The Human Brain: A Blog Post About Something That Made Me Think

In class, we watched a fascinating video by PBS about the human brain. The brain is incredibly complex and plays a major role in how we perceive and interact with the world around us. There are more connections in the human brain than stars in the Milky Way galaxy. The brain and the mind can be viewed as separate entities, leading to the question: Does the brain implement the mind? This is one of the ultimate mysteries: How does matter become thought? In other words, how does the human brain generate ideas based on the reality of the world around it?

Over time, we’ve learned a great deal about the brain, and research continues to uncover more about this complex system every day. Scientists have discovered that neurons in the brain transfer information from the outside world into electromagnetic signals, which are then sent to different parts of the brain, where they act as various signals.

One intriguing connection the brain has is with the eyes. I found it interesting that seeing the world through your eyes is based mostly on assumptions and past experiences. You only actually see a small fraction of what you think you are seeing. The rest is filled in by your brain based on what it expects. In order for the brain to process all of the visual input from your eyes at once, it would need to be 600 times larger. This means that what you think you are seeing is a balance of three components: What I see, What I think I see, and What I expect to see. The eyes contain 130 million light-sensitive cells made up of rods and cones. Rods detect light intensity, while cones detect color. Additionally, when the brain encounters uncertainty in visual information, it fills in the gaps with its best guess based on past knowledge. In this way, the brain isn’t constrained by visual accuracy, but rather by what’s most useful for us.

Another fascinating concept I learned about was the comparison between the adult brain and the child brain. In adults, the brain prunes neuron connections that aren’t useful or regularly used, which makes it harder for adults to learn new things compared to children. Essentially, the adult brain is less adaptable to change. This also ties into memory. When the brain recalls something, it essentially rewrites it, adding more and more “noise” with each recollection.

In conclusion, I’ve learned that the brain is a complex machine that prioritizes survival over accuracy.