Evolution proven right yet again

[Vene]

You can find Lorber's work in a variety of places. It's a fact that there are people functioning normally with practically no brain. So yeah, call it illogical all you want, but the universe is consistently an illogical place.

By the way, I read the paper (Science vol. 210, no. 4475, Dec 12, 1980 "Is Your Brain Really Necessary?") in question (university network ftw).  One thing mentioned is "[g]ross surgical lesions in rat brains are known to inflict severe functional disruption, but if the same damage is done bit by bit over a long period of time, the dysfunction can be minimal."  It is possible for neurons to repair minor damage, intelligence is just the connections between individual neurons.  As long as it is done slowly, the brain can handle the damage.  Did you really think a 28 year old article would completely destroy all logic and empiricism?  Especially when it was published in one of the largest science journals in the world?

[Kai]

You can find Lorber's work in a variety of places. It's a fact that there are people functioning normally with practically no brain. So yeah, call it illogical all you want, but the universe is consistently an illogical place.

By the way, I read the paper (Science vol. 210, no. 4475, Dec 12, 1980 "Is Your Brain Really Necessary?") in question (university network ftw).  One thing mentioned is "[g]ross surgical lesions in rat brains are known to inflict severe functional disruption, but if the same damage is done bit by bit over a long period of time, the dysfunction can be minimal."  It is possible for neurons to repair minor damage, intelligence is just the connections between individual neurons.  As long as it is done slowly, the brain can handle the damage.  Did you really think a 28 year old article would completely destroy all logic and empiricism?  Especially when it was published in one of the largest science journals in the world?

LOL for pointing out it was from Science. My professor said that is is probably the worlds most prestigious journal devoted to scientific discovery. In fact, that volume is probably in the student library I have been working on cateloguing.

[Vene]

You can find Lorber's work in a variety of places. It's a fact that there are people functioning normally with practically no brain. So yeah, call it illogical all you want, but the universe is consistently an illogical place.

By the way, I read the paper (Science vol. 210, no. 4475, Dec 12, 1980 "Is Your Brain Really Necessary?") in question (university network ftw).  One thing mentioned is "[g]ross surgical lesions in rat brains are known to inflict severe functional disruption, but if the same damage is done bit by bit over a long period of time, the dysfunction can be minimal."  It is possible for neurons to repair minor damage, intelligence is just the connections between individual neurons.  As long as it is done slowly, the brain can handle the damage.  Did you really think a 28 year old article would completely destroy all logic and empiricism?  Especially when it was published in one of the largest science journals in the world?

LOL for pointing out it was from Science. My professor said that is is probably the worlds most prestigious journal devoted to scientific discovery. In fact, that volume is probably in the student library I have been working on cateloguing.

I found it online on JSTOR if anybody is interested/has access.

[Kai]

Meh, its 28 years old. Any body that has taken an animal/human anatomy and physiology course knows that a body can repair neural structure. But thanks, JSTOR is my bitch.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

I think the only thing that 'functioning without a brain' proves, like 'quantum physics' (scary quotes to indicate the term as used by crazed philosophers):

Humans are constantly learning new information about the universe, Absolute physics became relative to the level being discussed. What was once a blood radiator, became a complex organ where the soul was, to a complex computer that was necessary in all its parts, to a self repairing dynamic neural network.

Who knows what the hell we'll learn in the future? Absolute certainty about any knowledge we have is probably a bad idea.