Category Archives: Social Interaction
10 Jul Mainspring of Language Learning
The brain wants something to happen so it can learn. Almost anything that is not nothing will stimulate neuron growth. There’s a good Radio Lab show that explores research on this topic at “How Does Your Brain Grow.” The program includes reference to “studies in which thinking alone—brain puzzles and learning new languages—can actually stave off the onset of […]
13 Mar Intro to Understanding Context
Understanding It has been said that it is not possible to fully understand another person’s meaning without inhabiting their experiences and their current state of mind. And yet, communication is often completely successful. The most effective communications are between people who empathize well and avoid applying their own biases when listening to others. For humans, […]
07 Feb Your Place in the Noosphere
René Descartes suggested that if you think, you exist: cogito ergo sum. To think, to know, to intuit, to be or not to be… these are questions that lead us to consider the noosphere. Taxonomies attempt to categorize things in the universe by placing them in buckets in which all the things in the same […]
28 Aug Sensory Input to the Brain
Part of the definition of any computer program is defining the inputs and outputs, where they come from, what they are and where they get processed. Fortunately, we know enough about the brain to answer many of these questions, thus we have a basis for defining artificial models that, in some way, mimic these elements of […]
15 Aug MIPUS and Association Neurons
Association Neurons ==> Coordination Association Neurons are tied to motor neurons, though they are much more numerous (30 to 1 ratio). They have multiple roles depending on where in the nervous system they are found. Innovateus has a convenient primer on this category of nerve cell. To understand the importance of association neurons, consider the plight […]
09 Aug Emotional Intelligence
What Does it Take to Think In describing the role of the hippocampus, we discussed the correlation of various sensory inputs to form a cohesive picture of our physical surroundings. The direct links between the amygdala and the central gray matter demonstrate the importance of emotional feedback or emotional intelligence in cognitive processes. Dr. Travis […]
01 Aug Section 6 Intro – Language and Dialog
Dialog: Is this something limited to humans – to sentient beings? Natural Language, its components, acquisition, and use are the subjects of this sixth section of the Understanding Context blog. Here, you will find theories about communication and cognition, along with descriptions of computational approaches to analyzing and automatically generating human language and dialog using computers. […]