Remembering Barbara Finlay, ‘maverick’ of evolutionary neuroscience
Finlay, who died on 12 September, championed the idea that developmental constraints dictate how evolution sculpts brains, a concept she used to model the timing of hundreds of events and align them across mammalian species.
Barbara Finlay, known for her innovative approach to evolutionary neuroscience, passed away on 12 September at the age of 75. She revolutionized the field by proposing a rule that developmental constraints dictate how evolution shapes brains. This concept allowed her to model the timing of hundreds of events across mammalian species.
In 1995, Finlay introduced a rule stating that the size of each brain region scales with overall brain size, and the timing of development determines its size. This idea contrasted with the prevailing belief that brain structure directly mirrored an organism's functional adaptations. Finlay's groundbreaking Science paper, published with her colleague Richard Darlington, demonstrated that brain structures scale together, with later-developing structures growing larger due to a larger pool of progenitor cells.
Her work enabled predictions about when neurogenesis begins for different brain regions in various mammals. Finlay, born on 25 October 1950 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, initially showed little interest in science as a child. However, a high school science training program and exposure to neuroscientists like David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel sparked her passion.
She earned her B.A. in psychobiology at Oberlin College and a Ph.D. in brain and cognitive sciences at MIT. Finlay's interdisciplinary knowledge and original thinking set her apart, as she could effortlessly connect diverse fields such as brain evolution, metabolism, robotics, and even the nature of dreams.
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