V.S. Ramachandran at Beyond Belief 2007 Part 4

An interesting talk by one of the world's top neurologists about synesthesia and metaphor and how they relate to structures in the brain.
http://thesciencenetwork.org/BeyondBelief2/

Other interesting Rama links -
http://psy.ucsd.edu/chip/ramabio.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/reith2003/

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Evolution
• God
• mind
• spirit
• soul
• brain
• thought
• belief
• neuro
• metaphor
• atheist
• synesthesia

[PJW1269]

We owe SO much to scientists such as this. So many things that have become commonplace in our lives started with someone being curious and putting in the time and effort to figure things out. Science Rocks!

Thanks for posting this!

B^)

[Angry256]

This is a very good lecture, i have spectral content to color synesthesia "on sound" and im actually in the position to use it as a tool too. This man is very good at brining the point across. And my credits to that!

[coldarc]

chemicals don´t produce perception they confuse it. light contain geometry triagles squares pentagons hexagon tetrahedron and many more complex ones. your brain also contain these patterns. when they interfere with the outside pattern the mix create your perception of the outside world. each brain halves receives sligtly different parts of these pattern and mix them together in one coherent image. thats why you cant draw a perfect image.

[QCreyton]

i'd love to get hold of Ramachandran and pick his brain about a few topics.

[JonahTorn]

I ment to spell touched not "taouched".

[JonahTorn]

Sometimes Tourettes is confusing because I feel a sensation when people are near me on the side they are on, but I feel similair ensations when I have tics in resonce to people and there movements that subside or change when I tic, so I can't tell when I do not react with a tic if the tic was suppressed by focus (which can happen as a by product of focus without the intention or thought of blocking a tic) or if I feel people when I see them across the room as if they taouched me.

[ooglebydoogleby]

most people experience physical sensations in response to sensory inputs, that is why we empathise. a theory that lactose has an effect on the autistic brain somewhat similar to heroin which as you are probably aware inhibits endorphine production. I think most of the theories of autism are over egged although i don't doubt that there are some biochemical variations particular to autistic people. i tend to think of high functioning autistic people as alternativly able rather than disabled.

[crakmeister]

@crakmeister

and then, see things based on the pleasure response that 'don't exist'. logically, high functioning autistic folks would have an experience comparable enough to others that they can figure out the patterns of sensory response to appear and function like other people.

[crakmeister]

@JonahTorn

yes, yes, if you look around apparently there are all kinds of quirky ticks in all sorts of people that could represent this sort of thing. in fact, some folks might not even 'see' anything at all. the sensory 'crosswire' could make you feel things with taste, taste things you feel, any sort of mix of any sense. it all computes in the pinky brain.

[crakmeister]

@ajarnguy

it means you're smart enough to get the joke.