Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id SAA17295 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 6 Feb 2001 18:21:58 GMT From: "Lawrence DeBivort" <debivort@umd5.umd.edu> To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> Subject: RE: Darwinian evolution vs memetic evolution Date: Tue, 6 Feb 2001 12:39:48 -0500 Message-ID: <NEBBKOADILIOKGDJLPMACEKKCAAA.debivort@umd5.umd.edu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 (Normal) X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook IMO, Build 9.0.2416 (9.0.2910.0) In-Reply-To: <3A7FE1F3.1663.32C355F@localhost> X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2615.200 Importance: Normal Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
A point of clarification, Joe,
<snip>
Joe Dees:
(such
as a request to use nonlinguistic auditory perception correlating
with one part of the brain lighting up, and linguistic auditory
perception correlating with another, and nontext visual perception
with a third, and text-reading visual perception with a fourth, and
memory with a fifth, and so on, and the subjects can direct those
areas to light up on the PET scan at will (like BIOFEEDBACK,
Robin)), it is reasonable to conclude by any scientific model you
care to name that such a high statistical correlation entails the
high-confidence likelihood that the subjects are indeed succeeding
in doing what they are trying to do; selectively access certain parts
of their brains which operate on the contents and forms requested,
and this involves both conscious self-awareness and efficacious
volition.
<snip>
Lawrence de Bivort:
Agreeing with the correlation between cognitive tasks (visual, linguisitic,
non-linguistic auditory, etc.,)and brain area activity, we still cannot (nor
perhaps need to say) that the subject is consciously or deliberately
activating a specific part of their brain: rather, they are consciously
selecting only a cognitive task, whose performance is/happens to be carried
out by a specific part of the brain. I make this observation because we
'use' our brains without much awareness of what our brains are doing to
enable their use. Brains get a high-level command (see this, read that) and
then execute, without meta-feedback to the subject. In my view, this
automaticity of the brain's response has a lot to do with our perception (or
lack or perception) of how memes are 'accepted', of 'free will' and choice,
etc.
And it presents a wonderful image of a person's brain trying to generate a
meta-understanding of how that highly automated brain works; the thing that
gives us consciouness itself operates without directly giving us the
information with which to understand the processes of that consciousness.
Yet we tackle the job persistently, with argumentation, logic, PET scans,
stimulus probes, head trauma studies, etc. We can applaud this
persistence... There is something so very human about it.
- Lawrence
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