In I of the Vortex, Rodolfo Llinas, a pioneer in brain science, offers a unique perspective on the evolution and essence of the mind. He posits that the "mindness state" developed to facilitate predictive interactions between mobile organisms and their surroundings. Llinas traces the origins of mind to the sea squirt, a primitive creature with a brainlike ganglion that processes sensory information. Remarkably, as adults, sea squirts attach to a surface and consume most of their own brain, indicating that the nervous system evolved primarily to support movement. To navigate their environment safely, animals must predict the outcomes of their actions based on sensory input, making prediction a fundamental brain function. The concept of Self emerges as the centralization of this predictive capability. Central to Llinas's theory is oscillation, where many neurons exhibit electrical activity through oscillating voltage changes across their membranes. Larger electrical events occur at the peaks of these oscillations, enabling communication between neurons. When groups of neurons oscillate in sync, they resonate with other neuron groups, forming the neurobiological basis of cognition. While the mind is influenced by sensory experiences, it is also shaped by these internal oscillations, suggesting that reality is not solely external but resembles a form of virtual reality.
Rodolfo R. Llinas Poradie kníh (chronologicky)
Rodolfo Llinás sa zaoberá pochopením mozgu skrze evolučnú optiku a zdôrazňuje, že mozog sa vyvinul primárne preto, aby organizmy mohli aktívne interagovať s okolitým svetom. Jeho rozsiahly výskum sa sústredí na kľúčové oblasti, ako je mozeček a thalamus, a odhaľuje jemné mechanizmy neurónovej komunikácie. Llinás tiež preskúmal, ako tieto zložité systémy fungujú, a jeho práca sa dotýka aj širších dôsledkov pre naše chápanie ľudskej kognície a správania. Jeho dielo poskytuje fascinujúci pohľad na prepojenie medzi evolučným tlakom a štrukturálnou a funkčnou organizáciou mozgu.
