Neurons

[Joseph L. Breeden]

The problem is not the number of neurons, it's the architecture. I once
heard a LANL scientist give a talk touting their latest massively
parallel computer. He was actually foolish enough to say that they would
have so much computing power that when they turn it on, they didn't know
what would happen. Maybe it would  become sentient. I almost walked out.

Discussions about the number of neurons tend to be equivalent to saying
that if I could measure the exact chemical content of a human body, pour
it in a vat and stir, maybe I'd get a person. It's absurd, but
analogous. It's just a box of computer chips until someone gets the
right architecture.

To be amazed at what you can do with very few neurons, read this article
in New Scientist about a jumping spider that seems to be able to solve
problems that many mammals cannot.

http://www.newscientist.com/channel/life/mg19025531.400.html

Just my humble opinion.

Joe


Joseph L Breeden, PhD
President & COO           Strategic Analytics Inc.
o 505 995-4747            2935 Rodeo Park Drive East
c 505 670-7670            Santa Fe, NM 87505

[Louis Macovsky, Dynamic BioSystems]

Maybe off the track a bit...but...

I receive information by transimission through an electronic network, my
cerebral neurons go through a series of stimulations from external stimuli,
release packets of synaptic chemical packets in linear and nonlinear (scale
dependent) neuronal network patterns, a concept is perceived and
reorgainized (more neurons and new neural networks) into a new concept
(information received is reorganized into newly gained
"information/knowledge" albeit biased by previous experience and
"learned/memorized which is a continous firing of neurons in a stable
pattern") which over time generates a new arrangement of neuronal networks
from which emerges as a novel (at least for me) thought, which inititates a
new set of neuronal activity in a different part of the cerebrum resulting
in the motor activity (which requires much feedback to and from the brain
for hand-eye coordination) that results in my transmitting a (linear) set of
information back through the electronic network to this group.  Input
Internet Information Received, Reiterate Cerebral Feedback Loops, Endgenous
Delays, Followed by electrionic transmission back on the internet,
Reiterate, etc.  We as a group with our computers are a larger organismism
with a bigger and better(?) brain.

It would be much easier to model a single neuron!!

Lou

----- Original Message -----
From: "Joseph L. Breeden" <[hidden email]>
To: <friam at redfish.com>
Sent: Sunday, July 09, 2006 1:34 PM
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] Neurons

>
> The problem is not the number of neurons, it's the architecture. I once
> heard a LANL scientist give a talk touting their latest massively
> parallel computer. He was actually foolish enough to say that they would
> have so much computing power that when they turn it on, they didn't know
> what would happen. Maybe it would  become sentient. I almost walked out.
>
> Discussions about the number of neurons tend to be equivalent to saying
> that if I could measure the exact chemical content of a human body, pour
> it in a vat and stir, maybe I'd get a person. It's absurd, but
> analogous. It's just a box of computer chips until someone gets the
> right architecture.
>
> To be amazed at what you can do with very few neurons, read this article
> in New Scientist about a jumping spider that seems to be able to solve
> problems that many mammals cannot.
>
> http://www.newscientist.com/channel/life/mg19025531.400.html
>
> Just my humble opinion.
>
> Joe
>
>
> Joseph L Breeden, PhD
> President & COO           Strategic Analytics Inc.
> o 505 995-4747            2935 Rodeo Park Drive East
> c 505 670-7670            Santa Fe, NM 87505
>
> ============================================================
> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
> Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
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>