, brain size and development chronological cognitive skills associated with relatively modern human achievements over the course of evolutionary history "(ibid
. p. 136).
Fig. 4. Scheme cortex functional directionality in terms of information processing: visual information enters the occipital cortex and is categorized ( conceptualized ) in a double (or even triple) certainly decoupled mode using the "dorsal stream "(dorsal pathway: the" where "procedural) extending to the superior parietal cortex (SPL) and "ventral stream '(ventral pathway: the' what ') to the inferior temporal (IT). As noted both in terms of genetic influence as neurodevelopmental , this process is supported by brain regions under strong genetic influence, more than environmental, which consistently develop this ontogenetically earlier, while it is phylogenetically eg former regions compared to BA10 . It is since this first stage of processing that develops executive control (frontal cortex), so there is a reprocessing of the feedback type information (eg in this case on the preparation and monitoring of a behavioral response). This is because as illustrated neurocognitive agent (~ immaterial mind) as an operator (ie, a function genetically mediated) nuclear-temporo-parietal. This model of the biology of human intelligence Jung & Haier (2007), is highly consistent with the model proposed in the article "THE MENTAL JOURNEY IN TIME ..." (and before that "NEUROSCIENCE OF RELIGION ' "
VI" and "
VII) as the neural substrate of cognition
agentive-religious, largely made up of the MTT, which is based directly on a 'system temporo-parieto-frontal' (according to the directional sense of information processing, see supra
Fig. 4) the right hemisphere of the brain as opposed and parallel to the left system focused on language (
Gharabaghi \u200b\u200b et al. 2009 ;
Karnath 2009). As shown by Jung & Haier (2007), human intelligence is, precisely, lateralized to the left hemisphere. However, as discussed whether the MTT is a uniquely human faculty or not, as it may, on the one hand it has been suggested as a cause neurocognitive of religion (Suddendorf & Corballis 1997
; Also
Bulbulia 2009), while the other, could also be seen lounging as inseparable from the development of human intelligence, as thought and language (Suddendorf & Corballis 1997;
Suddendorf, Addis & Corballis 2009). In fact, the model of Jung & Haier (2007) Language and intelligence are directly related. Thus, according to the above disposal concept does not seem to define human intelligence could not be seen as associated with MTT. I could not, I think, not being given the intimate relationship between visuospatial ability (basically the parietal lobe), language (temporal lobe, parietal and frontal) and MTT as "juice" we call 'human intelligence', without in turn consider the fundamental importance of how these brain lobes are connected to the impact and influence in this genome.
Accordingly, while I have also proposed the FT as the substrate of the "outer space as intentional agent ', and has shown that the temporoparietal region specifically supports (" modular?) Spirituality or self-transcendence (
Urgesi et al. 2010), and now we see that the neural architecture and functionality involved (both the structure and regionalization of the cortex and white matter that interconnects) are genetically regulated, in this article suggest that these "channels" cognitive ('spectrum-naturalistic agentive') that encourage and / or facilitating learning of religion, are so remarkable neuro-genetically determined. But religion as defined earlier in this article is not a matter of biology. While such channels or the entire spectrum and are certainly characterized as 'magical thinking', which proved to be linked to an instinctive
motivation (need for control), in the second part will develop precisely the issue of the biological basis of this , finally exploring interesting relationships between magical thinking, schizotypy, and infant cognition, all trying to glow with (apparent) fact of evolution is not well studied: neoteny. However, have argued plausibly wait magical thinking, not religion and change, adaptive biological roots, and that may not be simple or at least strictly a byproduct
neurocognitive (and assuming power to dismiss it as a cultural product).
Notes:
↑ 1. Recently, Boyer discusses the term 'religion' that, as regards a recent cultural phenomenon and still seen in terms of Western religion (ie the different religions so defined cristianocéntrico ) as well understood as the idea / behavior adaptive for an academic (an alleged base genetics to a whole set of different aspects from neurobiological to purely cultural but serve only to religion), is an empty term scientifically. See Aletheia and our forum.
↑ 2. Memory and hippocampal spatial mapping make a circuit along with the frontopolar region, through which converge in the decision-making. And as we know, the frontopolar area is directly linked to the evaluation of religious beliefs (see " neural correlates of the religious and nonreligious ). This circuit-frontodorsolateral temporomedial clearly gives the agency an enormous system capacity to extend the attribution of intentionality through highly abstract constructs, eg, entities that transcend time and space, may well have played a decisive role in the emergence of religious beliefs (Suddendorf & Corballis 1997 ).
↑ 3. The definition of Urgesi et al. is "the tendency lasting sensorimotor representations beyond quotas and identify the self as an integral part of total universe" (p. 310).
↑ 4 . See our relevant discussion forum.
↑ 5 . Eg Bulbulia (2009 p. 2) suggests that supernatural "is a genre natural. " (Still, this implies that propositions categorized as supernatural content can actually be tested scientifically: Fishman 2009).
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