Did birds and mammals independently evolve the same brain circuit , and what does that mean for how we define homology? Developmental neurobiologist Zoltan Molnar presents evidence that avian and mammalian forebrains share strikingly similar gene expression patterns and functional properties despite arising from different parts of the embryonic brain. Subscribe for more from the Convergent Science Network podcast series. Zoltan Molnar joins Paul Verschure and Tony Prescott at the BCBT summer school to discuss the evolution and development of the neocortex, tracing the question back to Thomas Willis's 1664 observation that the cerebral cortex is disproportionately enlarged in humans. Molnar argues that while the cortex is clearly central to higher cognitive function, understanding its evolution requires confronting one of the thorniest problems in ...