Higher levels

• Autores: Emma Young
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 2917, 2013, págs. 35-36
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Young discovers why being conscious that people are conscious seems to be what sets them apart from other animals. There are many ways that human intelligence differs from that of animals, but one of the most obvious is the level of self-awareness. This faculty is often referred to as introspection of metacognition. Past research on metacognition has focused on whether it really is unique to humans or whether it is shared to some extent by the more intelligent animals. There have been hints of this capacity in dolphins and monkeys, for instance, although skeptics say there could be other explanations for the results. Scanning the brains of humans while they carry out metacognitive tasks suggests the seat of this ability lies in their prefrontal cortex, at the front of their heads.