A Heads-up on the Brain

Scientists are constantly prodding and scrutinizing brains, human or otherwise. Naturally, our own brains have a special interest. Many secularists deny the existence of consciousness. Other scientists know that the brain is not the mind but the mind uses the brain.

When my wife was stricken and there was no hope, I gave the order to terminate life support. When I was talking and reading to her, I thought I saw a flicker of response in her eye. The doctor said nothing could be happening, but others and I disagree. Information on uncommunicative comatose patients may support us.

Brain graphic by yodiyim at FreeDigitalPhotos

It was not long after she died that I came across the article linked above. To take it further, studies show what is being called covert consciousness. Comatose people show signs of consciousness as revealed by testing and brain scans. Efforts are being made to increase care for those people (see "We’ve Discovered 'Covert Consciousness' — But Now What?" for more.)

Recent research on the brain has failed to provide fuel for Darwinists, but they continue to speculate on how maybe perhaps certain things evolved for whatever purposes. Mysteries still abound, such as how the human brain is seven times larger than a certain ratio. Big deal.

The journal Nature (founded 1869), proceeding from the completely materialist assumption that the human mind is simply what the brain does, offered a look recently at some of the more remarkable aspects of the human brain. The article features amazing graphics but three information items stand out:

Find out what by clicking on "What’s the Big Deal About the Human Brain?" Come back for one more segment — if you've a mind to.

People used to believe that intelligence was related to brain size, but that has been debunked. (Even so, some evolutionists still try to make that connection.) Indeed, people have lived full lives with large sections of their brains missing or surgically removed. Scientists tested for intelligence and learned what some folks already know: Intelligence uses all parts of the brain. If some of it is damaged or missing, the mind uses what is available. These things fly in the face of materialism and land on the genius of the Master Engineer.

Before I give you the excerpt and link, I need to say something. Most of the articles linked are from an author with an Intelligent Design perspective. They fall short of the conclusion. That is, we were created in the image of God as stewards of his creation, and he equipped us with the kind of brain we would need to survive and thrive.

In a study of brain imaging (fMRI) changes in over 800 people, both while they were active and while they were resting, University of Würzburg researchers found that the whole brain is active more often than we may think. They distinguished three types of intelligence that we use:

The rest of this interesting article (they all are), see "Brain Imaging Shows Intelligence Uses the Whole Brain." Also of interest is a post from a creationist viewpoint, "The Human Brain is Amazing and Baffling."