Have you ever wondered how your brain and mind actually work? Perhaps you know a little about the hardware inside our heads? The cerebral cortex split into two hemispheres, which sits atop our thalamus and hypothalamus, the Midbrain, and these upon the Brain Stem. Each layer being more ancient in evolutionary terms, as you go descend toward the spine. Our cerebral cortex is like a super computer atop an old mechanical adding machine, and below this a sun dial. These analogies may be, somewhat, peculiar, but when it comes to the brain it is a brave new world in scientific terms. How we think as human beings is a fascinating topic.
How Many of the Brain’s Functions Work?
We are only beginning to comprehend how many of the brain’s functions work. Memory is a fascinating function to try and understand. There are multiple places where memories, seem, to be located or stored. The hippocampus, the neo-cortex and the amygdala are all involved in what they call, explicit memory. The hippocampus, which is located in the temporal lobe, is where episodic memories are created and, then, indexed for later use. Episodic memories are our autobiographical memories following specific events, which have occurred in our lives. Information from these memories can, at a later date, be transferred into the neocortex. This is how we learn from experience. The amygdala is where emotional significance is attached to our memories.
What Makes Us Truly Human?
Connecting all our assets is a vital process, which occurs within our brains. These linkages, via synapses, are what make us truly human in all our magnificent complexity. A life without the ability to memorise it, has been shown to be no life at all. Those who receive damage to their hippocampus can struggle to form new memories and can be consigned to a life of limited depth and profundity. Thinking straight is dependent upon healthy brain functioning and how we think as human beings requires memory function.
Memory Makes Us, Truly, Who We Are
Opening up to new experiences is predicated upon the ability to learn from our experiences in the past. How we think as human beings makes us who we are. Our distinctive personalities are predicated on the autobiographical memories we hold dear. Those without this ability, lose their uniqueness, and, thus, memory, truly, makes us who we are. Try to imagine your own life, without the ability to form and hold episodic memories. A life minus who you think you are!
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