It can squeeze through any hole its beak can fit through. That seems like that would wreak havoc on the synaptic cleft and possibly alter which neurotransmitters are landing where
Posted Nov 12, 2019, 6:59 PM UTC
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lol, the guy thinks the consciousness is located in the brain.
The brain is not a file cabinet. It's a broadcasting and receiving mechanism. More like a radio, less like a hard drive. Yes, you can damage parts, but it's not like you're smashing a hdd.
I'm not sure you understood the question. Think of the brain as a computational mechanism. Therefore, speaking of consciousness seems 'out of scope.' Also, a hdd is an information storage device, and I am asking about damage to the computational equipment.
In short, a 600 lb octopus can squeeze itself though a hole the size of a quarter without (apparent) damage to its brain(s). What result if we did that to your brain? What is the difference?
There's no "outside" for the signal to come in from.
If you take the advaita vedanta position that the entire universe is composed of consciousnes, all the material in the brain is composed of consciousness as well.
In fact, our deepest understanding of physics is in terms of quantum mechanics, which is essentially information exchange.
The fundamental unit of consciousness in advaita vedanta is an observer being aware of the observed. This coudl be an electron exchanging a photon with another eletron, or some other fundamental particle interaction, or it could be elaborate human or other higher organisms and their massively complicated physical states.
All such systems are conscious at all levels, from the tiniest to the most universal, according to advaita vedanta.
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In other words, its consciousness all the way down, but its also physics all the way down: at the most fundamental level, there's no distinction.
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So, from that perspective, claiming that consciousness is NOT located in the brain is as silly as claiming that consciousness is ONLY located in the brain:
wherever there is a system that reacts to something outside the system, that is consciousness.
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Or, as the founder of Transcendental Meditation put it when he first started calling for the scientific study of meditation and enlightenment more than 60 years ago:
"Every experience has its level of physiology, and so unbounded awareness has its own level of physiology which can be measured. Every aspect of life is integrated and connected with every other phase. When we talk of scientific measurements, it does not take away from the spiritual experience. We are not responsible for those times when spiritual experience was thought of as metaphysical. Everything is physical. [human] Consciousness is the product of the functioning of the [human] brain. Talking of scientific measurements is no damage to that wholeness of life which is present everywhere and which begins to be lived when the physiology is taking on a particular form. This is our understanding about spirituality: it is not on the level of faith --it is on the level of blood and bone and flesh and activity. It is measurable."
Imagine a much more stable connection than that, and remember that synapses are almost completely encased in astrocytic processes, so leakage is not really an issue.
But your question is not dumb IMHO, just assumes a rigidity that is not present.
If you remove the brain of a human, it will flatten out like a jelly fish. Head injuries would reset almost everything if synapses were fragile as you describe, which they do not, except in the most extreme scenarios.
Synaptic connections are so strong that the pre- and post-synaptic sides remain connected even when a centrifuge is used to tear them away from neurons!
Be well.
Thank you so much for the comment. I'm getting a lot out of it.
So if leakage isn't an issue, are their neurons just super resilient or elastic? We certainly can't shove our brain through a 1-inch hole without severely damaging it, but a 600 lb octopus can do just that. Do we know what the difference is?