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Disorderly genius: How Chaos Drives the Brain

newscientist.com — HAVE you ever experienced that eerie feeling of a thought popping into your head as if from nowhere, with no clue as to why you had that particular idea at that particular time? You may think that such fleeting thoughts, however random they seem, must be the product of predictable and rational processes.

Who dugg this? Made popular Jul 1, 2009

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  • majordanger, on 07/01/2009, -3/+36"In reality, your brain operates on the edge of chaos. Though much of the time it runs in an orderly and stable way, every now and again it suddenly and unpredictably lurches into a blizzard of noise."

    It's called Rock and Roll Music and it needs to be stopped.
  • kevincredible, on 07/01/2009, -1/+19This article made my sand piles collapse.
  • ZenMojo, on 07/01/2009, -1/+14This could help explain the high incidences of schizophrenia and mental illness among geniuses...
    http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20020422222106dat ...
  • ebcreasoner, on 07/01/2009, -0/+7... get off my lawn!
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -1/+8Chaos? Doctor Malcolm is that you?
  • Shadewell, on 07/01/2009, -2/+7As an aspiring psychology student this article is veeeeery interesting.
  • daeus, on 07/01/2009, -0/+4Yea Try some Dance music, you always know what to expect next.
  • Crazyredivan, on 07/01/2009, -1/+4"Did you know that a former conquest of Jeff Goldblum's described having sex with him as a flesh storm with a 90% chance of satisfaction?"
  • daeus, on 07/01/2009, -0/+3Sometimes on a really bad hangover when I'm trying to sleep it off, I'll get random faces/objects/scenes I've never seen before just flying around
  • ZurMacht, on 07/02/2009, -0/+3"These are purely physical systems, but the brain has much in common with them."

    As if to suggest the brain isn't a purely physical system? I'm sure neuroscientists would love to hear that. ***** you dualism.
  • JQP123, on 07/01/2009, -1/+3This also makes the binary logic computer insufficient to model real brain activity.
  • alesis1, on 07/01/2009, -2/+4This also makes the standard neural net design insufficient to model real brain activity.
  • glaz, on 07/01/2009, -1/+2Mescaline tips the scales in favour of chaos.
  • psyc420, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1dissipative structures
  • Paranor01, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1A Trinary logic computer should be used.
  • waynefoolx, on 07/01/2009, -2/+3So that explains Gravity's Rainbow.
  • AndrewMoyer, on 07/01/2009, -1/+2Is that you, Tipper Gore?
  • kernel16, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1Wonder if you can artificially force this to happen with a drug of some sorts...
  • SDM187, on 07/06/2009, -0/+1***** me?? ***** YOU!!
  • cheerfulcynic, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1janet!
  • BaphClass, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1Heresy. The mind works because the Emperor wills it.

    The Emperor Protects.
  • psyc420, on 07/01/2009, -1/+2they were talking about emergence weren't they? new things emerge on the edge of chaos...

    by the by, did the lady used the word fractal incorrectly? I thought the video was showing us strange attractors at this point>/
  • fnordy, on 07/01/2009, -0/+1Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia! fnord
  • monodelasno, on 07/01/2009, -0/+0Beat it
  • jamaph, on 07/03/2009, -1/+1Man... ***** SDM187

    Buried.
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -0/+0can it!
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -1/+1So much...For South Carolina.
  • loaded123, on 07/01/2009, -1/+1I agree that everything seems to be so conveniently perfect in this universe. Everything seems to work together just right. It definitely makes it look like there is/are a creator(s).
  • psyc420, on 07/01/2009, -1/+1i love conjecture, I just want to soak it all up and take a bath in it
  • PeanutCheeseBar, on 07/01/2009, -1/+1Dude, I ***** LOVE Chaos; they're so adorable and sweet.
  • jikmo, on 07/01/2009, -4/+3Interesting
  • noctu, on 07/01/2009, -2/+1this is a breakthrough to finally understanding the female mind!!!
  • Myztry, on 07/01/2009, -2/+1Your penis popped up in your head. You must be flexible...
  • baddigga, on 07/01/2009, -1/+0Atheism has became such a Faith driven religion. Anybody who questions it automatically falls into the other extreme. If you question a religious person's Faith, he will brand name you as a heretic & reject everything you say. If you do the same to an atheist, he will call you as a "creationist" and blindly reject everything. There are many Eastern religions (Buddhism, Advaita etc.) which are more insightful and scientifically consistent than many western atheists' ideas.
  • ebcreasoner, on 07/01/2009, -2/+1.../s
  • awesomeideas, on 07/01/2009, -5/+3Cool! Corndog! Awesome!
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -3/+1Order from Chaos
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -4/+2To Chaos! *lifts glass of champaign*
  • baddigga, on 07/01/2009, -3/+0What irritates me most - the so called "scientists" who think that life is just an accident, a coincidence, a random occurrence and the human brain - the most powerful computer ever - is just a random machine. The same premise - randomness, non causality - can be applied to everything in life and it will automatically nullify all the branches of study - be it archeology, anthropology, cosmology, psychology etc.
  • krwlngindark, on 07/01/2009, -6/+3CHAOS CONTROL!
  • Lefts, on 07/01/2009, -4/+1Cascade of neuron firing causing neuron firing is called a seizure, isn't it?

    Those aren't good.
  • psyc420, on 07/01/2009, -5/+1I think the article was a bit off on the sand pile avalanches they were talking about...from what i've read, the avalanches will occur following power laws...therefore, not necessarily at random.
  • RegularUser, on 07/01/2009, -6/+2Are you talking about my wife?
  • yourcommentsux, on 07/01/2009, -9/+4Pure conjecture..

    Chaos in my mind is all driven by what I watch on tv and play on video games. In fact I just finished playing GTA IV and now I need to go jack a whip, run over some grannies on the sidewalk and hang out of the window while busting my AK-47 on innocent peeps. Fo' rill do...
  • SDM187, on 07/01/2009, -7/+1Man... ***** Jeff Goldblum!
  • hpi5555, on 07/01/2009, -10/+2BILLY MAYS HERE FOR CHAOTIC THINKING! AND IF YOU CALL IN THE NEXT 10 MINUTES WILL THROW IN A RANDOM SAND PILE AVALANCHE FOR ABSOLUTELY FREE!
  • derek20cali, on 07/01/2009, -9/+1I predict a bunch of comments from people saying how "chaotic" their thoughts are.
  • inactive, on 07/01/2009, -11/+1Science trying to explain genius? Good luck with that.
  • bobo105, on 07/01/2009, -11/+0Whilst watching this, many things popped up in my head (likewise my penis did, also - but I think that is irrelevant). The main one was closing the tab before the video finished, so I did.
  • biii, on 07/01/2009, -14/+0RIP MJ <3<3 4ever

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