The Brain, A Decoded Enigma Part 13

It is reminded that the increase of the acceptability limits is due to the increase of the capacity to build generation algorithms. An a.s.sumption is that these algorithms are supported by symbolic models.

Nowadays, music is so "advanced" that it contains just a rudimentary rhythm, and an endless text (hip-hop or rap music e.g.).

The children of our times have a reduced capacity to understand music. Around the year 1800, some 4 years old children were able to play the piano or violin, or even to compose music. In our days, this is not met anymore. But, some children are able to build and operate computer-based symbolic models.

As it is shown also, in some other parts of the book, there is a new form of fundamentalism nowadays: the rejection of the symbolic models by a fraction of the population. That is, some people return to harmony (there are many who prefer Mozart e.g.). The present music is balancing between symbolic-type music (hip-hop or rap e.g.) and harmonic music. This tendency will continue for a long time, because it is hard to believe that music will disappear (the brain is based on image models forever), but returning to the year 1800 type harmony is not possible anymore.

Music is defined as a special story-type model a.s.sociated with sounds. This story-type model has elements generated by an algorithm generator.

The generating algorithm is able to build in a dynamically way the elements which will be recorded by this special type story-type model. Based on the algorithm, the model is able to predict the future sounds based on the sounds already received.

Sometimes the algorithm generator is able to make a correct prediction of the sound which comes (a hit), sometimes not (a miss). If the prediction fails, then the generator will modify the algorithm and continue to predict what follows. When the number of misses is low, this could produce pleasure to the brain. When the number of misses is zero, there is no pleasure (e.g. a boring music). When the number of hits is zero, there is no music (no correlation between the sounds).

As this special story-type model is an image-model, its power is decreasing as the brain is evolving to symbolic models. On the other hand, it seems that the symbolic models support the algorithm generator. That is, there are two tendencies that act in contrary directions. One tendency is to make a simplified music, based mainly on symbolic models (texts) in the frame of a rudimentary rhythm (e.g. drums), as hip-hop and rap music and on the other hand, to make music based on complex algorithms (to enlarge the limits of acceptability). The present music is evolving between these two large limits.

The main tendencies of the present music are:

- The evolution based on symbolic models. This tendency increases the limits of acceptability of what are and what are not correlated sounds.

- The rejection of the symbolic models by a fraction of the population, i.e. people want harmonic music.

- The return to harmony is possible only partially because many abilities a.s.sociated with the main story-type model are lost, due to the general tendency of conceptualization of the image models. That is, the algorithm generator is better and better, but it acts on recorded data, which are a simplified copy of the external reality.

Let's see what is the situation with other arts. Almost all cla.s.sical arts are in decline. Painting and sculpture are based on pure image models. The general tendency is to make concept models, and so people are not able anymore to perceive fine details. This tendency is very easily seen in contemporary arts. The tendency in visual arts is to make works based on symbolic models, and to increase the complexity. Some arts as poetry, painting and sculpture are on the way to disappearance as stand-alone arts. Theatre, because it is based on symbolic models, is surviving, as it tries to keep the contact with the tendencies of the society. Music is still in a good shape, as we already saw. The main ascending art is cinematography.

ETA 8: Cinematography

Let's make a symbolic model to understand the subject as follows:

- The importance of the symbolic models (thinking e.g.) increases

- A big fraction of the population has difficulties to evolve based on symbolic models (fundamentalism)

- Fundamentalism means to return to image models

- This return is possible only partially.

Because returning to image models affects an important fraction of the population, why is it not seen in painting and sculpture? The explanation is that the brain has lost a lot of its capacity to make and operate pure image models. The brain returns to image models, but it stops at the level of concept models.

Cinematography is one of the responses suitable to this situation. Thus, there are cartoons, based on concept image models. They are strongly attached to symbolic models. There are cartoons, in which symbolic models are more important than the concept image models.

Today's successful movies are image models, which try to develop and extend some of the incipient image models preexisting in the mind of the viewer.

We remind here that people have the tendency to expand their structure of models outside their mind. When the models can't be expanded to the external reality, there is the tendency to expand these models into a virtual reality. This is speculated by cinematography, depending on the profile of image models in different cultural zones.

From this point of view, movies can be very dangerous. They make these developments based on what people would like to happen and on the other hand, they favorize the fundamental tendencies of various social groups.

However, as they are attached to symbolic models, some movies are used to develop symbolic models and fight fundamentalist tendencies and as such, have a positive impact on society.

A huge danger a.s.sociated to art movies is blocking the capacity of people to think independently (tendency towards induced schizophrenia XS1B). Each script is a long-range symbolic model; thus, the movie as a whole is logical. This long-range symbolic model is translated or a.s.sociated to a long-range image model. If the translation is correct, the image model will be harmonic as well. Thus, an art movie is a logical and harmonical long-range image model. The fundamental problem is that it is not enough for a model to be logical and harmonical in order for it to have a good connection with the external reality.

There are movies that try to reconstruct an external reality that no longer exists, an 'external reality' which will never exist, or anything else in between these very broad limits. The only condition is that the model is harmonic and logical. We cannot see the degree of connection with external reality from within the model. This is where the danger originates. Independent thinking will be blocked by the large quant.i.ty of information structured harmonically and logically.

Many art films contribute largely to the aggravation of the level of induced schizophrenia (XS1B). At the same time, there are many movies which contribute to the construction of long-range models that stabilize society.

ETA 9: The fundamentalisms of the world we live in

The main fundamentalism is the return to image models, and thus, the refusal of symbolic models. Symbolic models are based on extremely complex functions, which are not easily maintained operational. For a 'regular' brain, the energy consumption is higher for symbolic models than for image models. However, there is a fraction of the population of developed countries working more easily with symbolic models than with image models.

Example: There was a time in the evolution of the brain, when extremely complex image models were built and translated to a symbolic form. It was the time of the great novels (Balzac, Dostoievski etc.). Reading such works was a sign of cultural superiority. These books are not read nowadays. The main reason is the evolution towards symbolic models. The effort of the brain to understand and integrate the use of remote controls, cellphones or text editors is perfectly comparable as intellectual effort with the understanding of the great works of universal literature.

There are too many who have difficulties to operate symbolic models. There is a fraction of the population who refuses symbolic models; this fraction seems to be increasing.

Example: Microprocessors (the central part of a computer) have been invented in USA. At that time there was a tendency all over the world to produce or reproduce such microprocessors. The first microprocessor was called 8080. It was upgraded to 80286. These microprocessors were reproduced in Europe, former USSR and j.a.pan. 80386 followed, which was reproduced with great difficulties, but starting with 80486 the tendency to reproduce such devices was extremely low. Presently there are two families of microprocessors, both designed and produced in USA. This is interpreted by MDT as a danger of a break between the most advanced in the domain of symbolic models, and the slighly less advanced ones (make your own comparison with the automobile industry). Even the advanced cultural zones (Europe, Russia, j.a.pan) make big efforts to keep the contact with the most advanced (USA), but the danger of a break exists here as well.

The fundamentalist reactions of the individuals, nations or even cultural zones are a great danger for human civilisation. If the fraction of fundamentalists will increase too much, then, at the limit, two things might happen:

1. The world will fragment into nations/ cultural regions which can maintain the rhythm of a.s.similation and development of symbolic models, and nations/cultural regions which will return to image models (fundamentalist reaction)

2. The same type of break will appear inside a nation/ cultural region.

The evolution shown at no.1, pushed to extreme, could generate terrorism, and the one at 2 already generates 'escape' movements towards religions, antiglobalisation, ecology etc.

ETA 10: Terrorism

The evolution of society leads, for some nations, to an incapacity of further development based on symbolic models. These nations feel that the world is going towards something they can't follow and understand. The solution for them is to adhere to an invariant or universally accepted model, like a religion or a nature/tradition conservation movement, to orient their activity, and to offer them an easily understandable and attainable goal in predictible time (fundamentalist reaction).

Some individuals, who have strong fundamentalist reactions, could try to modify the society by direct action. A cla.s.s of such reactions is terrorism.

The definition for terrorism considered here is: terrorism is an antisocial phenomenon, which implies attacking some persons without an explicit reason. It also means destruction of material goods without explicit reasons, when these goods do not belong to a state.

If the persons attacked are the representatives of a government and the goods attacked belong to the government, then we have acts of war. A state can defend itself from acts of war, but in front of a terror attack, the protection offered by the state is limited. The main reason is that the government officials accept the limitation of their rights, and they accept a certain discipline. These persons are well enough informed to understand that they could be the targets of an attack. The same is valid fo defending the goods belonging to a state.

Many terrorist movements have tried to commit war acts and not terror acts. Thus, they try to obtain a legitimity as liberation movements, who fight for liberty or independence against a state.

Example: ETA in Spain tries to attack only the representatives of the state or local administration, and the goods belonging to them. It is difficult however for ETA to comply with these rules, all of the time. IRA acts the same way, trying to delimit itself from terrorism. Both movements make notable efforts to be considered liberation movements at war with an opressive state, and not terrorist movements.

Al Quaida tried at some time to attack only American military targets (thus delimiting itself from terrorism), but the attack on WTC in New York is clearly a terror act. The people killed were not representatives of the state, the planes used were not military, and the buildings did not belong to the state). However the attack on the Pentagon was not a terror act, but a war act.

A practical aspect should be noted connected to the tendencies of terrorism: who has vocation to build, has no 'vocation' for terrorism. To build planes, buildings and so many other material goods supposes an immense effort on scientific and technological levels, in labour organisation, on the social and cultural level. Those who know how difficult these things are done, and how many causes can block easily this process, will not have the tendency to destroy material goods.

We change now the discussion and will refer to the individual terrorists existing in any society. Serial killers exist, and others, who kill randomly innocent people. By definition, they are also terrorists, even if they act alone, without any connection to a group.

It is clear that a society can't protect itself against terrorism through stricter laws. The tougher laws will determine the disappearance of exactly those facilities, which permitted the progress of the society. Multiple levels of security will produce the fragmentation of the society. Thus, due to the reduction of the capability to communicate, the level of generalised schizophrenia increases. This could lead to a disaster on long-term.

Not any person who refuses symbolic models will have terrorist tendencies. There are adaptation forms to a world that evolves in another direction than the one desired by some. In the attempt to find the individuals with tendencies towards terrorism, one can consider a few aspects:

1. Children who have been normal at birth, but have been abused during childhood, are on the highest level of risk. Individuals aggressed explicitly or implicitly by the environment, can build illegal models, which enter their PSM; the ones with difficulties of communication have the tendency to build too short-range models for understanding the world they live in (schizophrenia XS 1 and 2). 2. The stresses generating shielding models and illegal models can affect any person, as society is very complex. For persons from 'imagistic' countries, an important source of stress is the a.s.similation and operation of advanced symbolic models. Forcing them to evolve from an image platform to high level symbolic models can destabilize the structure of models. For the 'symbolic' countries, the same can happen on a more reduced scale. 3. The isolation or elimination from society of the individuals with clear tendencies towards the destruction of the democratic system. 4. Relaxation in the protection of privacy. The so-called right to privacy hides important sources of stress both for the people protected by this right, and the ones around him/her. If everybody would accept the opening of their privacy, the society as a whole would have less real problems.