This reminds me too much of two disparate concepts:
SF Author (from ABQ no less) book "Proxies" where orphaned children with
severe physical disabilities are offered an alternate existence by
becoming telepresence operators of space equipment (cheaper than
actually putting/keeping humans in space and a reasonable alternative
for otherwise hugely physically limited children who can now have
expanded sensoria and mobility but in an artificial habitat... raised as
a family (of orphans), etc... and all that goes with it
utopian/dystopian SF Style.
http://www.amazon.com/Proxies-Laura-J-Mixon/dp/0812523873
And the Honey Mummy ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mellified_man ) aka,
the mellified man. Not unlike a petrified tree but with a human and
honey instead of tree and minerals. Great source of all the
necessary/appropriate vitamins and minerals, and tasty too!
- Steve
Nick,
I have been thinking recently about trying to write a short story. It
would start with a version of Daniel Dennet's wonderful
brain-in-a-vat. It would be a story of a valiant man who volunteered
for the procedure; he volunteered for his love of science and the deep
impact it would have on the most fundamental of questions, the
relation of brain, mind, and body. There would be dual devices; the
device in the head functioned to replicate effects at the surface of
the brain and keep the space filled, the vat kept the brain alive,
received input measures from the in-head device, and read any and all
brain outputs. There would be details of how the vat perfectly
replicates all effects the body would have on the brain, and how the
artificial implant perfectly replicates all effects the brain would
have on the body. All effects: Neuronal, hormonal, temperature,
chemical force, everything - no safety for the body in a boxing ring
or any other situation. And of course, our protagonist's heroism is
rewarded. Mr. Brain-in-the-Vat functioned amazingly; he could move
around, communicate, feel emotions, dream, everything. People came
from miles around to wonder at him and get autographs ($15 extra for
the paper to be signed on the vat). He was interviewed on every major
TV show, and Larry Flynt even paid him a fortune for... being in film.
But one day another man showed up on Daniel's doorstep. He too had
volunteered for a brave experiment. Sitting next to him on the veranda
was a vat that held his kidneys and perfectly replicated all effects
the body would have on the kidneys, and inside him was a genius device
that perfectly replicated all effects the kidneys would have on the
brain.
But everyone knew that would work, the kidneys after all are JUST a
physiological system. And so, no one cared.
---
Eric
On Sat, Sep 17, 2011 04:09 PM, *"Nicholas Thompson"
<[email protected]>* wrote:
I cannot … for the life of me …. Understand what the mind-body
“problem” is any more than I can understand what the
computing-transistor problem is (if, indeed, there are still
transistors in computers.) We would never wonder why a better
transistor would make the computing better; why would we wonder
why a better stomach would make the mind work better. To me, the
interesting psychological question is why people see it is a
problem. What is that they want to make of the mind that makes
the mind-body problem a problem?
Nick
*From:*[email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Victoria Hughes
*Sent:* Saturday, September 17, 2011 1:09 PM
*To:* The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
*Subject:* [FRIAM] Fwd: The Psychology Of Yogurt
Probiotics, reduced anxiety, and thoughts about the weird, wrong
perception that we exist separately from our bodies, somehow.
*Date: *September 17, 2011 12:18:17 PM MDT
*Subject: **The Psychology Of Yogurt*
*Source: *Wired Science » Frontal Cortex
*Author: *Jonah Lehrer
My latest WSJcolumn
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904265504576566820066488938.html>uses
a new study on probiotics as a launching pad to explore the
mind-body problem, perhaps the most perplexing mystery in modern
science:
One of the deepest mysteries of the human mind is that it
doesn’t feel like part of the body. Our consciousness seems to
exist in an immaterial realm, distinct from the meat on our
bones. We feel like the ghost, not like the machine.
This ancient paradox—it’s known as the mind-body problem—has
long perplexed philosophers. It has also interested
neuroscientists, who have traditionally argued that the three
pounds of our brain are a sufficient explanation for the
so-called soul. There is no mystery, just anatomy.
In recent years, however, a spate of research has put an
interesting twist on this old conundrum. The problem is even
more bewildering than we thought, for it’s not just the coiled
cortex that gives rise to the mind—it’s the entire body. As
the neuroscientist Antonio Damasio writes, “The mind is
embodied, not just embrained.”
The latest evidence comes from a new study of probiotic
bacteria, the microorganisms typically found in yogurt and
dairy products. While most investigations of probiotics have
focused on their gastrointestinal benefits—the bacteria reduce
the symptoms of diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome—this new
research explored the effect of probiotics on the brain.
The experiment, led by Javier Bravo at University College Cork
in Ireland, was straightforward. First, he fed normal lab mice
a diet full of probiotics. Then, Mr. Bravo’s team tested for
behavioral changes, which were significant: When probiotic-fed
animals were put in stressful conditions, such as being
dropped into a pool of water, they were less anxious and
released less stress hormone.
How did the food induce these changes? The answer involves
GABA, a neurotransmitter that reduces the activity of neurons.
When Mr. Bravo looked at the brains of the mice, he found that
those fed probiotics had more GABA receptors in areas
associated with memory and the regulation of emotions. (This
change mimics the effects of popular antianxiety medications
in humans.)
Furthermore, when he severed the nerve connecting the gut and
brain in a control group of mice, these neural changes
disappeared. The probiotic diet no longer relieved the
symptoms of stress.
Though it might seem odd that a cup of yogurt can influence
behavior, the phenomenon has been repeatedly confirmed, at
least in rodents. Earlier this year, Swedish scientists showed
that the presence of gut bacteria shapes the development of
the mouse brain, while French researchers found that treating
human subjects with large doses of probiotics for 30 days
reduced levels of “psychological distress.” There’s nothing
metaphorical about “gut feelings,” for what happens in the gut
really does influence what we feel.
Nor is it just the gastrointestinal tract that alters our
minds. Mr. Damasio has shown that neurological patients who
are unable to detect changes in their own bodies, like an
increased heart rate or sweaty palms, are also unable to make
effective decisions. When given a simple gambling task, they
behave erratically and lose vast sums of money. Because they
can’t experience the fleshy symptoms of fear, they never learn
from their mistakes.
This research shows that the immateriality of mind is a deep
illusion. Although we feel like a disembodied soul, many
feelings and choices are actually shaped by the microbes in
our gut and the palpitations of our heart. Nietzsche was
right: “There is more reason in your body than in your best
wisdom.”
This doesn’t mean, of course, that the mind-body problem has
been solved. Though scientists have ransacked our matter and
searched everywhere inside the skull, they still have no idea
why we feel like a ghost. But it’s now abundantly clear that
the mind is not separate from the body, hidden away in some
ethereal province of thought. Rather, we emerge from the very
same stuff that digests our lunch.
If you’d like to learn about the microbiome lurking inside your
pipes, I highly recommend this wonderfulslideshow
<http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2010/08/08/an-introduction-to-the-microbiome/>by
Ed Yong.
Read more…
<http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/09/the-psychology-of-yogurt/>
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FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
Eric Charles
Professional Student and
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Penn State University
Altoona, PA 16601
============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
