The cerebellum and cognitive evolution in Pliocene and Pleistocene hominids

In the course of hominid evolution, the both the cerebellum and the neocortex have expanded, but they have done so at different rates. Differences in relative cerebellar volume with respect to overall brain and body size among Pliocene and Pleistocene hominids correlate with archeological and skeletal indicators of cognitive evolution. The cerebellum and the neocortex process information in different but complementary ways. The neocortex manipulates mental representations of objects, concepts, and events using data-rich “declarative” learning and memory processes. The cerebellum, on the other hand, uses “procedural,” rule-based and hierarchically organized functions to coordinate a continuum of sensory-motor and cognitive neural representations (Parkins 1997; Ullman in press).