My Introduction

What is consciousness? Perhaps one of the most enigmatic conventions the universe features.  Does it perhaps allude to entities that exist within each of our bodies, rendering the silicon, phosphorous, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and hydrogen of which we are composed simply a vestige?  Or is it simply a manifestation of the inner workings of the nervous system?  The former question is the principal component of a philosophical concept known as dualism, a concept which dictates the mind, or consciousness, as it were, and the body (the integumentary system, the digestive system, etc.) are separate entities.  Dualism is a premise which had been in the favour of the scientific community moreso in the time of French philosopher Rene Descartes.  He believed a gland within the brain known as the Pineal body was akin to a joystick:  the brain received information from the sensory systems (vision, audition, etc.) and then transferred it to the 'soul,' which, when it made its decision, titled the Pineal body in a particular direction, and fluid in the brain (known as cerebrospinal fluid) would flow in that direction.  Descartes also convicted that our nerves were to our bodies as pipes were to machines, and that muscles were cylinders.  Once the soul chose where to direct the fluid, it would flow through the nerves and then to the muscles, where they would either fill up or empty with fluid, causing contraction or relaxation.  We now know that anatomy of the body is not as he thought, however he laid the foundation for further study.  Today we have many fields which principally concern the nervous system, fields such as neurology, and cognitive and behavioural neuroscience.  The evidence these fields garner suggest consciousness is as the latter of my two previously broached questions suggested-a manifestation of the nervous system.  As such, the scientific community now generally accepts the concept of monism (the mind and body being the same entity) to be axiomatic.  Even so, there is still so very much left to learn.  Neuroscience is a relatively new field,  as well as one which I hope to benefit in my future.  My name is Andrew, and I have created this blog for the purpose of aggregating my conjectures, hypotheses, ideas, and thought processes concerning this immensely interesting and enigmatic topic to the information super highway.  And maybe along the way, I might be able to actually help us understand what truly is 'the human experience.'