No, I do understand the metaphor. But like all metaphors rarely match the thing being symbolized...something is always added or subtracted. By hard wiring in the brain I refer to the (faulty) notion that neural and cell structures are fixed, like wiring from point a to point b, etc. I go with those who say the wiring in the brain, to employ the metaphor, is not solidly fixed. This does not contradict Chomsky (who is not universally accepted as the last word, by any means) but adds the organic reality to the otherwise inelastic metaphor. Note: you may assume my alertness to nuanced reasoning. WC
--- On Fri, 10/3/08, GEOFF CREALOCK <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > From: GEOFF CREALOCK <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: Perceptual Cropping was Marks on Canvas > To: [email protected] > Date: Friday, October 3, 2008, 4:34 PM > Re hard wiring (or its lack): we've heard so much about > metaphor from you > William and then you demonstrate a reluctance to recognize > a metaphor when > it's presented. Of course there is not "hard > wiring" in the brain. If that's > the point, you win. On the other hand, if you talk to Noam > Chomsky, or other > linguists, they are likely to assert that there appears to > be an "innate > predisposition" between (say) ages three to seven, to > acquire/develop > language skills. To be metaphorical, we might understand > that as reflecting > something built-in biologically, as opposed to being added > on, as per soft > ware or devloping skills at playing the zither. > Geoff C > > > >From: William Conger <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Reply-To: [email protected] > >To: [email protected] > >Subject: Re: Perceptual Cropping was Marks on Canvas > >Date: Fri, 3 Oct 2008 07:39:32 -0700 (PDT) > > > > > I believe that we must already have the built-in > cognitive > > > systems to do or > > > recognize anything that we now or in the future > may do or > > > recognize. Innate > > > abilities/traits exist cognitively (hardwired > potencies) > > > long before we may > > > become conscious, as a culture, of them. > > > > > > > > > Luis Fontanills > > > Architect > > > > > >I don't think that says anything except that we can > only do what we are > >capable of doing. Trouble is, we don't know what > our capacities are until > >we achieve them. Thus, to say we were innately capable > is only possible > >after the capability is attained. A truism. > > > >"Hardwired potencies"? Are we really > harwired? That's a term that had no > >currency before the computer terminology saturated the > everyday language. > >Brains are not hardwired in the way suggested by the > lingo. Our brains can > >and do adjust and reorganize neuronal activity as has > been demonstrated by > >cases where people who have suffered trauma to one part > of their brains can > >eventually recover abilities through another part of > the brain. (Our brains > >have areas specifically employed for certain functions > but sometimes when > >one area is disabled, an adjacent area can, in time, > "adopt" its function.) > > That's different from hard wiring.
