The Brain, A Decoded Enigma Part 18

Faced with external reality, any individual builds and operates some models to predict the evolution of the external reality. The majority of the population is based on image models. One of the organization principles of the human society is:

The majority is seldom right.

This principle is a direct consequence of reflecting the external reality based on image models.

The evolution of society means that there is a dynamic (a continuous change in time). But, as we already know, it is very hard to change a structure of models.

A second principle states that:

The persons who are able to lead the society must be changed from time to time, even if they seem to be able to lead the evolution process.

The first principle says that a team of "symbolic" qualified persons should elect the leading persons, and the second principle says that such persons must be changed from time to time.

The present democratic society is based on these principles, as MDT just explained why.

When in a situation a.s.sociated with the evolution of the society, a decision has to be taken; on image models, the decision is based on feelings, or impressions, or some local models. On a symbolic model, such a decision is based on parameters and their a.s.sociated values. So, the importance of every element or relations.h.i.+p is controllable.

Example: there is a law of the propagation of errors in mathematics. It says how much the result of a formula is changed when a term is changed, let's say, e.g. by 1%. The importance of every element or relations.h.i.+p is given in a very precise way.

In future (not in the next 50 years, I guess), there will be a single symbolic model a.s.sociated to the society. Such a model will be able to characterize the society in the same way as the mechanical world is characterized by Newton's model.

Based on simulation, it will be possible to predict the evolution of the society, based on some basic decision. The population will have to know these predictions and choose one or another based on its short-range and long-range interest.

It is supposed that in some very advanced countries such models already exist. The main problem is that the political parties and the population are on a general evolution level that is too low for a "symbolic" understanding of the society.

ETA 19: The schizophrenic-paranoiac complex (XSPC).

XSPC is described only a.s.sociated to non-pathological schizophrenic persons (XS1-type).

Based on MDT, schizophrenia means a reduced ability to build and operate long- range models.

XS1 schizophrenia is a non-pathological form, which is a.s.sociated with the activity of a large fraction of the population in a normal society.

Paranoia XP means that there is an ordinary model in the protection structure of models. Such an OMPSM forces a person to distort the importance of the primary facts to be accepted by OMPSM.

Thus, an XS1-type person is not able to build long-range models, but he/she is able to build short-range models. The result is that such a person has a large number of short-range models, which are a.s.sociated with almost all the features of the external reality. A XS1 person is able to integrate into a society, often in very good positions.

Schizophrenics can't build efficient long-range models, but can build very good short-range models. The incapacity of building long-range model means that they have many uncorrelated short-range models. When they are forced to couple/correlate several models, as they haven't got the capacity to do it, they will distort the correlation between them. It happens in the same way as for paranoiac persons, but for schizophrenics, paranoia is induced dynamically. (At different moments, there are different distortions). This is XSPC.

The present educational system has the tendency to create schizophrenic persons with XSPC symptoms. XSPC is generated by the cla.s.sical educational system, where lessons are based on elements, without insisting on the relations.h.i.+p between elements. The capacity to make on one's own such correlation is not favoured by the educational system. As in school the construction on long-range models is not taught, the persons will lose more and more this ability. Thus, school, at all levels, favours the occurence of XS1B, and also XSPC, in perfectly sane children. This characterizes school all over the world.

Application: Let's build the full history of Europe, for secondary school level, in a normal lesson of 50 minutes.

The main problem is to select what is important and what is not. The normal solution is to make a long-range model and to declare it in an explicit form. Such a model will be able to select, in a coherent mode, what is important and what not.

There is a development history of the human species in this book. This history is based on a long-range model, which says that all the evolution of the human species is based on the continuous increase of the power of the symbolic models. Thus, this model is able to select what is important and what not.

Some people could have other ideas. There is no problem. They must declare their long-range model and make another history. In every situation, there will be a correlation between the short-range models, which are the elements of the long-range model. This is the normal situation, according to MDT.

Conclusion: XS1 persons are based on a large collection of short-range models, which are built by direct interaction with the external reality. When such persons are forced to connect some models in between them (to cover a larger section of the external reality), they are forced to connect such independent models. This can be done only by the distorsion of some models to fit with one another. But, this is similar with the behavior of a paranoiac person. This is XSPC (paranoiac behaviour due to a schizophrenic structure of models).

ETA 20: Induced paranoia (XIP) and paranoiac-schizophrenic complex (XPSC).

XIP affects normal persons who are forced to use a basic model in every situation.

E.g. the members of the Communist parties are forced to accept that the "working cla.s.s" is the leader of the society. This model is not in PSM (the person has no illness) but, they are forced to use this model.

This externally-imposed model determines that any data from external reality should be compatible with the externally-imposed model. Their structure of models evolves in a paranoiac-type structure (it is not possible to discuss freely with such persons).

A "soft" form of XIP occurs in people that are representatives of a state inst.i.tution.

For the XP paranoiac persons (there is an OMPSM), the external data could collide with the OMPSM. The solution for them is to distort any external information to be compatible with their OMPSM. But, in a complex structure of external realities, this method cannot work (it is not possible anymore to build a harmonic/logic structure of models by distorsion). The only solution is to fragment the data. This means that the same facts from external reality have a different interpretation depending on the environment. This is XPSC.

Conclusion: a paranoiac structure of models evolves to schizophrenia too, as the external reality is more and more complex.

ETA 21: Disharmonies of the functions of the brain

We know from the general theory that two basic modes of interactions between humans and external reality exist. The first consists in obtaining better and better models of the external reality (ZM). The second is modifying external reality based on action models (ZAM).

Disharmonies are a.s.sociated with the importance given to each facility. Thus, there are two categories of humans: more knowledge or more action oriented.

Without action on the external reality, knowledge is limited. On the other hand, people with a reduced knowledge of the external reality can't build good quality models, and so the capacity of action on the external reality is limited or inefficient.

Disharmonies are thus determined by the following factors: - the capacity to build models of the external reality - the capacity to build action models - the capacity to activate action models.

All these three factors are in a very close interdependency, whatever the interaction between the brain and external reality might be.

A disharmony cannot be a.s.sociated with a psychical or a pathological status.

The disharmonies contribute to what we call personality.

In this chapter, we will talk about people who have no disharmonies. The perfect situation is the case of those who build action models compatible with the models of the external reality. These people are those who do not intend to do more than they are able to. Such people will succeed in all they want to do. They are happy people.

However the happy people have little contribution to the progress of society, even if they contribute significantly to its stability.

Example: A man wants to buy a very expensive car. Lacking money, the action model can't be activated. This man is unhappy. Another one wants to buy a pencil. He succeeds to do it, and as such, he is happy.

Disharmonic people move society forward. They are essentially unhappy people. If they succeed in the end to do what they wished for, soon their disharmonic structure will make them build other action models which are not suitable to external reality and the cycle restarts.

ETA22: Subliminal messages

When external reality changes, the local ZM won't make good predictions and the brain will in consequence look for/build a new model suitable to the new external reality. However some time to react is needed.

In the case of subliminal messages we have an image which will produce a new M-model. This will have to activate a ZM-SL (SL= subliminal), but before the activation of the new ZM-SL, the dominant external reality will reappear, which will immediately reactivate the initial ZM. Thus ZM-SL has time to be built, but will not be activated. This will have the effect on a person as an idea or tendency to something, without an explicit reason. Of course these thoughts influence methods can create big disorders in the structure of models of a given brain, as some half-elaborated models have to be integrated in the normal structure of models. ZM-SL can become illegal models. This is why subliminal messages are forbidden, at least in advertising, all over the world.

ETA23: How a positive science works

A positive science is a symbolic model (SM) integrated in GCL, which is a.s.sociated to an external reality. Let's explain this statement.

1. The existence of a fundamental symbolic model called General Communication Language (GCL) is supposed. This symbolic model contains absolutely all words, together with their definitions. The definitions can be more or less precise, logically consistent or not, can be or not accepted by some or others. GCL is the common language formed spontaneously between people in their inter-relations along the milleniums. 2. We choose a word (term) T from GCL. 3. Let's suppose that there is a positive science SM, that could include the term T. 4. The term T, that should be studied by SM, has to be included in SM. For this purpose, T has to be redefined within the frame of SM. SM can integrate a new term only if this term is defined within SM. Thus T will have one definition in GCL and another generated by SM.

Example: The term 'force' has one definition in GCL and another in Newton's Mechanics. The predictions of Newton's Mechanics refer only to the term 'force' as it had been defined within Newton's Mechanics.