BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR INSTITUTE 2006 Session 3

Recapitulation and prospectus

Diversity, as a positive benefit More observations, more stories
Science as exploration, not "Truth" Story-telling, imagine and reflect, start where are, get "less wrong" and enjoy it Take everything I say in this light (is a scientific "story", observations? usefulness?) "We are all evolving and all of our thoughts and opinions are useful in one way or another." ... Clete "As our scope of observations widens we may end up with new story and a new summary that may contridict our views at the moment or may further validate out thoughts." ... Minh "The harder part, for me, is not to ensure that they are "right," but that they are describing what they truly observe, not what they want to see." ... Gayle "The observation, prediction, assessment loop and our ability to share our stories even beyond our generation, is precisely the predominant feature of human behavior that has led to our "success" as a species. That success being a more developed understanding of our universe, both external and internal ... Glen "I'm afraid that there is an attitude that goes with the words "story telling" that right away, makes people think it's time to sit back, relax, and enjoy this (probably fictitious) story that we are going to hear ... Will people begin to take science less seriously if we as a culture start to see it as a story? Will science start to lose its credibility? or is that the point? ... Julie I am wary to allow science to be a place that isn't definitive for a moment, that isn't a community to which others turn for processed data and interpretation of nature. So much of public policy is created by people who don't understand the balances created by continual exploration and reevaluation of observations ... Tiffany "I believe it is very important that we as teachers give serious thought to how we can teach students to understand that they don't always have to be right or perfect. The difficulty is that we must learn to believe it ... With practice we will be able to view science differently." ... Sherry
Simple things interacting in simple way can have sophisticated outcomes
Brain as an explorer? (passive or active?)
Education as an exploration? (passive or active?) "Need to participate ourselves in a 'huge' attitude change? ... from day 1

Moving on ... to the nervous system

The Brain - is wider than the Sky - For - put them side by side - The one the other will contain With ease - and You - beside-

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Implications if Emily was right?

• Brain = behavior, there isn't anything else

• From Bibical Times to Today: What Has Changed and What Hasn't About Epilepsy
• The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down

What story do you hear/see in Emily Dickinson's poem? Do you think the brain is wide enough to contain the sky ... "and You beside"? What would this imply? In general? About education? Write your thoughts in the institute forum area.

Thinking about how the brain (nervous system) works (if Dickinson right)

• From stimulus/response box to semi-autonomous input/output box consisting of interconnected input/outboxes consisting of ... large number of very small input/output boxes (neurons)

Is the real brain (nervous system) actually that way?

• Sensory neurons the only way in, motor neurons the only way out, mostly interneurons
• Similar but different in different organisms, different in same organism at different times
• All neurons, differences in behavior are differences in organization of neurons
  (change organization of neurons, change behavior)
• Neurons have some degree of autonomy, so therefore does nervous system, can view as output/input box as appropriately as input/output box

Key points

• Brain=behavior a good story
• Variation from brain to brain (diversity)
• For outside to affect brain it has to pass through sensory neurons
• Changes in brains with experience
• Brains have characteristics independent of experience and can generate outputs independent of experience