And the idea that emotions might be bound up with cerebellar neurons makes sense too. The most crucial survival activities often involve running—away from a predator or toward escaping prey—and our ancestors needed to react quickly, instantly, without analyzing the situation and studying the best course of action. In short, those of our ancestors who were endowed with an emotional system that was directly connected to their motor system could react more quickly, and thus live to reproduce and pass on those genes to another generation.
