Abstract
IT is a widely deplored fact that every day many thousands of our brain cells die and, unlike other types of cell, are never replaced1,2. I suggest that this may not be a purely destructive process, as is normally supposed, but may represent a mechanism for one of the brain's most constructive functions, memory or information storage.
Access options
Subscribe to Journal
Get full journal access for 1 year
$199.00
only $3.90 per issue
All prices are NET prices.
VAT will be added later in the checkout.
Rent or Buy article
Get time limited or full article access on ReadCube.
from$8.99
All prices are NET prices.
References
- 1
Brody, H., J. Comp. Neurol., 102, 511 (1955).
- 2
Burns, B. D., The Mammalian Cerebral Cortex (Arnold, London, 1958).
- 3
Darwin, C. R., On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859).
- 4
Pringle, J. W. S., Behaviour, 3, 174 (1951).
- 5
Diamond, M. C., Krech, D., and Rosenzweig, M. R., J. Comp. Neural., 123, 111 (1964).
- 6
Diamond, M. C., Law, F., Rhodes, H., Lindner, B., Rosenzweig, M. R., Krech, D., and Bennett, E. L., J. Comp. Neurol., 128, 117 (1966).
- 7
Andrew, W., J. Comp. Neurol., 70, 413 (1939).
- 8
Andrew, W., and Cardwell, E. C., Arch. Path., 29, 400 (1940).
Author information
Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
DAWKINS, R. Selective Neurone Death as a Possible Memory Mechanism. Nature 229, 118–119 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1038/229118a0
Received:
Issue Date:
Further reading
-
Darwinian computation with a functional map of the auditory cortex
Acoustical Science and Technology (2020)
-
Oscillation, Conduction Delays, and Learning Cooperate to Establish Neural Competition in Recurrent Networks
PLOS ONE (2016)
-
Response Variance in Functional Maps: Neural Darwinism Revisited
PLoS ONE (2013)
-
Copying and Evolution of Neuronal Topology
PLoS ONE (2008)
-
ADAPTIVE ROLES OF PROGRAMMED CELL DEATH DURING NERVOUS SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
Annual Review of Neuroscience (2006)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.