Thread following up concept I discussed @Neurosci2019, which I believe is very imp for neuroscience: the bias of ‘human brain exceptionalism’. Our thought that human brain is the most amazing, complex, unique, etc organ, & how that bias affects discovery. Dedicated to students

The human brain is special…to humans. The ability to create art, culture, music is great…if you are human. But not if you are a bat. The bat brain is also remarkable: eco-locate insects at night. One is not better than the other, just specialized. Same for all other animals.

From our perspective, our brain is exceptional. From our perspective also the sun goes around the Earth. But thought that we were the center of universe limited science. To think our brains are exceptional limits, IMO, neuroscience #Copernicancognitivism (3/x)

Golgi stained single cells, but when he looked at his experiments, he “saw” a continuous network because he could not accept that the brain would be built like other organs. It had to be different. Our frameworks influence our interpretations. And that bias limited science.

When Galen thought our soul--what made us human--resided in heart, no progress was made on circulatory system. Nothing could be learned from other animals bc they don't have souls like us. Took >1000 yrs and William Harvey to open up a frog to figure out heart is a pump.

To be sure, our brains are different from other animals. But that does not make them 'exceptional'. All brains are products of evolution. That has consequences for understanding. To understand differences, first we need to understand important similarities.

E.g., nobody would argue that we look like bacteria. But genetic principles are conserved. Understanding those principles is imp to understand how emergent phenotypes are different between us & bacteria. I would argue same principles apply to all sciences, including neuroscience.

If we think our brains are exceptional, we will look for what makes them different. If we look for what makes them different without understanding fundamental principles of structure, function and evolution, we will end up studying minutiae and phenomenology, IMO