The Neurology of Self-Awareness

Very interesting concept, which is why neuroscience is great.

Being self conscious is always an interesting process to me, because who you are can be so differently constructed depending on the mirror you use to perceive yourself.

 

I approve of this message.

It even begins to look more and more strange that people actually used to believe their sense of self comes from... nowhere. And that it's truly their own.


edit: it's there with "storks bring babies", now.

 

I want to rep you for this.

 

This has led to me thinking of Julian Jaynes' The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind.


cheers,
Ian

 

What about altered states of consciousness, dreaming and daydream are some. Where would that fit into the neurology of self awareness of the conscious and subconscious states that facilities experiences?

 

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvhCLXEeSDQ"]YouTube - TEDxConejo - Mark Robert Waldman - 03/27/10[/ame]

 

This reminds me of atheist existentialism. Existence precedes essence and all that. We 'were' before we attempted to 'define' ourselves. If we have come to a place where we are indefinable it is only because we were once nothing. We have miraculously attained the ability to attempt definition and thus we can only be what we conceive ourselves to be.

 

edge.org

so neat


thanks NAI

 

Synapses happen here and there, and I offered an idea to help stimulate the Werneckes areas of the brain's "next door neighbors" to try and aid those patients with specific types of speech loss. I was looked at as if I were crazy. I was thinking outside the box(voice box) and know it, but it was important to me at the time for a loved one. I seem to remember the Brochas, too.

I wish I had the time to add to the conversation better. I have read this person's works and know of his writings, though I do not see eye to eye with all his calculations and theories. He thinks outside the box and requires time to do so to try and better understand him. I would almost think he would try to prove wrong the heart of man and his soul through science: the spirit of man; which raises my eyebrow(on the left side of my face). Still some fascinating reading back when I needed it. It could possibly make one guess regarding the spirit of man if one is not careful.

 

I've always had great interest in this subject. I don't think we should discount the importance of the frontal lobe in consciousness. Unless you are some kind of savant, it would seem that you would need to direct yourself in a way as to develop these abilities, and this kind of motivation would come from the frontal lobe, wouldn't it? I'm betting if you took a very highly conscious individual and put them in a functional MRI scanner, many areas of the brain would light up brightly. I'm thinking this would indicate a high degree of parallel processing is occuring. A highly evolved person would have a high degree of integration between various brain functions and the ability to use both sides of their brain well. I would also think the temporal lobes would be important as far as elucidating and assigning meaning to observations. We're also looking at the higher functioning parts of the cerebral cortex as being involved. The heirarchy of consciousness is a complex thing, don't you think?