Would knowing how the brain works lead to madness?

Discussion in 'General Philosophy' started by Why?, Oct 12, 2007.

  1. cosmictraveler Be kind to yourself always. Valued Senior Member

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    Main Entry: con·scious·ness
    Pronunciation: -n&s
    Function: noun
    1 a : the quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself b : the state or fact of being conscious of an external object, state, or fact c : AWARENESS; especially : concern for some social or political cause
    2 : the state of being characterized by sensation, emotion, volition, and thought : MIND
    3 : the totality of conscious states of an individual
    4 : the normal state of conscious life <regained consciousness>
    5 : the upper level of mental life of which the person is aware as contrasted with unconscious processes
     
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  3. Why? Registered Senior Member

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    That's a definition. Not an explanation. But, if you have an explanation, let's hear it.
     
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  5. cosmictraveler Be kind to yourself always. Valued Senior Member

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    Why? You seem to pick apart anything anyone says in order for you to look like you know more than anyone. I know I'm a conscious person because I think.
     
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  7. Why? Registered Senior Member

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    No, I am interesting in learning. Unfortunately, you haven't said anything yet worth learning. Keep trying though. You think therefore you are? Descartes. How does this explain consciousness? This is only an attempted explanation of existence. Different question entirely. See this sitehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consciousness_Explained
     
  8. shichimenshyo Caught in the machine Registered Senior Member

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    your obviously not, can you honestly tell me that you read the article i posted for you. If you wanted to learn you would listen to peoples views and read the info they give you. YOu post questions with no substance and no purpose other than to make yourself feel good about your lack of knowledge in the fields of just about everything.
     
  9. (Q) Encephaloid Martini Valued Senior Member

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    :bravo:
     
  10. S.A.M. uniquely dreadful Valued Senior Member

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    You only think you're conscious.

    Blue pill or red?
     
  11. madanthonywayne Morning in America Registered Senior Member

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    Shoot the humans for the animals? Screw that. Shoot the animals and have a nice barbeque.
     
  12. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    I love you guys. Your solution to everything is to shoot it.
     
  13. madanthonywayne Morning in America Registered Senior Member

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    Well, once you find a strategy that works........
     
  14. Baron Max Registered Senior Member

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    No, not shoot "it", shoot the humans!! Humans are the cause of every bad thing in the world ...hell, probably in the universe!

    Baron Max
     
  15. superluminal I am MalcomR Valued Senior Member

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    I do know how my brain works and I am certifiably insane. See? Now, if I tell you the secret...
     
  16. Enmos Valued Senior Member

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    A bit radical but true nonetheless..

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  17. Enmos Valued Senior Member

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    On topic, why would that lead to madness ? Do you have any clues that would suggest that ?
     
    Last edited: Oct 13, 2007
  18. Tnerb Banned Banned

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    It depends. I know how the brain works. But do you?
     
  19. andbna Registered Senior Member

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    Well, survival instincts would probably kick in before then, but I suppose I could just as much analyze myself to death as I could talk, walk, sleep, play videogames, or focus on any one activity to the point where I collapsed from lack of something.
    Since I would imagine such analysis would be heavily mathematical and boring, watching TV to death seems more likely.
    Furthermore, psychiatrists can already analyze behaviors to a good extent, however they are still kicking around, and I doubt they analyze themselves as much (if at all) as their paying customers.

    Now this is entirely different, just because you know how something works, does not mean you can predict it. For example, a computer program is written by a person, and it is run on a machine that is fully understood. However, the complexity of it means that, short of running it, given a large set of conditions, the outcome could not be easily predicted. Example: if given the source code for a video game, and a set of buttons the user presses at what time, you would have immense difficulty determining what the screen would look like (down to the pixel) at a given time.

    Of course, such examples are possible to figure out, since you can always run the program. A better one would be a coin: consider that we understand gravity (on earth concerning a coin at least), fluid physics (for the air currents), momentum, etc... All of the properties of our coin, but to predict, with 100% accuracy, the side it will land on is impossible.
    So even when we understand how are brain works, doesn’t mean we can determine what a given brain will do. There are over a billion neurons that need to be accounted for, and an exponentially grater number of molecules. Taking chaos theory into account, unless it was a small brain over a short period of time, the actions would be completely different, since even a small error in weather a molecule will react a certain way can throw off entire decisions down the line.

    Finally, simply because you know how something works, or how to solve a problem, does not mean you must. I know perfectly well how to find the first 50000000 prime numbers, without using mechanical aid, and attempting to do so without eating would kill me, if I don’t die of boredom first, but there is no way in hell I would undertake such an Endeavour.

    -Andrew
     
    Last edited: Oct 13, 2007
  20. Klippymitch Thinker Registered Senior Member

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    Even if you knew the brain perfectly on a physical level and yourself in a metaphysical level. You'd would still never be able to understand others fully on a metaphysical level. Sure you can analyze others and know what type of person they are, but you'll never be able to predict what their going to do next for the percentage of time.
     
  21. fo3 acdcrocks Registered Senior Member

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    I would second this question. Do you have any reason whatsoever to assume that knowing how one's mind works should drive one crazy?
    P.S.:This seeming like a fun question to ask is not a valid reason.
     
  22. DeepThought Banned Banned

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    Why,

    I think this is because they are looking in the wrong place.

    Go back far enough in time - before life existed - and the world is just one big 'environment'. Gradually, living structures coalesced from the environment... and they somehow bought with them the natural phenomena which we now believe is external to us.

    A volcano, an earthquake, a placid lake, silence, the motion of the moon, a bright star, these are all part of our internal psyche but we have yet to discover the method to unlock this knowledge.
     
  23. Why? Registered Senior Member

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    Yes. It seems our process of thinking has been developed from the earliest origins of life, which should shed light on our minds.
     

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