Human Networks Colloquium WHAT: Robin I.M. Dunbar (University of Liverpool, School of Biological Sciences): "The 'Social Brain' Hypothesis: Cognitive Constraints on Social Networks" WHEN: Friday, April 29, 2005, 1:00 PM EST WHERE: Bartos Theatre, MIT Media Lab (E15) HOSTED BY: Judith Donath, Assistant Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, MIT Media Lab Alex (Sandy) Pentland, Toshiba Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, MIT Media Lab SUMMARY: The Social Brain Hypothesis is an explanation for the evolution of unusually large brains in primates. It supposes that social group size is limited by the individual's ability to manipulate information about the relationships among its group members, and that this is turn is limited by the size of its brain (and, in particular, the neocortex). Perhaps surprisingly, human social group sizes seem to fit perfectly with the size predicted by this hypothesis. I shall discuss the kinds of cognitive demands that might be involved, and hence why these constraints occur. I shall also show that, as with all primates, human social networks are hierarchically structured, and that the resulting subgroupings appear to differ mainly in terms of their level of intimacy and the frequency of contact involved. These findings may have some implications for how we organise functional groupings in work and related contexts. MIT Media Laboratory Home Page | Events Main Index