Originally posted by seotiblizzard:
[b]They're tough nuts to crack even for the brainiest of
scientists
Our brains can fathom the beginning of time and the end of the
universe, but is any brain capable of understanding itself?
With billions of neurons, each with thousands of connections, one's
noggin is a complex, and yes congested, mental freeway.
Neurologists and cognitive scientists nowadays are probing how the
mind gives rise to thoughts, actions, emotions and ultimately
consciousness.
The complex machine is difficult for even the brainiest of
scientists to wrap their heads around. But the payoff for such an
achievement could be huge.
If we understand the brain, we will understand both its capacities
and its limits for thought, emotions, reasoning, love and every
other aspect of human life, said Norman Weinberger, a
neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine.
Brain teasers
What makes the brain such a tough nut to crack?
According to Scott Huettel of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience
at Duke University, the standard answer to this question goes
something like: The human brain is the most complex object in the
known universe ... complexity makes simple models impractical and
accurate models impossible to comprehend.
While that stock answer is correct, Huettel said, its incomplete.
The real snag in brain science is one of navel gazing. Huettel and
other neuroscientists cant step outside of their own brains (and
experiences) when studying the brain itself.
A more pernicious factor is that we all think we understand the
brain at least our own through our experiences. But our own
subjective experience is a very poor guide to how the brain works,
Huettel told LiveScience.
Whether the human brain can understand itself is one of the oldest
philosophical questions, said Anders Garm of the University of
Copenhagen, Denmark, a biologist who studies jellyfish as models
for human neural processing of visual information.
Mental mechanics
Scientists have made some progress in taking an objective, direct
look at the human brain.
In recent years, brain-imaging techniques, such as functional
magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have allowed scientists to
observe the brain in action and determine how groups of neurons
function.
They have pinpointed hubs in the brain that are responsible for
certain tasks, such as fleeing a dangerous situation, processing
visual information, making those sweet dreams and storing long-term
memories. But understanding the mechanics of how neuronal networks
collaborate to allow such tasks has remained more elusive.
We do not yet have a good way to study how groups of neurons form
functional networks when we learn, remember, or do anything else,
including seeing, hearing moving, loving, Weinberger said.
Plus these clusters of brain cells somehow give rise to more
complex behaviors and emotions, such as altruism, sadness, empathy
and anger.
Huettel and his colleagues used fMRIs to discover a region in the
brain linked with altruistic behavior.
"Although understanding the function of this brain region may not
necessarily identify what drives people like Mother Teresa,
Huettel said, it may give clues to the origins of important social
behaviors like altruism.
Who am I?
The prized puzzle in brain research is arguably the idea of
consciousness. When you look at a painting, for instance, you are
aware of it and your mind processes its colors and shapes. At the
same time, the visual impression could stir up emotions and
thoughts. This subjective awareness and perception is
consciousness.
Many scientists consider consciousness the delineation between
humans and other animals.
So rather than cognitive processes directly leading to behaviors
(unbeknownst to us), we are aware of the thinking. We even know
that we know!
If this mind bender is ever solved, an equally perplexing question
would arise, according to neuroscientists: Why? Why does awareness
exist at all?
Ultimately, Weinberger said, understanding the brain will enable
us to understand what it truly is to be human.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20092425/[/b]
WOei, dun make me sleep leh, I still got dating to go ok.
