FAQ: Technology of ideas

5 facts about the structure of the human brain, how it works and unique features

It's about what a brain in a technological sense. The fact that recently there has been his hoax. It is said that the brain produces something that is not available to research, something intangible, or, on the contrary, the brain affects something unknowable, and so he begins to work. At the same time, those who work with the brain by the nature of their profession, the researchers who use these or other instrumental methods, still believe that the brain - this is a purely financial education and it works on such principles, which do not contradict the physical nature.

• 1.The uniqueness of the brain

The brain is the most complex, perfect and incredible matter in the universe. Incredible because it is a unique opportunity not only for the Earth and for the whole period of its existence, but also for all the depths of the universe. Judge for yourself: in the brains of nearly one hundred billion nerve cells. In the liver and intestine cells even more, but that other cells, this "cell-soldiers" performing the same function. A brain cells - a kind of collecting centers, which through contacts (synapses) continuously exchange messages encoded in sequences of nerve impulses. Each nerve cell can have up to ten thousand contacts - get just a million billion nerve connections. Despite its complexity, this giant network is designed so that in a fraction of a second can be found and to ensure the exchange of messages between any pair of cells.

• 2.Variability of brain states

Millions of billions of operational elements are a lot or a little? The most advanced processors - two or three billion of operational units, memories, experts say. In the brain there are a million billion of operational elements. And in computers these elements has two states: 0 and 1. A contact between nerve cells may have up to 15-20 states, that is, to switch positions. Switch any one contact of a million billion in position 4 to position 7 - and here's a new state of the brain. If you count the combinatorics of possible states of the brain, it turns out that the number of these states exceeds the number of atoms in the entire universe. That is the human brain, weighing only three hundred grams per kilogram, such as Einstein, comparable in its variance with the whole universe. Of course, not all combinations of neuronal contacts are functional states, ie they are not used in the brain to encode information. But no matter how small the proportion of functional contacts, it will still be an astronomical number.

• 3.Why do we need the brain

For all the seemingly obvious answer, but exactly why is it needed? In all textbooks written nervous system (or brain or nerve ganglia) need to "balance the needs of the living creatures with the capacity of the environment", in other words, for the animal adaptation to the environment. That is, the brain needs to animals in the first place for the organization of their behavior in order to survive: to find food, escape from enemies, find a pair to extend the kind, etc. By the standard set of animal brain function adds a unique feature unique to human brain: the construction of virtual models of the physical world; in fact, the brain has learned to design their inner world. Available models of the physical world has given man enormous advantages: it became possible to play virtual versions of the future behavior in the construction plans.

• 4.A vicious circle of knowledge

Full-scale dynamic model of the world, built on the basis of the individual's own experience - that's a worthy task for having astronomical complexity of the human brain. Creating models of the diagnostics options for the future, and finally the generation of ideas about the structure of external and man's inner world, about the mechanisms of the brain! Metaphorically, one can say that the idea of becoming an equally important energy source for the brain than glucose, and more - the need of the body, the plans of his conduct, guidelines in the future. The source of the ideas is the human cognitive activity, cognitive function of the brain comes to the fore. To improve mental functionality you can with Phenotropil and Semax, to protect it from stress, anxiety and depression with Phenibut and Selank.

• 5.Is it possible to contact information between the brain and the computer

The incredible complexity of brain circuitry, an astronomical number of contacts between nerve cells and the lack of keys to decrypt codes interneural seemingly do absolutely impossible to connect the information to the brain. Nevertheless, in recent years, scientists have begun to grope technologies to "eavesdrop" brain commands and transmit them directly to external actuators, bypassing the nerves and muscles. This technology, called interfaces brain - computer (IMC), is based more on the properties of the brain to adapt to the conditions offered to him than on theoretical insights neurophysiologists. Recent only created a direct channel for the transmission of electrical activity in the brain actuators and brain, received in his charge that the control lever, learned to use it. Of course, for the scientists was a lot of work had to be attached to the registration of brain electrical activity, to create the appropriate electrode and amplifying systems, isolated from this activity are components that the brain could catch management. Everything was done, post stroke patients with implanted electrodes in their brains have learned to control the robotic arm so that they could take for himself with a chocolate table or beverage container. Even more easily manage these patients to type text on the computer screen without any muscular action. You do not have to implant the electrodes, just fix them on the scalp. Each person may then try to force his intentions to control toy car, a computer game or a hypertext reference.