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I read this article that tries to explain what's going wrong with and for liberals in politics today through cognitive science studies and research. Ideology is definitely a large factor in the I-function, and tabula rasa vs. environment arguments can be made, but I think it makes more sense when explained through the neuronal signals we're talking about.

Interesting quotes:

"There is no moral system of the moderate or the middle. Because of a neural phenomenon called "mutual inhibition," two opposing moral systems can live in brain circuits that inhibit each other and are active in different contexts."

" In one experiment, the strength of blink reflexes to unexpected noises was measured and correlated with degrees of reactions to external threats. Conservatives reacted considerably more strongly than liberals. Another experiment was based on the fact that disgust reactions create glandular secretions that change skin conductance. Subjects were shown disgusting images (like some eating a handful of worms). Liberals reacted mildly, but conservative reactions went off the charts."

The article is super long, but really great: http://www.truthout.org/obama-tea-parties-and-battle-our-brains57089

The I-function is neuronal signals, I think. The transition is reasonable for sure, and even if you believe in a distinction between the brain/nervous system and the mind/I-function, it's an awesome thinking exercise.