Naked Science Forum
Life Sciences => Physiology & Medicine => Topic started by: anveshak on 12/02/2010 08:36:14
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What is a thought made of? is that any type of matter or something else?
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Well, the simple answer is that it's a combination of electrical and chemical signals. It's not an independent thing in and of itself.
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You might also find it interesting to examine the 'Triune Brain' theories of neurologist Paul MacLean. He proposed that we each have three brains, each representing a distinct evolutionary stratum. (Reptillian/archipallium; paleo-mammalian and neomammalian.)
Each brain is connected by nerves to the other two, but operates as its own brain system with distinct capacities.
Indeed, DiscoverDave, it is really amazing.
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Where and how does memory occur? This is another question that has puzzled scientists for decades. Recent information suggests that memory is not stored in a single brain center, but instead is part of numerous processing systems in the cerebral cortex. Scientists believe that memory involves chemical and structural changes in neurons, as well as changes in the strength of synapses.
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So Dave, you are a believer of "control". But what is control really? How do you know that your "will" that controls your thoughts is not fully determined by the lower neuronal activities?
If the will is derived from the lower neural activities, than it is also just a reaction, it doesn't have control over anything. Moreover this means that the "will" can be determined before it occurs. Than free will is just an illusion.
It surely seams that our will is free, but is it really like that?
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is there any difference between a thought and an emotion?
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I encourage you to try it yourself.
A thought is usually an inner speech, and thus it can be easily put to words. You can easily say what you are thinking about, but sometimes emotions are harder to grasp in words.
Emotions are accompanied by physiological changes (change in heartrate, pulse, blood pressure, skin temperature, muscle tone, facial expressions, pupil diameter, sweating) while thoughts mostly "stay in your brain". (Although there are some physiological changes that can be measured in times of hard cognitive activities too, like the diameter of the pupil changes.)
We have much more conscious control over our thoughts compared to our emotions. We can't change our emotions willfully from one emotion to another, while we can do that most of the times easily with our thoughts.
Emotions have a "global effect" on your body and mind that define what actions and thoughts are likely to arise. They push you toward a direction. They restrict your freedom but give you more energy for the specific tasks and actions that the emotion pushes you toward. Thoughts on the other hand have no such strong global effects, they are more "local" and specific.
Most likely there are much more differences betwean the two, but I can think of these at the moment.
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Also a 'visual, smelling' etc' memory can open a whole plethora of thoughts and memories, clad in words, as you relive them. For example the memory of that type of cellophane we used for candy before, if now anyone more than me remember it. Ever took one of those papers and placed it between your eye and the sun as a small kid? It lifts me back, opening a whole spectrum of emotions 'remembering' that sight, a bright day, with only me, and an eternity of play waiting :)