Abstract
A useful analogy may help to understand the evolutionary selection pressures that have shaped how humans detect and respond to threats. A rare genetic anomaly on the V chromosome has been found that results in a “movement blindness” in the form of an inability to perceive visual movement (Zeki, 1991; Zihl & von Cramon, 1983). If an individual were to have this genetic defect, the person would only be able to perceive object movement that occurs in the surrounding environment as series of snapshots of static objects rather than as a fluid sequence of dynamic objects that are approaching. Consider how could this inability to perceive the dynamism of visual objects could affect their chances of surviving an encounter with a predator or a car that was careening toward them while they were crossing the street? Similarly, imagine that there were two hypothetical human ancestors, one of whom had our ability to rapidly detect and respond to dynamism and movement of potential predators and one who didn’t. Which one of these potential ancestors are we more likely to be descended from?
“The capacity for anxiety, like other normal defenses, has been shaped by natural selection.”
Isaac M. Marks and Randolph M. Nesse, 1994
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Riskind, J.H., Rector, N.A. (2018). Evolutionary and Ecological Functions of Dynamic Perceptions of Looming Danger. In: Looming Vulnerability. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-8782-5_2
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