Are we just biological computers?

 

I have always been impressed with the human brain and all the possibilities that it has. People often think of the brain as the computer that controls our bodies. I have to admit that I have also done this thinking why can my brain not work as nicely or as quickly as a computer does. On this count I was very wrong. In comparison the brain has about 10¹⁴ synapses which are comparative to a computer’s transistor, which it only has 10⁹ of. Along with our many synapses the rate at which our neurons fire is about 10¹¹ instructions per second and that is about 100 times faster than that of a computer (Nagarajan & Stevens, 2008). Personally, I always thought that a computer could think and work far faster than I can. This idea is ludicrous in reality. As I am typing up this paper my brain is telling me what words I want, how they go together, what they mean, how to type them, what muscles to fire….and on and on. Our brains are far more impressive then I gave them credit. Now imagine that your brain is thrown into imbalance, oh the problems this can cause.

There are many diseases that cause our brain to become imbalanced. One such disease is multiple sclerosis (MS) which happens as our immune system incorrectly attacks the myelin sheath that protectively covers our nerve fibers. This would be like seeing an electrical wire that has its protective cover broken and gone in some places. This loss of insulation by the myelin sheath can cause weak or slow signals or may block a signal all together (Mayo Clinic, 2020). A close family friend was diagnosed with MS in her early 30’s. She started to have numbness that would make it so she couldn’t feel one of her arms or as she turned to look at something she would feel as if she had been shocked by someone. Her body was not sending out signals as it should and this was causing her body to act incorrectly.

Another disease that causes an imbalance in the brain is Alzheimer’s which is a specific form of dementia. The brain just like a computer uses neurons, or transistors, to send out and uptake information. Now imagine if these transistors started to break and could no longer give the needed information to the central processing unit (CPU). As you tried to tell the computer to build a new program it would not be able to send the instructions to the CPU as the transistor connecting it was dead. As more transistors died it would start to lose the ability to remember how to open Chrome or Word. Until ultimately the computer would not have the ability to turn on as so many of the connections were broken. My grandmother had Alzheimer’s and I had to watch as she went from my grandmother to someone with the mind of a child that couldn’t even remember her own name. The hardest part of it all was to watch as her brain fully lost the ability to communicate with her body.

Our brains can also be imbalanced due to the brain structure or the way that it functions. This can lead to the Autism Spectrum Disorders which is a developmental disorder that affects how people communicate and behave. It is called a spectrum disorder as those that have it can span from high functioning to low functioning. The symptoms that are involved usually involve communication or behaviors that we consider to be socially awkward such as struggling with normal conversation, not making eye contact, not paying attention or listening to those around them, not understanding social queues or norms, being obsessed with a certain topic, OCD tendencies, talking about only what interests them and not being able to break from their routine (The National Institute of Mental Health, 2018). Some of these behaviors may come from there being less connections between the two hemispheres of the brain (Rossi, 2020). Our left hemisphere processes our speech and understanding and if there is a struggle with the connection of the two hemispheres then this would lead to confusion. Imagine you were trying to type an essay in Word and the CPU was not connected to the program correctly and so it did not understand the words being typed so the output of the typing was close but not quite right to complete gibberish. They have also seen that they have connectivity issues with in the brain that leads too exceptional short-range connectivity but bad long-range connectivity. This makes it so they have trouble with complex processes that take many parts of the brain and what helps them to excel at process that only involve one part of the brain (Rossi, 2020). Overall, the structure and the function of their brain having an imbalance leads to what we consider odd behavior or communication.

 The brain can also become imbalanced due to an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. The brain has five essential chemicals: glutamate, GABA, serotonin, dopamine, endorphins, and norepinephrine. An imbalance in one of theses chemicals can lead to major problems. Many members of my family suffer from anxiety and depression disorders that can be somewhat attributed to low levels of serotonin. To overcome this imbalance, they take medications that help to regulate this imbalance, so that they are at normal levels of serotonin. It is important to understand that those that take these medications are not getting a shot of happiness as is believed by many. Instead, they are having the chemicals in their brain regulated to normal levels and this takes a lot of trial and error to get right. It is also important to note, that you should not be over medicating or taking these medications when you do not need them. Having too much serotonin can lead to serotonin syndrome. Serotonin is what helps us to feel calm and hopeful, but if too much is present then we start to feel agitated and restless (Mayo Clinic, 2019). Thus, if people take these drugs that do not need them, they can go from feeling that calm to agitation or if too much is had, even death. Cocaine is an illicit drug that blocks our serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine transporters. Thus, we have these neurotransmitters constantly stimulating the brain until cocaine leaves the system opening back up the transporters. Through the continued use of cocaine, the brain reduces the sensitivity to the reward centers and increases the sensitivity of the stress pathways (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2020). Therefore, the drug/chemical that was bringing them the rush is now making them feel stressed more than euphoric. Drugs have their place and if properly used they bring great benefits, but when misused they cause more harm than good.

The human brain is an incredible organ that far outweighs any super computer. When our brains are well balanced and running perfectly, we have the ability to overcome anything. Sometimes our brains need help to find balance through medication. Sometimes the brain was formed differently and this causes the body and mind to function in a distinct way. This does not mean that it is bad just that it is different and the world will look differently to these individuals. Occasionally, our bodies will cause harm to itself for reasons we don’t understand. This will affect how our brain functions and from their it will affect our body. Everything can somehow be connected back to our brain so it is very important that we do what we can to take care of our brain and balance it in the way we individually need.

 

   

Mayo Clinic. (2020, June 12). Multiple sclerosis. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/multiple-sclerosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350269

Mayo Clinic. (2019, December 10). Serotonin syndrome. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/serotonin-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20354758

Nagarajan, N., & Stevens, C. F. (2008). How does the speed of thought compare for brains and digital computers? Current Biology, 18(17), 756-758. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2008.06.043

National Institute on Aging. (2019, December 24). What Causes Alzheimer's Disease? Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/what-causes-alzheimers-disease

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2020, June 06). What are the long-term effects of cocaine use? Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/cocaine/what-are-long-term-effects-cocaine-use

The National Institute of Mental Health. (2018, March). Autism Spectrum Disorder. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders-asd/index.shtml

Rossi, C. (2020, May 04). Autism Spectrum Disorder: Autistic Brains vs Non-Autistic Brains. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.psycom.net/autism-brain-differences