Conscious Mind Could Be An Electromagnetic Field

Daily University Science News ^ | 16-May-2002 | Daily University Science News

[weikel]

Probably junk science but it would be cool if it were true.

[apochromat]

At least it can be said that electromagnetism inherently performs an algorithm in propagating.

I believe that the brain evolved while excluding significant external EM fields. By paying attention to the timing of signal components picked up by different antennas, an array of antennas can focus on a selected area to the exclusion of others, and a similar process may be used by the current carriers of the brain as they propagate and receive internally-generated EM energy.

I think that consciousness is dependent on the degree of effective complexity in the neural wiring, and I think that free will is what consciousness has during free time, when no ideal or pressing mental pursuit is apparent.

[Jimbaugh]

bump

[medved]

Thanks for the headsup. Again for anybody interested in these questions, the main starting point for comprehending human consciousness is Julian Jaynes "Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind" which is available in paperback from Barnes/Noble.

The question of consciousness also involves the question of the origin of language, spoken and otherwise. My own take on this one resides on Bearfabrique.

There was originally an electrostatic component to the manner in which the human mind functioned and the greater prevalence of things which we would call psychic or paranormal phenomena in recent prehistory are thought to have been enabled by this more potent electrostatic field. Some of Al DeGrazia and Hugh Crossthwaite's writings on electricity and antique religious practices can be downloaded in PDF format from Bearfabrique.

[medved]

fyi

[thinden]

fyi

[section9]

Well, since someone has to do it....

I did.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[inquest]

“Language, creativity, emotions, spirituality, logical deduction, mental arithmetic, our sense of fairness, truth, ethics, are all inconceivable without consciousness.”

That's not really true. Either that, or Professor McFadden doesn't have quite the right understanding of "consciousness". Computers can be programmed with surprising capabilities that, more and more, can pass for all these things that he describes. But it would still be a stretch to call them "conscious". Consciousness is that which can't be described objectively - for example, there's no way to describe sensations of color, sound, pain, emotion, to any being that hasn't experienced any of these things. These are the things that constitute consciousness.

[RightWhale]

I thought this was posted a few weeks ago. Perhaps it was a sub-reference, but there was some discussion. It's a weak hypothesis, that is to say, obvious, adding nothing, and explaining less. Parapsychologists like this kind of thing.

[MainFrame65]

So for complete protection, when I put on my tinfoil hat I should also fill my mouth with pennies and stick nails up my nose?

More seriously, I do understand about the radiation. In fact, an Xray would be blank if part (but not all) of the radiation were NOT absorbed by the tissue it passes through, which means that electromagnetic energy is deposited in those tissues.

Of course, EM energy exists somewhere within a spectrum extending from very low frequencies through the radio frequencies, heat, light, Xray, and gamma radiation. We can detect and characterize energy within virtually all of this range, we know that some of it has physiologic effects, that some EM signals are generated and used by the body, and that many of these can be detected externally.

But the signals we have found are pretty crude, and nobody has figured out, for instance, how they could be decoded to reveal my name, rank, and relationship to God (or to my wife, for that matter.)

[COBOL2Java]

And if I ever need to have an MRI (exposure to extremely high static and oscillating magnetic fields), I'll have to find out if my insurance pays for treatment of raving, ranting liberalism, just in case!

Don't worry, I've had three MRIs of the brain (to monitor a pituitary microadenoma) and I'm still a Freeper! :-)

[MainFrame65]

Don't worry, I've had three MRIs of the brain (to monitor a pituitary microadenoma) and I'm still a Freeper!

(with humor) Good, I feel better now.

(with concern, and best wishes) I hope you feel better now, as well.

[Doc On The Bay]

On the Basis of Your "Invasive ElectroMagnetic Insults" Alone, the "Concept" of "Mind" HAS to be Far more Impervious to "Radiation" than we previously Surmized!

Even our "Best Minds" are STILL BAFFLED by the Concept of "Human Intellect!!"

WHAT FUN!!!

Doc

[meyer]

Soooooo...

What's the frequency, Kenneth?

[MainFrame65]

Of course, this really is a very important, serious topic, overflowing with philosophical, scientific, and religious meaning, and perhaps I ought to be addressing it with more weight, but as presented it seemed to call for a lighter touch.

On the other hand, I really believe that some of those "best minds" are far too willing to believe that understanding the brain is all that is required for understanding the mind. Just as we have found that DNA chemistry may not be enough to completely account for how the body works - Protein chemistry may be the details in which that devil resides - so consciousness may require a whole lot more than just mapping neuron connections.

[Ken H]

You might be onto something.

I went in for a brain x-ray one day.

Next thing I remember is resigning as a speechwriter for Senator Biden and logging on to Free Republic.

The rest, as they say, is history.

[RightWhale]

Isn't chemistry an 'electron kinda thing'?

As is most everything on earth. But the EM field they imagine is in addition to the chemistry inside the brain. The active EM field might even extend outside the brain structure somewhat, which is why we wear our foil hats sometimes even at home, to keep outside EM forces from modifying our own EM fields. Ha! You probably thought it was a joke.