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From Axons to Identity: Neurological Explorations of the Nature of the Self
Web edition: August 27, 2009
Print edition: September 12, 2009; Vol.176 #6 (p. 27)
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From Axons to Identity: Neurological Explorations of the Nature of the Self by Todd E. Feinberg
A neuroscientist considers the intimate relationship between the brain and sense of self.
W.W. Norton & Co., 2009, 304 p., $25.95.
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A. "From Axons to Identity: Neurological Explorations of the Nature of the Self by Todd E. Feinberg"
[Link was removed]
B. "Life Is Simpler Than They Tell Us", a reposting:
Genes to Genomes to Monocellular to Multicellular Organisms;
Direct Sunlight to Metabolic Energy, Too;
Triptophan to Serotonin to Melatonin to Neural System.
A. Triptophan to Serotonin to Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone secreted by the human pineal gland during night-time darkness. It is now marketed in the US as a nutritional supplement. The hormone is an indoleamine compound derived from the essential amino acid L-tryptophan, with serotonin as an intermediate precursor.
Tryptophan is one of eight essential amino acids, not produced by the body but coming from the diet. The additional fourteen amino acids are produced metabolically.
In the brain, tryptophan converts to serotonin, the neuro-transmitter. Tryptophan is the only source for serotonin in the brain. Insufficient L-tryptophan in the diet is a cause of many severe biological malfunctions.
Some serotonin is converted in the pineal gland to melatonin, the hormone involved in intercell processes during sleep time.
B. Sunlight to Metabolic Energy
Bio-clocks are products of the innate sun-dictated active-inactive pattern of genes and genomes, parents of Earth's life. During life genesis and its early evolution direct sunlight was the only source of their usable energy. This situation persistrd well into the evolution of the early monocellular organisms, and both genes and genomes display, therefore, innate "inactive-sleep" phenomena.
The incorporation of mitochondria with some cells innitiated the metabolic bio production of bio usable energy and furnished the evolving monocellular organisms with new, additional, flexibly available local energy. This development opened up a variety of courses of evolutions of cultures of monocells communities.
C. Individual Monocells to Cooperative Monocells-Communities
As individual independent genes aggregated to cooperative genes communes, genomes, so individual monocells aggregated cooperatively into monocellular communities.
From "Life Is A Cooperative Affair" (Sept 2005)
[Link was removed]
"Life has always been and still is a fractal affair, repetition of phenomena on ever more complex scale. It cannot be otherwise; it evolves. And surviving-proliferating life has always been a cooperative affair since cooperation is most successful for overall survival/proliferation."
Cooperation requires all sorts of interactions, including maintenance, protection and foraging for food-energy. Organisms' interactions are "cultures". Cultures require "cultural energy". Melatonin and some proteins are dark-and-light que signals evolved by the monocells communities for timing intercells processes when the intracells processes are at "sleep-inactive" state. Melatonin is a derivative of serotonin a derivative of triptophan, and proteins are genes' toolings, energy-dependent metabolism products.
D. Monocellular to Multicellular Organisms, Monocells Culture to Neural System
Now we can appreciate the fractal nature of life's evolution. It is ever-continuous ever-enhanced ever-complexed cooperation. Now we can understand why, and grosso modo how, all the organs and processes and signals found in multicelled organisms have their origins in the monocells communities. And this includes the functions of serotonin and melatonin and, yes, the evolution of neural cells and the neural systems with their intricate outer-membrane shapes and functionings and with their high energy consumption requirements.
Now, circa four billion years after initial genesis-evolution with direct sun's energy followed with evolution with also indirect, bio, sun's energy, some of Earth life, we humans, find ouselves short of energy and in need of exploiting again more, and more direcly, our sun's energy...
Dov Henis
(Comments From The 22nd Century)
Updated Life's Manifest May 2009
[Link was removed] #entry412704
[Link was removed] #2321
EVOLUTION Beyond Darwin 200
[Link was removed] #1407
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