NEUROPHYSIOLOGY OF EMOTIONS (HUMANS vs. ANIMALS) BY DR. ANTHONY ALSAYED

It was naturalist Charles Darwin who proposed that emotions evolved because they were adaptive and allowed humans and animals to survive and reproduce someway similarly. Is that absolute? Plan: 1- Study the physiological and neurological processes of Emotions (Humans vs. Animals): a- Anatomy and histology of the brain: Structures & Cells. b- The chemical neurotransmitters, DNA and hormones. c- Functional and behavioral aspects: actions & reactions. 2- Analyze the differences and the similarities of emotional processes (Humans vs. Animals): a- Emotions, mood and far. b- Theories of emotion from various professional prospective c- Research studies

Facts 1- Study the physiological and neurological processes of Emotions (Humans vs. Animals): A- Anatomy and histology of the brain: Structures & Cells. - Different anatomical constructions & forms - Many common for its cellular structures & functions B- The chemical neurotransmitters, DNA and hormones. - The human brain is quite convoluted (progressive evolution) - The animal brain is self-preservation (limited & dependable evolution) - Chemistry: dopamine, serotonin and opioids are similar - Biologically: hormones are similar - Scientifically: human nuclear DNA appears to be 98.4% = chimpanzee - Experimentally: animals have been used in research because of these similarities .

Facts (continue) DNA STRUCTURE BRAIN LOBS NEUROTRANSMETTERS

Facts (continue) C- Functional and behavioral aspects: actions & reactions: - Animals don’t have mixed emotions (such as love-hate) - Animal emotions can be expressed by actions only - Animals respond to the environment much as humans, but they cannot express their feeling linguistically 2- Analyze the differences and the similarities of emotional processes (Humans vs. Animals): A- Emotions, mood and fear. - Emotions, such as anger, fear, sadness, joy- fairly for short duration - Moods, such as happiness or frustration- for a longer duration - Fear is the most involved in emotion as a warning signal and depends on the environmental factors

Facts (continue) B- Theories of emotion from various specialized prospective: - Philosophers such as Aristotle, Descartes, and Hobbes recognized the theory of emotion as typical conscious phenomena- involve more pervasive bodily manifestations - Physiological theory- emotions occur as a result of physiological reactions to events. - Evolutionary theory- emotions exist because they serve an adaptive role.  - Appraisal theories- thinking must occur first before experiencing emotion. - Facial-feedback theory- facial expressions are connected to experiencing emotions. - Survival phenomena- Studies in animals can find survival circuits, like fear and hunger.

Facts (continue) C- Research Studies: - Scientific research in evolutionary biology, cognitive ethology (the study of animal minds) and social neuroscience support the view that numerous and diverse animals have rich and deep emotional lives.  - Research has shown that mice are empathic rodents, but it turns out they’re fun-loving as well.  - Many researchers also recognize that we must be anthropomorphic- as animals and humans share many traits, including emotions.  - Functional approaches, rely on understanding what roles emotions play in humans and examining that role in animals.  - Mechanistic approaches, requires an examination of the mechanisms that drive emotions and search for similarities in animals.

If elephants feel joy, chimpanzees grief and depression, and dogs happiness and dejection- Then the questions are? 1- Scientists disagree about the nature of emotions nonhuman animal beings (hereafter animals), especially concerning the question of whether any animals other than humans can feel emotions.  2- Do animals experience emotions? What, if anything, do they feel? Is there a line that clearly separates those species that experience emotions from those that do not?  3- How man and animals express their emotions? What are the differences and the similarities?

Methods 1- Study the brain of humans and animals- Anatomy, histology, neurology, biochemistry, and other systems to determine the common findings . 2- Review and compare between the theories of emotions proposed by various researchers, philosophers, physiologists, psychologists, and other scientists. 3- Explore and interpret the effects of the environment that influence thought and behaviors

3- Human nuclear DNA appears to be 98.4% = to chimpanzee. Results & Discussions 1- One of the hottest questions in the study of animal behavior is, “Do animals have emotions?” And the simple and correct answer is, “Of course they do.”  2- All mammals (including humans) share neuroanatomical structures, such as the amygdala and neurochemical pathways in the limbic system that are important for feelings. 3- Human nuclear DNA appears to be 98.4% = to chimpanzee. 4- Substances such as: dopamine, serotonin and opioids are similar (H vs. A). 5- The differences among species are differences in degree rather than kind. 6- Animals don’t have mixed emotions (such as love-hate) & can be expressed by actions only.

7- The human brain is quite convoluted (progressive evolution). Results & Discussions (continue) 7- The human brain is quite convoluted (progressive evolution). 8- The animal brain is self-preservation (limited & dependable evolution). 9- Emotions have evolved as adaptations in numerous species. They serve as a social glue to bond animals with one another and also catalyze and regulate a wide variety of social encounters among friends and foes. 10- Human emotion involves "...physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience."

Results & Discussions (continue) The major theories of motivation can be grouped into three main categories:  Physiological theories suggest that responses within the body are responsible for emotions. Neurological theories propose that activity within the brain leads to emotional responses. Finally, cognitive theories argue that thoughts and other mental activity play an essential role in forming emotions. Researchers working in different fields stated that animals widely experience feelings and emotions such as fear, jealousy, grief, anger and love. But the human brain and the animal brain control these emotions differently. furthermore, researchers consider that the human emotion is cortical and the animal emotion is sub-cortical, but they argue on the level of dimensions such as sociability, affection, emotional stability and competency.

References 1- Myers, D. G. (2004). Theories of Emotion. Psychology: Seventh Edition. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. 2- 2008. The biology of the brain/id/1286752. 3- P. V. Simonov. The Emotional Brain: Physiology, Neurology, Psychology, and Emotion. Translated from Russian by Marie J. Hall. 4- Beridge/2001. Comparing the emotional brain of humans and other animals. In Handbook of affective sciences, R. Davidson, K. Scherer, H. Hill Goldsmith (Eds.), Oxford University Press, N.Y., 2003. 5- Darwin, Charls. 1998 [1986]. The Expression of the Emotionin Man and Animals. Introduction, Notes and Commentaries by Paul Ekman. London: Harper Collins.

Conclusion The borders between “Humans” and “Animals” are murky and permeable, and the study of animal emotions helps inform the big question of just who we are. According to the conclusions from various research studies, some behaviors, structures, and brain chemistry are similar in humans and animals. Also, evidence from different fields of anatomy, physiology, ethnology, neurochemistry, DNA analysis and psychology show support for the idea that, on some emotional level, animals are somehow like humans. Furthermore, all these evidences, theories and studies give the impression to be by an evolutionary process themselves, which makes any absolute conclusions currently unfeasible. .

Conclusion (continue) Perhaps the most difficult unanswered question about animal emotions concerns how emotions and cognition are linked, how emotions are felt, or reflected on, by humans and other animals. Researchers also do not know which species have the capacity to engage in conscious reflection about emotions and which do not. The best way to learn about the emotional lives of animals is to spend considerable time carefully studying them—conducting comparative and evolutionary ethological, neurobiological, and endocrinological research—and to resist critics' claims that anthropomorphism has no place in these efforts. To claim that one cannot understand elephants, dolphins, or other animals because we are not “one of them” leaves us nowhere. It is important to try to learn how animals live in their own worlds, to understand their perspectives. 

.