While we screech and quarrel about the latest incremental improvement in computer predictive algorithms, a lot of DRAMATIC discoveries are happening in microbiology and neurology with very little attention. This discovery in microbiology was far more earthshaking than the latest increment in computers.
Our official “philosophers” are pushing the curve in the other direction to advance Altman’s Holy Share Value. “Philosophers” tell us authoritatively and “logically” that even ordinary humans don’t qualify as intelligent. Only the Elite Few (= Altman) have an inner life and conscious thought. Non-Altman entities are inanimate objects.
I wrote about this in 2022. Noticed it today among the bot “reads”, always at least two years behind. I was duly impressed in 2022 but didn’t stop to think about it and didn’t store it in my mind, thus placing myself below bacterial spores in intelligence.
The text was originally quoted from UncommonDescent, which has gone into a spore state without intelligence. The original source was at Phys.org.
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Bacterial spores have an extraordinary ability to evaluate their surrounding environment while remaining in a physiologically dead state. They found that spores use stored electrochemical energy, acting like a capacitor, to determine whether conditions are suitable for a return to normal functioning life.
Spores were able to count such small inputs and if the sum reached a certain threshold, they would decide to exit the dormant state and resume biological activity. Spores use a mechanism known as integrate-and-fire, based on fluxes of potassium ions for appraising the surrounding environment. Spores responded to even short-lived favorable signals that were not enough to trigger an exit from dormancy. Instead of waking up, spores released some of their stored potassium in response to each small input and then summed consecutive favorable signals to determine if conditions were suitable for exiting.
“The way spores process information is similar to how neurons operate in our brain,” said Süel. “In both bacteria and neurons, small and short inputs are added up over time to determine if a threshold is reached. Upon reaching the threshold spores initiate their return to life, while neurons fire an action potential to communicate with other neurons.” Interestingly, spores can perform this signal integration without requiring any metabolic energy, while neurons are among the most energy-dependent cells in our bodies.
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This redefines all concepts of life and intelligence.
Time to start from scratch.
Abacuses all the way down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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A new study at the opposite end of the complexity scale is less dramatic but helps to verify a notion that was already implicit. This research finds that the brain’s inner communication is mainly VIA the glial cells, not VIA the neurons. Previous studies showed the glial cells doing remarkable things to form, maintain and tune up the neural paths.
The new emphasis makes sense. The glial cells are determining what happens in the neurons, which implies that the intelligence is IN the glia. In this view the neurons are functional accessories like input jacks, wires and capacitors.
(1) During fetal development glial cells place the neurons in their intended positions.
Here’s the migration as currently understood. The subplate forms from the brainstem. It first builds the radial glia (the tracks) extending to the outer rim of the brain (the cortex). Then the subplate generates a few billion fresh neurons, each equipped to ride the tracks. These neurons ride to the frontier where they claim their homesteads.
(2) Via PNAS, a study by Noori et al in Toronto. Signals travel along axons at widely varying rates, constantly adjusted to keep the two ends of the path synced up with other paths that are involved in the same resonance. EQUIPOISE, a balanced resonance, is the invariant goal. Glial cells constantly monitor the signal paths along axons, modifying the myelin to slow or speed one path as needed. If one path changes due to damage or revision, the glial cells go to work again to get the bounces along this path sync’d with the other paths involved in this thought.
We’re looking at two axonal paths between a pair of brain nuclei. Thought waves bounce back and forth between the nuclei at a speed which is CONTROLLED TO SYNC THE RESONANCE. Happystar appropriately represents a glial traffic cop.
Now the SUPERamazing part. When a path changes because of damage or revision of the pattern, the glial cops change the speed yet again to keep the resonance in sync.
Moral of the story:
LIFE IS PURPOSE.
Polistra's Mill 