On Brain, Soul, Self, and Freedom: An Essay in Bridging Neuroscience and Faith

The article begins at the intellectual fissure between many statements coming from neuroscience and the language of faith and theology. First I show that some conclusions drawn from neuroscientific research are not as firm as they seem: neuroscientific data leave room for the interpretation that mind matters. I then take a philosophical‐theological look at the notions of soul, self, and freedom, also in the light of modern scientific research (self‐organization, neuronal networks), and present a view in which these theologically important notions are seen in relation both to matter (brain) and to God. I show that religious insights expressed with soul and free will bear a remarkable resemblance to certain insights from neuroscience and the science of complex, self‐organizing systems, including emphasis on corporeality and emphasis on organization as a form of that corporeality, and that they also show an interesting parallel — albeit described in different terms — concerning the crucial role of a valuation principle that generates attraction. With that, the common‐sense idea that freedom simply is the same as indeterminism is refuted: freedom primarily means self‐determination. I bring to the fore that the self is not a static thing but a “longing.” Such longing springs from something, and it is the relationship to this source that constitutes the self. The main concern is to point out the crucial role of attraction with respect to being and to life, and to draw attention not only to the astonishing parallel on this point between Thomas Aquinas and Alfred North Whitehead but also to a surprising — albeit more implicit — analogy between these philosophical‐theological views and scientific theories of self‐organization (such as those concerning neuronal networks). In short, being attracted toward what appears as “good” is what constitutes us as selves and what thereby signifies the primary meaning of our freedom.     

Between the frontier and the network: Notes for a metapsychology of freedom2

The author examines the paradigm of the frontier and encounters the establishment of the paradigm of the network, a tendency that currently runs through diverse fields of thought. The network is not proposed as a globalising structure that would neutralise what is different, but as integration based on preservation of what is plural and its transformations. The author moves between these two paradigms in psychoanalytic metapsychology and clinical practice. The concept of frontier is intrinsic to the entire theory: repression, which separates the unconscious from the preconscious, the barrier against stimuli, the delimitation of spaces and agencies. But psychoanalysis is also a precursor of the paradigm of the network, with its concepts of unconscious, free association and evenly suspended attention. She points out that it is psychoanalysis that, in the area of scientific thought, subverts the radical split between subjects and their objects of observation, through the concepts of transference and countertransference, thus inaugurating a revolutionary theory of knowledge. This perspective can later be seen as a forerunner of changes in other disciplines. This text legitimises the contribution of psychoanalysis to thinking and knowledge, as well as the potential of a therapeutic method that provides the tools for crossing frontiers, unknotting and weaving networks, operating in the face of risks of pathological consolidations, thus holding to its unavoidable commitment to freedom.     

大学生友伴选择标准及其友伴关系

从湖南两所大学选取297名大学生为被试,采用定性研究的方法探讨大学生友伴选择的影响因素,并制定友伴选择标准调查问卷,然后再从湖南一所大学选取1166名大学生为被试,采用定量研究的方法对大学生友伴选择标准及其友伴数量、友伴关系质量之间的关系进行调查。结果发现:大学生在友伴选择标准方面可以归为完美型、适度型和低要求型3种类型;不同类型在性别、年级、专业上的分布存在显著差异;适度型大学生的友伴数量显著多于完美型;完美型、适度型大学生在与友伴的帮助与支持、与友伴的冲突方面显著多于低要求型,完美型在与友伴的冲突强度上也显著大于低要求型。     

Using habituation in machine learning

Habituation, a decrement in response to a stimulus that is presented repeatedly without ill effect, can be identified in almost all animals. It can also be used in machine learning to provide a variety of different applications, such as novelty detection, recency encoding, and temporal signal pre-processing. This paper examines how habituation can be mathematically modelled, and discusses how well these models fit the revised characteristics of habituation. It then demonstrates how the models can be combined with neural networks in order to realise the various applications. Finally, some simple experimental results are presented that demonstrate the effectiveness of the methods.     

Cracks in a postdisaster service delivery network

Poor linkage cracks are defined and identified empirically in a postdisaster service delivery network. These cracks exist when essential services are provided only by isolated or peripheral clusters of organizations. Network analysis is used to identify the isolated and peripheral clusters of organizations. Measures of experience in responding to disasters and service capacity are used to identify the organizations whose services are essential in the network. Cracks prevent the network from responding effectively in the aftermath of a disaster. Suggestions are made for using network analysis to identify cracks and to improve planning and coordination in all kinds of service networks. Collection of the data for this work was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), Societal Response to Earthquake Hazards Mitigation Program, Grant No. CEE-8314421. The analysis and writing were accomplised with support from the National Science Foundation, Grant No. BCS-8920472. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. An early version of this paper was presented at the annual meetings of the Midwest Sociological Society, Des Moines, Iowa, April 1991. This paper was distinctly improved through our response to extensive and perceptive suggestions given by the editor and reviewers of theAmerican Journal of Community Psychology. We thank them for the help.     

Effects of social networks on cross-cultural adjustment

A total of 221 responses were obtained from a survey of international students in Japan, regarding the facilitative effects of social network formation on their adjustment. Regression analyses were conducted to explore the relationships among four types of adjustment revealed in a preceding study (“general adjustment,”“self-control,”“affiliative” and “dependent”), network size, demographic variables, expected social support, etc. For each adjustment type, predictive variables were identified. Two of the variables that showed network effects on adjustment were Japanese language proficiency and race (Asians vs. Westerners). From these results, it would appear that social network formation does facilitate adjustment, and insight into the effect of adjustment type and demographic variables on network functions was obtained. Furthermore, the actual conditions regarding network formation of international students in Japan were revealed.     

句子加工和语义记忆结构的实验研究

本文报告的实验,以句子验证范式为基础,采用常规试验和信号试验相混合的程序,对汉语句子加工的有关问题作了考察,实验结果表明,句子理解的时间,依赖于人对句中所含概念之间语义关系的认知度;人对句子的理解是一个部分信息逐渐积累的过程。根据实验材料,作者对语义记忆的结构问题作了讨论。     

Electrophysiological correlates of dispositional mindfulness: A quantitative and complexity EEG study

While growing evidence supports that dispositional mindfulness relates to psychological health and cognitive enhancement, to date there have been only a few attempts to characterize its neural underpinnings. In the present study, we aimed at exploring the electrophysiological (EEG) signature of dispositional mindfulness using quantitative and complexity measures of EEG during resting state and while performing a learning task. Hundred twenty participants were assessed with the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire and underwent 5 min eyes-closed resting state and 5 min at task EEG recording. We hypothesized that high mindfulness individuals would show patterns of brain activity related to (a) lower involvement of the default mode network (DMN) at rest (reduced frontal gamma power) and (b) a state of ‘task readiness’ reflected in a more similar pattern from rest to task (reduced overall q-EEG power at rest but not at task), as compared to their low mindfulness counterparts. Dispositional mindfulness was significantly linked to reduced frontal gamma power at rest and lower overall power during rest but not at task. In addition, we found a trend towards higher entropy during task performance in mindful individuals, which has recently been reported during mindfulness meditation. Altogether, our results add to those from expert meditators to show that high (dispositional) mindfulness seems to have a specific electrophysiological pattern characteristic of less involvement of the DMN and mind-wandering processes.