Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id TAA29123 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Mon, 19 Nov 2001 19:39:49 GMT Message-ID: <001701c17131$ea6af9a0$df9ebed4@default> From: "Kenneth Van Oost" <Kenneth.Van.Oost@village.uunet.be> To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> References: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D3102A6D133@inchna.stir.ac.uk> <3BF9466B.1050508@bioinf.man.ac.uk> Subject: Re: Study shows brain can learn without really trying Date: Mon, 19 Nov 2001 20:36:26 +0100 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.00.2314.1300 X-MIMEOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2314.1300 Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
----- Original Message -----
From: Chris Taylor <Christopher.Taylor@man.ac.uk>
To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
Sent: Monday, November 19, 2001 6:50 PM
Subject: Re: Study shows brain can learn without really trying
> Habit, in nature, is based upon the accumulation of adaptive
> behaviours over time. Corals on the Great Barrier Reef all release eggs
and
> sperm at the same time within a 3-4 day period at the same time each year-
> millions and millions of coral all within the same period of time, clear
> evidence of the millions of years corals have been evolving, and the
> adaptive benefits of doing this at the same time as other corals so your
> eggs don't all get eaten. Do corals have memories, or are they merely
> following an encoded programme in their neural tissue (I don't even know
if
> corals have brains, so to speak) itself a product of evolution?
And at the risk off nicking your ball and running far too far with it; I
have no problem with the idea that 'lower' animals can have classically
evolved, hard-wired 'memes' (but then I abuse that term horribly because
I can't think of a more appropriate one). ICU is the term for going
'Squawk!' when you see a predator (not to alert mates - that would be
true altruism, of which there is none in the world - it's to let the
*predator* know that *you've* seen it [I see you] so please attack
someone else - entirely selfish, like flocking, but I digress) - that is
a complex behavioural response to a very complex stimulus - what is the
difference whether this is hard wired or learned (apart from timescale
and some minor system details)?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chris Taylor (chris@bioinf.man.ac.uk)
http://bioinf.man.ac.uk/ »people»chris
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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This was distributed via the memetics list associated with the
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For information about the journal and the list (e.g. unsubscribing)
see: http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit
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