Consciousness in four dimensions : biological relativity and the origins of thought

In a book that will profoundly alter the modern discourse on mind and influence the practice of neuromedicine, neurobiologist/neuropsychiatrist, Richard M. Pico unveils a revolutionary new approach to understanding consciousness that pinpoints its origins in the brain. Called Biological Relativity, the approach combines the laws of physics--especially Einstein's laws of relativity--to the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience, molecular biology, and computational theory to create a coherent four-dimensional model for explaining the origins of life and the emergence of complex biological systems--from the living cell to the thinking brain. In a fascinating, ambitious narrative that draws upon a lifetime of experimental and clinical work, Dr. Pico tells a riveting story that begins in the imponderably distant past, with the first proto-cell that endured long enough to become its own frame of reference--both structurally and temporally--and culminates with the most complex biological referent system known to science, the human brain. He then elaborates his groundbreaking theory through discussions of such things as the origins of language, music, and mathematics. He explains why he believes consciousness is uniquely human, and explores the causes and potential treatments for a variety of thought disorders. In Consciousness in Four Dimensions, neuropsychiatrist Richard Pico puts forth a bold new hypothesis for the origins of human consciousness. Drawing on twenty years of his own experimental and clinical work, as well as his training in physics, Pico proposes that the origins of thought can be pinpointed in the brain within the context of a theory of biological relativity. The theory is first illustrated with the emergence of life, whereby the first cell cohered and endured against the background flux of organic compounds, becoming its own four-dimensional frame of reference. The same model is applied to consciousness, which emerges in the prefrontal cortex when sensory information converges with input from the memory system in a series of modules. Thought exists above a flicker-fusion threshold, when the information that is passed from module to module is seen to endure in its own four-dimensional frame of reference, without degradation and without reference to the external three-dimensional environment. From this exquisitely complex iterative process, Pico proposes that all higher order human functions are built, from language to mathematics to music.; This biological relativity model of consciousness is strongly materialistic, which places it in the company of the work of such thinkers as Steven Pinker, Daniel Dennett, and Antonio Damasio. Yet it is also completely original. Several theorizers, such as Fred Alan Wolf and Roger Penrose have proposed quantum theories of consciousness, but Pico is the only person applying relativity to the brain. With meticulous precision and admirable compassion, Pico places his theory in the context of other theories of consciousness, and explores its implications. He discusses why he thinks consciousness is uniquely human, how it can be seen to arise in individuals at about the age of two, and what it means when its development goes awry in the devastating "thought disorders" with which he has had so much experience as a clinician Einstein's Vision Of The Universe I: Relativity And Reference Systems -- Evolution And The Emergence Of Life -- The Reference System Of Life -- Development And Systems Of Neurons -- The Brain And Sensory Information -- The Emergence Of Consciousness -- The Thought Effect -- Insect Thoughts And Animal Minds -- Human Thought And The Emergent Twos -- Reference Systems Of Consciousness I: Constraints Of Structure And Function -- Reference Systems Of Consciousness Ii: Interpreting The World -- Einstein's Vision Of The Universe Ii: The Structure Of Space-time -- Beyond Behaviorism And Mentalism: Toward A Framework For Biological Relativity. Richard M. Pico. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 379-388) And Index. Richard M. Pico unveils a revolutionary new approach to understanding consciousness that pinpoints its origins in the brain. Called Rbiological relativity, S the approach combines the laws of physics to the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience, molecular biology, and computational theory to create a coherent four-dimensional model for explaining the origins of life and the emergence of complex biological systems--from the living cell to the thinking brain.