“Books on physics are full of complicated mathematical formulas, but thought and ideas are the beginning of every physical theory.” - Albert Einstein The Standard Model of particle physics did not predict the existence of the dark matter that constitutes the overwhelming majority of matter in the cosmos. The Standard Model describes heuristically the "foam … Continue reading The Foam on Top of the Ocean
[image credit: St. Jude Medical; North East Vision Magazine] I recently reviewed a publication I received a while back from Scientific American entitled, "Mind and Brain," written by Gerald D. Fischbach, who served as Chairman of the Department of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School from 1990 - 2000. The complexity of the human brain as … Continue reading Human Brain, Human Mind, Human Consciousness, Human Spirit
A recent article in the New York Times, ("Decoding the Brain’s Cacophony" by Benedict Carey-Published: October 31, 2011) reports on research by Dr. Michael Gazzaniga, professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, which suggests that the functioning of our left brain hemisphere is responsible our familiar view of ourselves--an interpreter--and that what … Continue reading Exploring Below the Surface
"Certain moments from the dream stand out sharply. The moment the vehicle I was traveling in pulled up to the long row of stone steps leading up to the building and I first saw you. We nearly collided as we embraced. We only spoke briefly when you abruptly went back inside the building, as I … Continue reading Dreaming Through a Window
Life has many strata. Upon conception, we begin the arduous journey to the awakening of consciousness. Gradually, the tissues within the embryo begin to differentiate, and by the end of the third week in the womb, the spinal column and central nervous system begin to form. By the end of six weeks, brain waves are … Continue reading Perception begins early in our development
Artistic impression of the universe. Image credit: Pingnews In his recent book, "The Tell-Tale Brain: A Neuroscientist's Quest for What Makes Us Human," V.S. Ramachandran makes a substantial argument and goes to great lengths to express what it is that distinguishes human beings from all others. In reviewing the structure of our brains, he notes … Continue reading A Universe Conscious of Itself
The only means of strengthening one's intelligence is to make up one's mind about nothing-- to let the mind be a thoroughfare for all thoughts. - John Keats (1795 - 1821) No matter what aspect of conscious experience we wish to consider, whether it involves a clearly temporal action or event like wrestling an alligator, … Continue reading The Dynamics of Consciousness
Radio Telescopes - ESO - Chile There wasn't any reason in particular to step out into the mitigated darkness of late evening, other than to follow an urge to move past the sometimes bewildering blur my life has been of late. Somehow, as I turned my gaze to the canopy of stars in the cool … Continue reading Victory over Disharmony
Back in June of last year, I began my first serious reading of “Out of Our Heads,” by Alva Noë, and immediately I started to feel a high degree of admiration for his courage in addressing the philosophical, scientific, and biological approach to understanding human consciousness. His premise that “We are not our brains,” strikes … Continue reading Are We “Out of Our Heads?”
Having just returned from three days and nights in the Belleplain State Forest, the return to civilization always seems to find me rejuvenated in spirit, but also oddly melancholy. The trip was a welcome break from the relentless daily routines that sustain me as I write, and the moments of blissful silence communing with only … Continue reading Spirits in the Woods
John's Consciousness 