Brain Facts

[Cynic]

"Lust is enhanced by dopamine, a neurohormone produced by the hypothalamus that in turn triggers the release of testosterone, the hormone that drives sexual desire. But love is the emotion of attachment reinforced by oxytocin, a hormone synthesized in the hypothalamus and secreted into the blood by the pituitary. In women, oxytocin stimulates birth contractions, lactation and maternal bonding with a nursing infant. In both woman and men it increases during sex and surges at orgasm, playing a role in pair bonding..." - Unweaving the Heart by Michael Shermer

 

[Cynic]

Did you know that...


"Frontal eyes such as those of a cat have overlapping fields of view that provide good depth perception. Lateral eyes such as those of a rabbit provide a panoramic view but poorer depth perception" -Sensation and Perception by E Bruce Goldstein


Pigeons have lateral eyes with visual fields that overlap in a 35-degree area around the beak, and according to experiments, thay have a small area of depth perception directly in front of their beaks.

Hmmm... What would be the advantages of having good depth perception vs panaramic view and vice versa?

 

[Aqualung]

well, with panaramic at least they can see on both sides at the same time, without having to move their heads around a bunch. This is good if you're the prey who's always in danger. I guess depth perception is good if you're a hunter, so you can tell where your prey actually is.

 

[Jaymes]

Or for apes/monkeys who have to jump from branch to branch. Kinda increases your chances of dying if you can't see where you're about to jump properly.

 

[Aqualung]

yes, but how does that work with birds having to perch on trees?

 

[Jaymes]

yes, but how does that work with birds having to perch on trees?

Prey birds have a small amount of overlapped vision that allows them to see how far they are from a branch, and predator birds need overlapped vision anyway to hunt, so.

 

[Aqualung]

oh, true.