Cognitive Scaffold

Preparing your thinking workspace

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MENTAL MODEL · M3309

Expensive Tissue Hypothesis

Expensive Tissue Hypothesis
CultureHigh supportAnthropology
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

The brain and the gut are both extremely energy-consuming organs (expensive tissues). In order for humans to evolve a large brain, the gut had to be reduced in size. This forced humans to shift to high-quality, easily digestible food (such as meat and cooked food).

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

Trade-off thinking. No evolution is free. If an organization wants to build a 'super brain' (a strong R&D department), it may have to streamline the 'gut' (outsource low-end manufacturing), because total energy (resources) is limited.

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Anchor fast decisions

Anthropological 'expensive tissue hypothesis': The human brain has high energy consumption, and its expansion is accompanied by a reduction in the digestive tract (and other tissues), possibly supported by cooked food reducing the energy cost of foraging.

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expensive_tissue_hypothesisZH · Explicit
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