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Evolution the brain and mysticism A Hypothesis in need of professional scrutiny - tsintao - 22-06-2005 Hi, firstly let me just say that I'm a complete laymen , but with incredible curiosity, Now I am ‘to say the lest’ uncertain about this hypothesis that I’ve been working on, which is why I’m here, feel free to rip it to pieces as I’m not precious and would like some genuine criticism from a professional hight , obviously not all of it pertains to brain function but when researching alone one can form biased quite easily having said all that here it is. Evolution the brain and mysticism Before humans had developed language, the transfer and sharing of knowledge was thought to be conveyed through gesture. A method of communication that would require keen observational skills and a high competency of coordination, this has lead to the belief that our ancestors were right brain dominant. The right brain hemisphere is said to facilitate the capacity for visualisation and coordination by integrating or synthesizing complex visual information and re expressing it in a method of imitation that requires a process of imagination, indeed the precursor to language is thought to be art, dance and song, Intuitive and Holistic interpretations of sight and sound (a picture speaks a thousand words). In contrast to this today, we see a left brain dominance. Although, in both cases (modern and ancient), this is not strictly one way or the other but is a discrepancy of ratio in terms of population and varies proportionately within the individual. One theory suggested that the reason for the left brain dominance that we see today is hinged upon sexual selection, as left brain function is thought to be responsible for the emergence of language, now language coveys a greater accuracy of detail and information which gives rise to the ability to plan and organize. Interestingly too, is that the formation of language requires a sequential logic. Something that necessitates a concept of time, this has direct consequences where survival of the fittest and the most intuitive or instinctive individuals are discriminated against in preference to the smartest and most organized. Left Brain------ Right Brain Logical--------- Random Sequential----- Intuitive Rational-------- Holistic Analytical------ Synthesizing Objective------ Subjective Looks at parts- Looks at wholes Now it seems to me, that it would be reasonable, to form a hypothesis that the dominance of right brain function in our ancestors has a direct relationship to the mystical and spiritual experiences that later with the advent of language manifest as religion , I say this because prior to language I believe religion could not be conceptualized there was only a mystical experience. To Quote W.T. Stace. “Religions are but theories about the mystical experience”. As an example of how most if not all not all people can understand this Implicit and subjective state of mind I would point to the experience of child hood, in where the mystical ,timeless and imaginative processes give rise to such things as imaginary friends and fantasies of innumerable quantities , in terms of survival this would initially seem counterproductive, but as I pointed out earlier, “The right brain hemisphere assists with visualisation, imitation and coordination by synthesizing complex visual input ,and! it is quiet well documented that imagination is at the hart of childhood development, the concepts of time and language are developed later . Indeed if one contemplates post language mystical experience with its many and varied religious forms, it is easy to see how the concept of God was formed from holistic reasoning even the concept of a lost Eden where time had no meaning and death went un-contemplated could be an echo of a time when subjectively speaking this was true ,much the same as when we remember child hood as a time where ‘time’ seemed to stand still,perhaps the ancient re-callers were in many ways still connected to a memory of this mystical mind. Evolution the brain and mysticism A Hypothesis in need of professional scrutiny - OECD - 23-06-2005 Hi Tsintao, Thanks for offering your interesting hypothesis. We do have on our website quite an in-depth debunking of the whole concept of left and right brain thinking, if you have not seen it, I urge you to take a look at it: http://www.oecd.org/document/63/0,2340,en_2649_14935397_34555007_1_1_1_1,00.html I won't try to personally challenge your hypothesis, but it is certainly true that recent discoveries about the brain are calling into question philosophy and religion and mind/brain duality. In the 28 April edition of Nature magazine ("Who has designs on your studen'ts minds?" - http://www.nature.com/nature) there is an interesing article on the spread of a so-called "intelligent design" movement which is spreading in the US in university campuses. This movement is not based on any kind of theology, but basically supports the concept that scientific knowledge is incomplete, and that there is some sort of overrriding supernatural intervention. Intelligent design does not draw from bibilical sources. So, perhaps intelligent design believers would dismiss your hypothesis. Evolution the brain and mysticism A Hypothesis in need of professional scrutiny - tsintao - 23-06-2005 Ok thanks for your response, this is exactly the kind of study I was looking for *a recent analysis of 65 neuroimaging studies on emotion found no scientific support for the hypothesis of an overall right hemispheric lateralisation of emotional function. There is no direct scientific evidence that supports an analytical, logical thinking style for the left hemisphere, *Similarly, other data showed that subsystems in both hemispheres are activated for parts of the reading process, e.g. decoding written words or recognising speech sounds. Based on these and many more scientific findings, scientists nowadays think that while there are some functional asymmetries, the two brain hemispheres do not work in isolation, but rather together in every cognitive task. However! Without a more detailed analysis of the data ,and given the huge quantity of research in favor of left/right dominance theory I can as yet only conclude that while, ‘for example’ “other data showed that subsystems in both hemispheres are activated for parts of the reading process” that what is being observed is a duel processing of the left and right thinking and that far from being isolated in the total cognitive sense, the neuroimaging studies could merely be evidence of simultaneous but separate cognitive processes which are then shared via the function of brain switching, evidence for a shared brain hemispheric cooperation, Indeed it would be hard to imagine except it the cases of some brain disorders, that given the many and varied stimulus that the brain has to deal with on a daily basis that simultaneous/separate processing was not available to the brain. ummm just edit this bit in. Now perhaps I’m being pedantic here but upon reading the e.g. more carefully [ e.g. decoding written words or recognizing speech sounds.] and I’m not sure what is meant by decoding, except that decoding is generally associated with pattern recognition i.e. having never seen a word but understanding its meaning by association of previously understood components, sounds a little intuitive to me! Recognizing speech sounds again seems ambiguous or middle ground as sound without an attached meaning or symbol can be implicitly recognized i.e. pleasure , pain, friend ,foe, safety ,danger and so on As for what you quit aptly named ‘so called intelligent design’ I can only say that while I sympathies with it on a mystical level It fails on many of its premises to establish a sound logical argument, when pointing to intelligence its simply regurgitating the same old anthropocentric clap trap that theists have been asserting for a millennia by superimposing human nature upon every aspect of the cosmos. in any case this is probably not the sort of forum for such discussions Evolution the brain and mysticism A Hypothesis in need of professional scrutiny - Christina - 28-06-2005 Thank you, Tsintao, for sharing your consideration of the brain with an interesting anthropological perspective. The brain is not functionally lateralized. The brain is composed of component parts with unique properties and functions, and these parts can. be logically used for categorization (e.g. http://endoflifecare.tripod.com/kidsyoungadults/id37.html). However, there is communication among the various components of the brain so that while certain parts may serve specific functions, the actions of these parts are interactive and often integrated. I am interested in your comment, “…it is well documented that imagination is at the heart of childhood development, the concepts of time and language are developed later.” I have read quite a bit about the development of language, but have seen much less regarding time. If you are aware of some research concerning the way the concept of time develops, I would be fascinated to learn about it. Thanks very much. Christina Evolution the brain and mysticism A Hypothesis in need of professional scrutiny - tsintao - 30-06-2005 Christina hi No sorry to say I have no concise information about this, however one could make the assumption that part of the concept of time relates to the quantity of history ‘this relates to memory’ and children begin with zero history or memory! so the child mind is still trying to find its clock, it hasn’t yet learned cause and effect , the other aspect of this to be considered is that for the child all things are new and what is a mundane and unnoticeable event or moment for us can be a world of intrigue for a child. But what am I saying you guys are the experts on this stuff!