Prep Guide 3

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California State University, Chico *

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Psychology

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Oct 30, 2023

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PREPARATION GUIDE 3 Based on: Ramachandran, V. S. (1998). Phantoms in the Brain – Chapters 9 & 12 1. God & the Limbic System: (a) Ramachandran describes a link between Michael Persinger's experiments with transcranial magnetic stimulation, and temporal lobe seizures. How are these two things linked? (b) Ramachandran offers four potential explanations as to why individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy have religious experiences. Do any of these explanations resonate with you? (c) Why? (or why not?) (d) Ramachandran et al. (1997) demonstrated selective enhancement of galvanic skin response for patients with Temporal Lobe Personality syndrome. Describe the stimuli that these patients were, and surprisingly were not, responsive to. (e) Explain what you think are the implications of this result. (f) Tying profound religious experience to a brain structure may seem like a big leap, particularly when we consider the core ideas of evolution by natural selection. Such a function (in the temporal lobe, or elsewhere) would need to meet a need associated with reproductive fitness. Ramachandran goes on to speculate about the development of human intelligence, which is adaptive, but far more powerful than the needs of early humans called for. He explains that: i. Some argue that extraordinary talents arise as novel combinations of general intelligence. Ramachandran disagrees, and uses autistic individuals with Savant Syndrome as an illustration of how some random genetic developments might result in specific, massive, increases in particular talents - or even in a level of genius that is a bit wider (e.g., Einstein). ii. He also recounts the thinking of Alfred Russel Wallace, that intelligence had advanced its need as a product of interaction with the development of human culture. Each of these ideas has problems. Pick the one you think is most problematic - or least explanatory - and critique it. (10 points) a) Transcranial magnetic stimulation and temporal lobe seizures are linked because they both experience religious ecstasy. During temporal lobe seizures, they tend to experience this phenomenon more in the left lobe. In transcranial magnetic stimulation, Dr. Persinger simulated the same part of his brain and experienced religious ecstasy. b) One explanation for the religious experience of individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy was the limbic system. This would affect how the individual experiences senses and is eventually transferred to the amygdala and frontal lobe, in which the recognition of emotional significance in the world and the emotional side of us resides. So for the limbic system to be attacked by these seizures would cause the individual to not only see and feel God with them but also be able to feel emotions they would actually experience if they were to meet him in real life, and those pathways would be strengthened and the communication between structures would be stronger.

c) I think that this explanation resonated with me because if I were to experience this as a nonbeliever then I would generally want to see it again and again to not only understand such an experience again but I feel like it would turn me into a believer such as other individuals that have experienced this condition. d) Individuals with temporal lobe personality syndrome didn’t respond to things that would initiate a response in average people like extreme violence or sexually explicit material. However, they did respond to religious icons and words pertaining to religion. e) This must imply that the individuals with this syndrome are experiencing these seizures and then after having their interactions with God, their brains get more and more damaged, due to the repetitive seizures. Thus, the only undamaged part of their brain is where the epilepsy storm is and where it’s spreading. f) i. 2. Qualia: (a) Ramachandran describes the classic "color scientist" problem to illustrate what qualia are, and why they are so important. He writes "[t]his example leads to a definition of 'qualia'". This second definition is different and slightly more precise than the first definition he gives, before this example. Describe the second definition. (b) Ramachandran posits that the shortcomings of spoken language in sharing qualia between individuals can be overcome if we skip spoken communication, and instead do something else. What does he say we could do; and (c) why would it work? (d) Several examples of visual perception are given (i.e., Yellow (or white) rings and your blind spot, crossed fingers, a Dalmatian amid "random" splotches). Ramachandran writes that these examples demonstrate an important feature (this is the first law). What is that feature; and (e) why does it matter? (f) The explanation of the first law of qualia leads naturally into the second law. Describe the second law. (g) Finally, Ramachandran provides a third law. Describe the third law; and (h) why the mechanisms of the Venus-flytrap don't count as qualia. (10 points) a) Qualia is a lack of experience of color that is based completely on how we each perceive color and how to make the definition of color incomplete. b) He believed that using a transcranial magnetic stimulator on patients with severely damaged eyes to stimulate their brains in the undamaged part of their brains allowing them to believe they can see. c) This would work because instead of trying to describe things and colors to the individual they would get a similar sensation of seeing it themselves. As well as these individuals would still have the parts in their brain that process color and stimuli and their eyes just can't process it. d) The first law is the automatic response our eyes have and how qualia is a huge part of creating a full picture for us whether that be an image in our blind spot being filled or a hidden image in a larger picture. e) This matters because without it we wouldn’t be able to make associations between what we see and what we already know. Such as seeing a dog and thinking about everything associated with a dog.

f) The second law is the output or feelings caused by qualia. In this action, our eyes and brain process stimuli coming in and the second law processes what we get from experiencing qualia. g) The third law is the qualia stimuli we experience to cause a response and help us make decisions and without the stimuli being around for a long time, we cannot make a decision. With this, we must experience qualia for a period of time to create a temporary memory and thus create a decision. h) A Venus fly trap doesn’t count as having the mechanics of qualia because it does not see the trigger but it feels it. If nothing lands on the sensory hairs in the plant, it will not snap closed, and the only reason the plant snaps closed is because the plant has learned that when something triggers the hairs, it makes an inference to snap closed to get a meal. So now after, the plant solely learns how to react when touched. 3. The Self & Consciousness: (a) Ramachandran reports that many people think that the seat of consciousness is in the frontal lobes, but he disagrees. What does he think? (b) To define the self, using neurological evidence, Ramachandran starts with the embodied self - illustrating where this concept might arise in the brain using examples of anosognosia patients, etc. Make your argument as to whether or not an embodied self is a critical component of the self, overall. (c) Why does Ramachandran say that emotions are critical in defining what consciousness is? (d) Ramachandran argues that having a sense of a coherent narrative is a key element of the self. In your view, why does it matter if you can remember enough of your life to form a coherent personal narrative? (e) Much of the evidence Ramachandran has presented in this book is aimed at making a case that more than one set of independent, cognitive mechanisms are at work in the brain; that the brain is both capable and motivated (for multiple reasons) to fill in informational gaps; and that the brain also has multiple motivations for presenting a unitary conceptual self (both to oneself, and others). Make your argument as to whether humans possess consciousness, whether that consciousness is unified, and whether or not it has the capacity to motivate actions (rather than relying on some other mechanism to motivate action). (10 points) a) Ramachandran believes that the seat of consciousness is in the temporal lobes due to the fact that if there are any disturbances in these lobes then there would be very noticeable disturbances in the consciousness. b) I think that the embodied self is of some kind of importance. As I think we experience the world ourselves such as touch, taste, sight, etc., the overall feeling of ourselves, and how we are conscious of our body is based on the embodiment of our senses and body image to an extent. Overall, I believe that it's typically a critical component of the self. c) Emotions are important to defining consciousness because, without emotion, you aren’t really conscious of processing the earth. Especially when it comes to the conscious experience, individuals who don’t experience emotion don't get to fully process or understand the implications of the world around them.

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d) I think if you can remember enough of your life and experiences to form a coherent personal narrative about yourself, you're able to build from your experiences and struggles and be able to understand how the world works based on what you know about yourself and that translates to the rest of the world. e) I believe humans do possess consciousness, in the way that we can understand complex structures and beings besides ourselves in the world. We are also being self-aware and conscious of what our brains and bodies are capable of and what they do on a regular basis to not only propel us through life but also how we are able to exist with each other and other organisms. To understand the brain and how humans function, we must understand that we have different levels of consciousness and they are all interconnected but not unified as one. What I mean is the way that we can express our emotions and display ourselves in a certain way but the unconscious holds a different deeper meaning to why we are the way we are and do the things we do. These different levels of consciousness allow us to have multifaceted actions and emotions due to what we've experienced and what's been stored in our psyche. An example of this would be experiencing a traumatic incident as a child, it may be unconsciously stored but has been covertly creating a set of actions and defense mechanisms based on this one situation.