The human brain has the most breathtakingly complex structures. But with advances in areas such as brain imaging, genetic genetics and stem cell research, experts have begun to unravel some of its mysteries. Here are 9 questions about the human brain and the latest findings from neuroscience.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" what constitutes a person's memory >? </h2>
Memory is an essential element of a person's thinking. Whenever people perform a task, communicate through language, or illustrate the simplest concepts, they use the knowledge they have acquired. However, the physical form of memory has long been a mystery. How does the brain change when a new memory is loaded?
What experts already know is that the synaptic connections between neurons are enhanced during memory formation. In 2009, a research team led by Kelsey Martin at the University of California, using sea clams, a relatively simple organism with a relatively simple nervous system, first observed the formation of memory in synapses in the form of new proteins.
But where is the knowledge stored in the complex brains of mammals? Short-term memories, such as a phone number to use, appear to be stored in two small curled structures called the hippocampus, buried deep in the two hemispheres of the brain. In 2008, Kutney Miller and David Sweet of the University of Alabama used mouse studies to show that in the first hour after a memorable event, the DNA of nerve cells in this area underwent chemical changes, altering the proteins produced. In the week that followed, similar changes occurred in the genetic factors of the neurons of the cerebral cortex. These changes appear to be permanent, suggesting that long-term memories are stored there. The two researchers believe they observed short-term memory formation in the hippocampus and then into long-term memory in the cerebral cortex.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > can the brain be reborn? </h2>
There is a saying that has been popular for decades: the brain cells that a person has at birth are all the brain cells they can have in their lifetime.
By the 1990s, this long-popular dogma had been overthrown. The researchers found that mammals, including humans, were able to produce new nerve cells throughout their lifetime. In humans, this "neurogenesis" occurs in two places: nerve cells generated in olfactory bulbs appear to be associated with recognizing new odors, while nerve cells generated in the hippocampus are associated with learning and memory. The discovery that new nerve cells can be integrated into the adult brain has sparked interest. Can this process be controlled and used to treat brain diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's? Jeffrey Markless, who studies cortical development and neurogenesis at Harvard University in the United States, said that the way to do this is to replace the diseased cells with the right type of nerve cells. Some estimate that the nervous system is made up of 10,000 different nerve cells.
What is the role of mirror neurons > <h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right"? </h2>
Mirror neurons (a type of nerve cell located in the cerebral cortex of animals) were discovered in the 1990s. At the time, researchers recorded microelectrodes implanted inside macaque brains and found mirror neurons. When animals perform an activity, many neurons become active; when animals see researchers doing the same activity, some neurons also become active, and different kinds of mirror neurons become active because of different activities.
Experts speculate that in humans, mirror neurons may be the neural basis for empathy. They may also help to imitate or even learn languages.
Researchers have struggled to determine whether humans have mirror neurons, but MRI scans show that when people do a certain action or gaze at the same action, a part of the brain called the mirror system "glows." Many studies have shown that people who are active in mirroring systems seem to be able to better understand the feelings of others.
< how many states does consciousness have > h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right"? </h2>
Adam Zeman of peninsular medicine at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom said that people used to think that there were only three states of consciousness: 1, awake; 2, asleep and dreaming; 3, falling asleep without dreaming. But brain imaging shows that there are more states of consciousness. Citing sleepwalking as an example, Zeman said: "The brain of a sleepwalker is indeed in a state of being half awake and half asleep. Researchers once managed to give a sleepwalker brain scan. While they saw that a large portion of the sleepwalker's cerebral cortex, which is associated with perception and consciousness, was "offline," the rest of the brain was active, including those associated with emotion.
Similar phenomena may explain other strange states of consciousness. In sleep, also known as REM, during sleep, people lie quietly because a part of the brainstem called the pontineum inhibits signals sent to the muscles. People with REM sleep behavior disorders lose this inhibition and therefore put their dreams into action.
Experts believe that there may be some inhibition points between consciousness and coma that have not yet attracted attention. A research team led by Adrian Owen at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom recently found that it is possible for people to communicate with vegetative people. People in a vegetative state have good reflexes and can breathe on their own but are completely unaware of their surroundings. The researchers connected the vegetative person to a brain scanner, allowing him to imagine playing tennis or walking around his home, and they were able to get an answer from the vegetative person who agreed or refused. At present, such patients are considered unconscious, but they can understand the problem and communicate. They may be able to express their opinion on the treatment and whether they should abandon it.
How powerful is the connection between mind and body > <h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right"? </h2>
If you are unfortunate enough to be sick and hospitalized, try to stay in a ward with a view. Because if you can look out over a forest instead of seeing a brick wall, you might recover faster.
The study of the connection between mind and body is as old as practicing medicine. For example, smart doctors know that for patients whose physical symptoms are difficult to explain, study their mental state. Why are some diseases more affected by mental states than others? What is the reason behind the incredible placebo effect? Can people learn to heal themselves by thinking?
Experts believe that many of these may be that the immune system plays a regulatory role. The results suggest that great stress reduces the activity of immune cells in the human body. The brain seems to be able to influence the immune system in a number of ways, from chemical regulation to direct neural control. Kevin Tracy of the Vajray Institute of Medicine in New York, USA, said: "Signals from the brain are transmitted through the vagus nerve, where they change the behavior of the spleen's immune cells. ”
Why are some people smarter?
During an autopsy of the body of the famous scientist Albert Einstein in 1955, his brain was disappointing because it was slightly smaller than the brains of the average person. In fact, later studies have shown that there is little link between brain size and IQ. It seems that the quality of the brain, not the quantity, is the key.
Whether human neurons play well in talking to each other seems to be an important factor. Mathien van den Gerwier, a medical expert at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, has found that there seem to be more efficient networks between the more intelligent brain neurons — in other words, fewer steps are required to relay information between different regions of the brain. About a third of the IQ differences in a group are determined by this.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > what is the connection between mental illness and creativity? </h2>
There are now many instances of creative geniuses in history being retroactively diagnosed with mental illness. Schizophrenia and other types of psychosis are the most commonly cited conditions, and the famous scientists Newton and Einstein are among the most famous research subjects. The famous Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh and the British writer Virginia Woolf were associated with manic depression.
Few people think that having a complete psychosis contributes to creative achievement, although a little psychosis may be helpful.
Studies of the relative advantages of the left and right hemispheres of the brain provide some evidence. It is often thought that linguistic and logical analysis is primarily related to the left hemisphere of the brain, while creative thinking is more related to the right hemisphere of the brain. Various studies do seem to suggest that people with schizophrenia are more active in their right brains.
There is also genetic evidence of a protein. This protein, called "neuromodulatory protein-1," is associated with the development of the brain in the womb. Jeremy Hall of the University of Edinburgh in the United Kingdom has found that mutations in the genes encoding this protein increase the risk of schizophrenia.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > how powerful does the subconscious mind have? </h2>
Recently, the subconscious mind has attracted much attention. It takes center stage in creativity, inspires problem-solving, plays a key role in learning and memory, and is more helpful in making tough decisions than rational analysis.
French medical expert Stanislas de Hana reveals the subtle interplay between the subconscious mind and the conscious mind. In his experiment, the volunteer saw a word flash on a screen, followed by an immediate picture to block consciousness from understanding the word. When the interval between the two appears increases, the word suddenly appears in consciousness, and brain scans show that the brain is experiencing unique activity. This usually occurs when the interval reaches about 50 milliseconds. However, when words with emotional meaning, such as "love" or "fear," are used, the phenomenon occurs a few milliseconds earlier, as if the importance and attention of the words are determined by the subconscious mind.
Such experiments have changed the way people think about the relationship between conscious and subconscious minds. The subconscious mind is firmly in control. Comparing consciousness to a spotlight, the subconscious mind plays a role in controlling when to turn it on and where to throw the beam of light. One expert said that conscious thinking is not free, and that what people think of as "free will" actually exists in the subconscious.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > can make conscious robots? </h2>
Creating conscious robots is a huge challenge, and some wonder if it can be achieved, or whether it should be done. But enterprising researchers never give up.
Perhaps the closest thing to a conscious software robot is Ida (IDA), an intelligent distribution agent software designed by Stan Franklin of the University of Memphis in Tennessee in 2003. When the service period of U.S. Navy sailors ended, Ida assigned them new tasks, in addition to coordinating naval policies, job requirements, cost changes, and sailor needs.
Like humans, Ada is divided into two levels of operation, "conscious" and "unconscious". At the unconscious level, it orchestrates software agents to collect data and process information. These agents compete to enter the "consciousness" workspace of "Edda". Here, they interact and draw conclusions. An updated version of the learning "Ada", or "Lida" (LIDA), was completed this year. It learns what goes into its consciousness and uses these to guide future decisions. "Lida" also has "emotional" characteristics. Emotions are the high-level benchmarks used to guide their decisions.
Another advance in designing robots is the ability to maintain their functionality even after they are damaged. In 2006, Josh Bungard of the University of Vermont in the United States designed a walking robot with its own internal model that can be continuously updated. If damaged, the robot's knowledge of itself allows it to design an alternative footwork to continue walking using the functionality it still has. Having an "imaginary" internal model of itself is considered an important part of human sensory abilities, and robots have this function to bring them closer to self-awareness.