scholarly journals The Mind-Brain Relationship as a Mathematical Problem

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giorgio A. Ascoli
Keyword(s):  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Mathematical Problem ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Neural Connectivity ◽  
Human Communication ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Patterns ◽  
Scientific Phenomena ◽  
The Mind

This paper aims to frame certain fundamental aspects of the human mind (content and meaning of mental states) and foundational elements of brain computation (spatial and temporal patterns of neural activity) so as to enable at least in principle their integration within one and the same quantitative representation. Through the history of science, similar approaches have been instrumental to bridge other seemingly mysterious scientific phenomena, such as thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, optics and electromagnetism, or chemistry and quantum physics, among several other examples. Identifying the relevant levels of analysis is important to define proper mathematical formalisms for describing the brain and the mind, such that they could be mapped onto each other in order to explain their equivalence. Based on these premises, we overview the potential of neural connectivity to provide highly informative constraints on brain computational process. Moreover, we outline approaches for representing cognitive and emotional states geometrically with semantic maps. Next, we summarize leading theoretical framework that might serve as an explanatory bridge between neural connectivity and mental space. Furthermore, we discuss the implications of this framework for human communication and our view of reality. We conclude by analyzing the practical requirements to manage the necessary data for solving the mind-brain problem from this perspective.

scholarly journals Symmetrization, Mirroring and External Reality: An ‘Inner’ Perspective

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Rosapia Lauro Grotto
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Clinical Evidence ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
External Reality ◽  
Psychoanalytic Literature ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Neuro Imaging ◽  
The Mind

In the last two decades, mirroring systems have been detected in the monkey and in the human brain. The mirroring mechanisms have been considered as the neural basis for social cognition and interpersonal reactivity, and they have been assumed to support imitation, sharing of emotional states and empathy. Here I would like to compare ‘mirroring phenomena’ to ‘symmetrization phenomena’. In psychoanalytic literature, the construct of symmetrization has been proposed in the context of the Bi-Logic theory by Matte Blanco in 1975, on the basis of clinical evidence obtained in the psychoanalytical setting and following a theoretical analysis derived from the Freudian distinction between Primary and Secondary Processes. I will consider two different types of behaviours, empathic social interactions and the creation of transitional objects and spaces as defined by Winnicott in order to argue that symmetrization, in Matte Blanco’s terms, cannot be reduced to mirroring. I will then sketch a hypothesis on the interplay between the symmetric aspects of the mind and external reality in the development of higher relational functions of humans, also taking playing, arts and creativity into account. Finally I will describe the paradigmatic shift in neuro-imaging studies that was introduced with the discovery of the ‘Default Mode Network’ and its potential relevance in the research on the symmetric and asymmetric aspects of the human mind.

Beckett and the Cognitive Method

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Bernini
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Mind ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Scientific Debate ◽  
Modeling Technology ◽  
Dialogic Interaction ◽  
The Mind

How can literature enhance, parallel or reassess the scientific study of the mind? Or is literature instead limited to the ancillary role of representing cognitive processes? Beckett and the Cognitive Method argues that Beckett’s narrative work, rather than just expressing or rendering cognition and mental states, inaugurates an exploratory use of narrative as an introspective modeling technology (defined as “introspection by simulation”). Through a detailed analysis of Beckett’s entire corpus and published volumes of letters, the book argues that Beckett pioneered a new method of writing to construct (in a mode analogous to scientific inquiry) “models” for the exploration of core laws, processes, and dynamics in the human mind. Marco Bernini integrates models, problems, and interpretive frameworks from contemporary narrative theory, cognitive sciences, phenomenology, and philosophy of mind to make a case for Beckett’s modeling practice of a vast array of processes including: the (narrative) illusion of a sense of self, the hallucinatory quality of inner speech, the dialogic interaction with memories and felt presences, the synesthetic nature of inner experience and mental imagery, the developmental cooperation of language and locomotion, the role of moods and emotions as cognitive drives, the layered complexity of the mind, and the emergent quality of consciousness. Beckett and the Cognitive Method also reflects on how Beckett’s “fictional cognitive models” are transformed into reading, auditory, or spectatorial experiences generating through narrative devices insights on which the sciences can only discursively or descriptively report. As such, the study advocates for their relevance to the contemporary scientific debate toward an interdisciplinary co-modeling of cognition.

A BUDDHIST VIEW OF HAPPINESS

2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthieu Ricard
Keyword(s):  
Mental States ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
True Nature ◽  
Authentic Happiness ◽  
Healthy State ◽  
State Of Mind ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Mental Constructs ◽  
Contemplative Neuroscience

AbstractIn Buddhism, happiness is achieved when a person can perceive the true nature of reality, unmodified by the mental constructs we superimpose upon it. This authentic happiness comes from having an exceptionally healthy state of mind that underlies and suffuses all emotional states and that embraces all the joys and sorrows that come one's way. The mental states necessary for authentic happiness are not simply found or happened upon. Rather, happiness is achieved through mental training that purges the mind of afflictive emotions, such as hatred and compulsive desire, which literally poison the mind, and above all through the eradication of ignorance. This article discusses the Buddhist conception of happiness and its attainment. In particular, the article addresses the methods and practices that Buddhism employs to train the mind to achieve authentic happiness and the recent developments in contemplative neuroscience that complement and advance these methods.

Consciousness of Motivated, Emotional Mind

2021 ◽  
pp. 57-80
Keyword(s):  
Intelligent System ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Ability To Act ◽  
Cognitive Awareness ◽  
Bodily Experiences ◽  
Mode Of Operation ◽  
The Moment ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Rational Actions

The efficient functioning of the conscious mind requires motivation. Motivations are both the source and the reason for its development and sophistication. The motivation for intelligent activities is usually to avoid discomfort and seek pleasure. On the other hand, the implementation of complex life plans and the feeling of higher mental states requires motivation through curiosity and through a desire to learn and discover something new. A mind equipped with cognitive awareness has the ability to observe and assess the effects of its actions on the environment. Creating complex mental representations associating actions with distant impressions and effects allows for their emotional assessment. If bodily experiences are to give meaning to what an individual perceives and remembers, then he must be able to assess the value of his experiences for his own good. Using these experiences and learned knowledge an intelligent system gains the ability to take rational actions to achieve its goals, feel the pain and pleasure resulting from such actions, be sensitive to effects of his actions, be conscious. The analysis of one's own situation and the choice of the optimal mode of operation can be interpreted as implementations of the system's own will. The discussion of restrictions on the choices made indicates that this will of the system is by no means free will. Conscious being decisions depend on the momentary mental states in which the mind is in the process of deciding. They depend on the content of what he has in his memory at the moment, his current mood, available knowledge, his patience for analyzing different variants of behavior and ability to act. In addition to known ontological, physical, and biological limitations, and social (for social beings), there are significant limitations related to the content and structural organization of memory, created associations and beliefs shaped by life experiences and interactions with subconscious mind. Assessing the effects of the operation, satisfying, or not satisfying the needs of the system revealed in the above way creates complex emotional states. Structures and processes leading to the creation of emotions, motivating to rational action for the broadly understood own good, constitute a model of a fully conscious, motivated, emotional mind (MEM). Is the presented model really a reductive model? Do mental states even exist? The authors try to answer these and similar questions in this chapter.

The Definition of the Human Mind in Its Derivation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ursula Renz
Keyword(s):  
Mental Content ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
The Body ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Finite Minds

This chapter analyzes the passages in which Spinoza develops his definition of the human mind. It begins by reading 2p11 as denying that the mind is something like a bearer of mental states. Next, the chapter argues that, in claiming that the mind is part of the infinite intellect, Spinoza is not referring to the mind’s activity but rather defending holism with respect to mental content. Through an examination of the wording of 2p12, the chapter shows that, contrary to most interpretations, Spinoza does not assume that the human mind perceives any affections of the body. The chapter concludes by showing how, by identifying the mind with the idea of the body, Spinoza solves the problem of the numerical difference between finite minds. Altogether, the chapter shows that, for Spinoza, the human mind is not an idea that God cognizes but the awareness by which we identify our own body.

scholarly journals How the Human Mind Affects Its Related Brain? A Mechanism for this Influence, Using an Extended Bohmian QM in Avicenna’s Monotheistic Perspective

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Jamali ◽  
Mehdi Golshani ◽  
Yousef Jamali
Keyword(s):  
Path Integral ◽  
Laws Of Nature ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Independent Effect ◽  
Integral Formalism ◽  
Path Integral Formalism ◽  
Modern Physics ◽  
The Mind ◽  
S Model

In quantum approaches to consciousness, the authors try to propose a model and mechanism for the mind-brain interaction using modern physics and some quantum concepts which do not exist in the classical physics. The independent effect of mind on the brain has been one of the challenging issues in the history of science and philosophy. In some recent mind-brain interaction models, the direct influence of mind on matter is either not accepted (as in Stapp’s model) or not clear, and there have not been any clear mechanism for it (as in Penrose-Hameroff’s model or in Eccles’s model). In this manuscript we propose a model and mechanism for mind’s effect on the matter using an extended Bohmian quantum mechanics and Avicenna’s ideas. We show that mind and mental states can affect brain’s activity without any violation of physical laws. This is a mathematical and descriptive model which shows the possibility of providing a causal model for mind’s effect on matter. It is shown that this model guarantees the realistic philosophical constraints and respects the laws of nature. In addition, it is shown that it is in agreement with the Libet style experimental results and parapsychological data. To propose this model, we obtained a modified (non-unitary) Schrödinger equation via second quantization method which affects the particle through a modified quantum potential and a new term in the continuity equation. At the second quantized level, which is equivalent to quantum field theory level (QFT), we can use the path integral formalism of Feynman. We show that there are three methods to extend Bohmian QM via path integral formalism, which has different interpretations. By numerical simulation of trajectories in the two-slits experiment, we show their differences and choose one of these methods for our mind-brain model which can be the basis for explaining some phenomena which are not possible to explain in the standard Bohmian QM.

scholarly journals The problem of connection of observer’s mind with quantum-mechanical description of physical reality

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
S. E. Revunov ◽  
S. S. Kuznetsov ◽  
O. A. Barkhatova ◽  
E. A. Revunova
Keyword(s):  
Quantum Theory ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Physical Reality ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Quantum Mechanical ◽  
Special Role ◽  
Psychic Phenomenon ◽  
Mechanical Description ◽  
Quantum Mechanical Description ◽  
The Mind

Introduction: the study considers the problem of observer’s status during specific quantum-mechanical experiments, in which the empirical result directly depends on the participation of the experimenter's mind. Here the problem arises of the connection between the mind of the observer and the quantum-mechanical description of physical reality. The paper pays attention to modern trends in physics and philosophy devoted to the study of this phenomenon. Some aspects of the philosophical interpretation of the mind as a quantum mechanism are presented.Materials and Methods: the research materials demonstrate an overview of several common quantum-philosophical theories. Attempts have been made to search for the connection of quantum phenomena with the mechanisms of the functioning of human mind. The experimental background of quantum physics is demonstrated, providing material for analyzing the possibility of applying modern quantum theory to the question of identifying the relationship of the quantum approach and describing the problem of the influence of the observer’s mind on the result of a physical experiment.Results: the concept of quantum mechanics, taking into account the latest achievements and results of physics, philosophy and psychology, allows us to consider the mind of the observer as an integral part of the mechanism responsible for the formation of the surrounding physical reality. The anthropic principle of participation considered in the work gives the observer's mind a special role allowing to form a quantum-mechanical description of physical reality.Discussion and conclusions: it is shown that the mind of the observer plays an important role in quantum theory. Moreover, mind as a psychic phenomenon may be in fact identical with the quantum-mechanical concept of choosing an alternative. Given the fact that the brain's thought processes influence the measurement results, it can be assumed that mind changes quantum probabilities. This assumption allows us to take a different look at the concept of reality itself.

scholarly journals Social Class Predicts Emotion Perception and Perspective-Taking Performance in Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pia Dietze ◽  
Eric D. Knowles
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Emotion Perception ◽  
Lower Class ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Visual Perspective ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
The Mind ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Director Task

“Theory of Mind” (ToM; people’s ability to infer and use information about others’ mental states) varies across cultures. In four studies ( N = 881), including two preregistered replications, we show that social class predicts performance on ToM tasks. In Studies 1A and 1B, we provide new evidence for a relationship between social class and emotion perception: Higher-class individuals performed more poorly than their lower-class counterparts on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test, which has participants infer the emotional states of targets from images of their eyes. In Studies 2A and 2B, we provide the first evidence that social class predicts visual perspective taking: Higher-class individuals made more errors than lower-class individuals in the Director Task, which requires participants to assume the visual perspective of another person. Potential mechanisms linking social class to performance in different ToM domains, as well as implications for deficiency-centered perspectives on low social class, are discussed.

scholarly journals Social Class Predicts Emotion Perception and Perspective-Taking Performance in Adults

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pia Dietze ◽  
Eric Knowles
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Emotion Perception ◽  
Lower Class ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Visual Perspective ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
The Mind ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Director Task

“Theory of Mind” (ToM; people’s ability to infer and use information about others’ mental states) varies across cultures. In four studies (N = 881), including two preregistered replications, we show that social class predicts performance on ToM tasks. In Studies 1A and 1B, we provide new evidence for a relationship between social class and emotion perception: Higher-class individuals performed more poorly than their lower-class counterparts on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test, which has participants infer the emotional states of targets from images of their eyes. In Studies 2A and 2B, we provide the first evidence that social class predicts visual perspective-taking: Higher-class individuals made more errors than lower-class individuals in the Director Task, which requires participants to assume the visual perspective of another person. Potential mechanisms linking social class to performance in different ToM domains, as well as implications for deficiency-centered perspectives on low social class, are discussed.

The Neuroscience of Spontaneous Thought

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica R. Andrews-Hanna ◽  
Zachary C. Irving ◽  
Kieran C.R. Fox ◽  
R. Nathan Spreng ◽  
Kalina Christoff
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Properties ◽  
Mind Wandering ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Additional Research ◽  
Science Of Mind ◽  
Mind And Brain ◽  
Spontaneous Thought ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Over Time

An often-overlooked characteristic of the human mind is its propensity to wander. Despite growing interest in the science of mind-wandering, most studies operationalize mind-wandering by its task-unrelated contents, which may be orthogonal to the processes constraining how thoughts are evoked and unfold over time. This chapter emphasizes the importance of incorporating such processes into current definitions of mind-wandering, and proposes that mind-wandering and other forms of spontaneous thought (such as dreaming and creativity) are mental states that arise and transition relatively freely due to an absence of constraints on cognition. The chapter reviews existing psychological, philosophical, and neuroscientific research on spontaneous thought through the lens of this framework, and calls for additional research into the dynamic properties of the mind and brain.

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