Uplifted animals have parts of their “brain” in various locations of their body. Where?How advanced or...
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Uplifted animals have parts of their “brain” in various locations of their body. Where?
How advanced or effective weapons can be created from mostly animal body parts?If your brain would be transplanted into another bodyTransporting/storing information within the human body (other than brain)Brain to body mass ratio vs general brain massWhat mammalian biological constraints would have to be relaxed/changed in order to allow Victorian style mixing of body parts?Where would a body last the longest?Why animals have to breathe?Regrowing body parts: What are the costs?Could a human brain downloaded into a robot have feelings?Internal Body Heat of Giant Animals. At which point would their size cook them from inside?
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Looking at the case of Mike, I realized decentralizing the brain might not be infeasible. The idea is if Horus, the brown falcon, doesn't have enough room in his skull, then why not move various functions to relatively well-protected areas of the body, and also expand the brainstem downwards while we're at it.
Though I'm still unsure. Where should I place the central motor generators?
Where'd they be safe?
Where'd there be enough room for them?
science-based biology creature-design brain avian
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
$endgroup$
|
show 4 more comments
$begingroup$
Looking at the case of Mike, I realized decentralizing the brain might not be infeasible. The idea is if Horus, the brown falcon, doesn't have enough room in his skull, then why not move various functions to relatively well-protected areas of the body, and also expand the brainstem downwards while we're at it.
Though I'm still unsure. Where should I place the central motor generators?
Where'd they be safe?
Where'd there be enough room for them?
science-based biology creature-design brain avian
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago
|
show 4 more comments
$begingroup$
Looking at the case of Mike, I realized decentralizing the brain might not be infeasible. The idea is if Horus, the brown falcon, doesn't have enough room in his skull, then why not move various functions to relatively well-protected areas of the body, and also expand the brainstem downwards while we're at it.
Though I'm still unsure. Where should I place the central motor generators?
Where'd they be safe?
Where'd there be enough room for them?
science-based biology creature-design brain avian
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
$endgroup$
Looking at the case of Mike, I realized decentralizing the brain might not be infeasible. The idea is if Horus, the brown falcon, doesn't have enough room in his skull, then why not move various functions to relatively well-protected areas of the body, and also expand the brainstem downwards while we're at it.
Though I'm still unsure. Where should I place the central motor generators?
Where'd they be safe?
Where'd there be enough room for them?
science-based biology creature-design brain avian
science-based biology creature-design brain avian
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
edited 7 hours ago
Cyn
11.2k12453
11.2k12453
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
asked 11 hours ago
MephistophelesMephistopheles
2,1942935
2,1942935
$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago
|
show 4 more comments
$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago
$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
1
1
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago
|
show 4 more comments
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
A good example will be Octopus.
The octopus (along with cuttlefish) has the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all invertebrates; it is also greater than that of many vertebrates. It has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localised in its brain, which is contained in a cartilaginous capsule. Two-thirds of an octopus's neurons are found in the nerve cords of its arms, which show a variety of complex reflex actions that persist even when they have no input from the brain. Unlike vertebrates, the complex motor skills of octopuses are not organised in their brain via an internal somatotopic map of its body, instead using a nonsomatotopic system unique to large-brained invertebrates.
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Your nervous system is more distributed than originally believed, but the degree to which this is true is still a bit uncertain despite it being a major point of study since the early 1800s. What is known is that the human spine contains the majority of your body's reflexive functions and motor memory effectively making your spinal cord part of a sort of distributed nervous system like you are asking about which could in theory being pushed to a greater extreme by moving more functionality into your spine. But this may not actually be as good as you would think.
Your spine is a logical nexus for performing practiced or reflexive actions because it is so much faster than having to think through the whole process.
That said, biology generally prefers the "brain" model because the closer you put neural structures, the faster they can communicate. So, by clumping together all the stuff responsible for registering senses, interpreting them, and making decisions based on them, you can think much faster, and do a much better job of letting the inputs of your different senses work together to create a unified understanding of your environment.
Also, if your concern is brain size, you may be overthinking it. Brain size is also not nearly as good of an intelligence indicator as you might think. A brain with half the mass of a human brain could still have just as many synapses allowing the same level of cognitive ability.
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A less centralized nervous system is an anatomical feature seen in non-uplifted animals in real Earth. For example, insects have brains, but they also have neural ganglia distributed through their bodies. These ganglia are responsible for functions which in us are all processed in the head, such as locomotion and gut movements.
And then there is the stegosaurus, as well as some other dinos such as the larger sauropods. They had such a small skull size to body size ratio that for some time scientists thought they had "extra brains" in other parts of the body. In the case of the stegosaurus, they thought a secondary brain might exist inside the hip.
Going a bit further - in our own case, our central nervous system is not limited to what is in our skull. The spine does some processing too, though it's mostly related to reflexes, involuntary organ movements and signal routing. But what matters is that it does have its own processing. It's not a far stretch in biology to have it augmented.
For a sci-fi reference: in the Star Wars universe, there is a species called the cereans. These guys have two brains in their skulls, which I think could make for extra brain power compared to humans. The most famous one is Ki Adi Mundi, a Jedi knight who was a member of the Jedi Council in episode one.
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
$endgroup$
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I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
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@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think you may be better off leaving the brain in the head.
Pros
Less areas to protect - Horus knows that he has to protect his head and his heart, mainly. If you moved parts of his brain to other locations, he'd have to protect all of them. During a fight, it may prove quite hard to protect your head(to not lose your vision) and all the places of your body where the brain is spread over at the same time.
Have it next to the input devices - if you notice a sword swing by your enemy, you have to react immediately in order to block it. If you have your senses far away from your brain, it may take you too long to react.
Have it all at a single place, in order to think fast. The closer the neurons and the shorter the paths that, the faster your thinking. Having your brain spread all over your body may not be a good idea concerning that.
Head and skull as they have evolved during the ages offer a quite good protection and it I wouldn't question evolution...
Cons
- A single strike can end your entire existence, in that case you may be better off if left disabled due to losing several brain case
An alternative could be having multiple brains
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
$endgroup$
add a comment |
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4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
A good example will be Octopus.
The octopus (along with cuttlefish) has the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all invertebrates; it is also greater than that of many vertebrates. It has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localised in its brain, which is contained in a cartilaginous capsule. Two-thirds of an octopus's neurons are found in the nerve cords of its arms, which show a variety of complex reflex actions that persist even when they have no input from the brain. Unlike vertebrates, the complex motor skills of octopuses are not organised in their brain via an internal somatotopic map of its body, instead using a nonsomatotopic system unique to large-brained invertebrates.
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A good example will be Octopus.
The octopus (along with cuttlefish) has the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all invertebrates; it is also greater than that of many vertebrates. It has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localised in its brain, which is contained in a cartilaginous capsule. Two-thirds of an octopus's neurons are found in the nerve cords of its arms, which show a variety of complex reflex actions that persist even when they have no input from the brain. Unlike vertebrates, the complex motor skills of octopuses are not organised in their brain via an internal somatotopic map of its body, instead using a nonsomatotopic system unique to large-brained invertebrates.
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A good example will be Octopus.
The octopus (along with cuttlefish) has the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all invertebrates; it is also greater than that of many vertebrates. It has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localised in its brain, which is contained in a cartilaginous capsule. Two-thirds of an octopus's neurons are found in the nerve cords of its arms, which show a variety of complex reflex actions that persist even when they have no input from the brain. Unlike vertebrates, the complex motor skills of octopuses are not organised in their brain via an internal somatotopic map of its body, instead using a nonsomatotopic system unique to large-brained invertebrates.
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
$endgroup$
A good example will be Octopus.
The octopus (along with cuttlefish) has the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all invertebrates; it is also greater than that of many vertebrates. It has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localised in its brain, which is contained in a cartilaginous capsule. Two-thirds of an octopus's neurons are found in the nerve cords of its arms, which show a variety of complex reflex actions that persist even when they have no input from the brain. Unlike vertebrates, the complex motor skills of octopuses are not organised in their brain via an internal somatotopic map of its body, instead using a nonsomatotopic system unique to large-brained invertebrates.
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
answered 7 hours ago
Chenxi GEChenxi GE
814
814
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Your nervous system is more distributed than originally believed, but the degree to which this is true is still a bit uncertain despite it being a major point of study since the early 1800s. What is known is that the human spine contains the majority of your body's reflexive functions and motor memory effectively making your spinal cord part of a sort of distributed nervous system like you are asking about which could in theory being pushed to a greater extreme by moving more functionality into your spine. But this may not actually be as good as you would think.
Your spine is a logical nexus for performing practiced or reflexive actions because it is so much faster than having to think through the whole process.
That said, biology generally prefers the "brain" model because the closer you put neural structures, the faster they can communicate. So, by clumping together all the stuff responsible for registering senses, interpreting them, and making decisions based on them, you can think much faster, and do a much better job of letting the inputs of your different senses work together to create a unified understanding of your environment.
Also, if your concern is brain size, you may be overthinking it. Brain size is also not nearly as good of an intelligence indicator as you might think. A brain with half the mass of a human brain could still have just as many synapses allowing the same level of cognitive ability.
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Your nervous system is more distributed than originally believed, but the degree to which this is true is still a bit uncertain despite it being a major point of study since the early 1800s. What is known is that the human spine contains the majority of your body's reflexive functions and motor memory effectively making your spinal cord part of a sort of distributed nervous system like you are asking about which could in theory being pushed to a greater extreme by moving more functionality into your spine. But this may not actually be as good as you would think.
Your spine is a logical nexus for performing practiced or reflexive actions because it is so much faster than having to think through the whole process.
That said, biology generally prefers the "brain" model because the closer you put neural structures, the faster they can communicate. So, by clumping together all the stuff responsible for registering senses, interpreting them, and making decisions based on them, you can think much faster, and do a much better job of letting the inputs of your different senses work together to create a unified understanding of your environment.
Also, if your concern is brain size, you may be overthinking it. Brain size is also not nearly as good of an intelligence indicator as you might think. A brain with half the mass of a human brain could still have just as many synapses allowing the same level of cognitive ability.
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Your nervous system is more distributed than originally believed, but the degree to which this is true is still a bit uncertain despite it being a major point of study since the early 1800s. What is known is that the human spine contains the majority of your body's reflexive functions and motor memory effectively making your spinal cord part of a sort of distributed nervous system like you are asking about which could in theory being pushed to a greater extreme by moving more functionality into your spine. But this may not actually be as good as you would think.
Your spine is a logical nexus for performing practiced or reflexive actions because it is so much faster than having to think through the whole process.
That said, biology generally prefers the "brain" model because the closer you put neural structures, the faster they can communicate. So, by clumping together all the stuff responsible for registering senses, interpreting them, and making decisions based on them, you can think much faster, and do a much better job of letting the inputs of your different senses work together to create a unified understanding of your environment.
Also, if your concern is brain size, you may be overthinking it. Brain size is also not nearly as good of an intelligence indicator as you might think. A brain with half the mass of a human brain could still have just as many synapses allowing the same level of cognitive ability.
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
$endgroup$
Your nervous system is more distributed than originally believed, but the degree to which this is true is still a bit uncertain despite it being a major point of study since the early 1800s. What is known is that the human spine contains the majority of your body's reflexive functions and motor memory effectively making your spinal cord part of a sort of distributed nervous system like you are asking about which could in theory being pushed to a greater extreme by moving more functionality into your spine. But this may not actually be as good as you would think.
Your spine is a logical nexus for performing practiced or reflexive actions because it is so much faster than having to think through the whole process.
That said, biology generally prefers the "brain" model because the closer you put neural structures, the faster they can communicate. So, by clumping together all the stuff responsible for registering senses, interpreting them, and making decisions based on them, you can think much faster, and do a much better job of letting the inputs of your different senses work together to create a unified understanding of your environment.
Also, if your concern is brain size, you may be overthinking it. Brain size is also not nearly as good of an intelligence indicator as you might think. A brain with half the mass of a human brain could still have just as many synapses allowing the same level of cognitive ability.
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
edited 3 hours ago
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
answered 8 hours ago
NosajimikiNosajimiki
2,500119
2,500119
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I was speaking mainly in a historical context there. While reflexes were first documented in 1649 by Rene Descartes, they were believed to happen in the brain until Marshall Hall's headless lizard experiment in 1837. Then in 1945, there was the chicken who could still walk after surviving a decapitation. The degree to which the spine controls things and the complexity to which a body can act without the brain is still a point of significant study, with a number of theories still being under research such as the spine's role in learned pain and fear responses.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
4 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
I think it's a fair criticism, the phrase "... than originally believed" is pretty abused these days.
$endgroup$
– Nosajimiki
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
$begingroup$
Conversations been had so I'll delete my comments to keep your comments section a bit tidier.
$endgroup$
– Pelinore
3 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A less centralized nervous system is an anatomical feature seen in non-uplifted animals in real Earth. For example, insects have brains, but they also have neural ganglia distributed through their bodies. These ganglia are responsible for functions which in us are all processed in the head, such as locomotion and gut movements.
And then there is the stegosaurus, as well as some other dinos such as the larger sauropods. They had such a small skull size to body size ratio that for some time scientists thought they had "extra brains" in other parts of the body. In the case of the stegosaurus, they thought a secondary brain might exist inside the hip.
Going a bit further - in our own case, our central nervous system is not limited to what is in our skull. The spine does some processing too, though it's mostly related to reflexes, involuntary organ movements and signal routing. But what matters is that it does have its own processing. It's not a far stretch in biology to have it augmented.
For a sci-fi reference: in the Star Wars universe, there is a species called the cereans. These guys have two brains in their skulls, which I think could make for extra brain power compared to humans. The most famous one is Ki Adi Mundi, a Jedi knight who was a member of the Jedi Council in episode one.
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A less centralized nervous system is an anatomical feature seen in non-uplifted animals in real Earth. For example, insects have brains, but they also have neural ganglia distributed through their bodies. These ganglia are responsible for functions which in us are all processed in the head, such as locomotion and gut movements.
And then there is the stegosaurus, as well as some other dinos such as the larger sauropods. They had such a small skull size to body size ratio that for some time scientists thought they had "extra brains" in other parts of the body. In the case of the stegosaurus, they thought a secondary brain might exist inside the hip.
Going a bit further - in our own case, our central nervous system is not limited to what is in our skull. The spine does some processing too, though it's mostly related to reflexes, involuntary organ movements and signal routing. But what matters is that it does have its own processing. It's not a far stretch in biology to have it augmented.
For a sci-fi reference: in the Star Wars universe, there is a species called the cereans. These guys have two brains in their skulls, which I think could make for extra brain power compared to humans. The most famous one is Ki Adi Mundi, a Jedi knight who was a member of the Jedi Council in episode one.
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
A less centralized nervous system is an anatomical feature seen in non-uplifted animals in real Earth. For example, insects have brains, but they also have neural ganglia distributed through their bodies. These ganglia are responsible for functions which in us are all processed in the head, such as locomotion and gut movements.
And then there is the stegosaurus, as well as some other dinos such as the larger sauropods. They had such a small skull size to body size ratio that for some time scientists thought they had "extra brains" in other parts of the body. In the case of the stegosaurus, they thought a secondary brain might exist inside the hip.
Going a bit further - in our own case, our central nervous system is not limited to what is in our skull. The spine does some processing too, though it's mostly related to reflexes, involuntary organ movements and signal routing. But what matters is that it does have its own processing. It's not a far stretch in biology to have it augmented.
For a sci-fi reference: in the Star Wars universe, there is a species called the cereans. These guys have two brains in their skulls, which I think could make for extra brain power compared to humans. The most famous one is Ki Adi Mundi, a Jedi knight who was a member of the Jedi Council in episode one.
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
$endgroup$
A less centralized nervous system is an anatomical feature seen in non-uplifted animals in real Earth. For example, insects have brains, but they also have neural ganglia distributed through their bodies. These ganglia are responsible for functions which in us are all processed in the head, such as locomotion and gut movements.
And then there is the stegosaurus, as well as some other dinos such as the larger sauropods. They had such a small skull size to body size ratio that for some time scientists thought they had "extra brains" in other parts of the body. In the case of the stegosaurus, they thought a secondary brain might exist inside the hip.
Going a bit further - in our own case, our central nervous system is not limited to what is in our skull. The spine does some processing too, though it's mostly related to reflexes, involuntary organ movements and signal routing. But what matters is that it does have its own processing. It's not a far stretch in biology to have it augmented.
For a sci-fi reference: in the Star Wars universe, there is a species called the cereans. These guys have two brains in their skulls, which I think could make for extra brain power compared to humans. The most famous one is Ki Adi Mundi, a Jedi knight who was a member of the Jedi Council in episode one.
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
answered 10 hours ago
RenanRenan
52.7k15120261
52.7k15120261
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
I believe the "dinosaurs have two brains" theory is now referred to as a myth.
$endgroup$
– Michael Richardson
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
@MichaelRichardson hence the part where I say "for some time scientists thought"
$endgroup$
– Renan
9 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
Is that dude from Remulac?
$endgroup$
– Willk
7 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think you may be better off leaving the brain in the head.
Pros
Less areas to protect - Horus knows that he has to protect his head and his heart, mainly. If you moved parts of his brain to other locations, he'd have to protect all of them. During a fight, it may prove quite hard to protect your head(to not lose your vision) and all the places of your body where the brain is spread over at the same time.
Have it next to the input devices - if you notice a sword swing by your enemy, you have to react immediately in order to block it. If you have your senses far away from your brain, it may take you too long to react.
Have it all at a single place, in order to think fast. The closer the neurons and the shorter the paths that, the faster your thinking. Having your brain spread all over your body may not be a good idea concerning that.
Head and skull as they have evolved during the ages offer a quite good protection and it I wouldn't question evolution...
Cons
- A single strike can end your entire existence, in that case you may be better off if left disabled due to losing several brain case
An alternative could be having multiple brains
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think you may be better off leaving the brain in the head.
Pros
Less areas to protect - Horus knows that he has to protect his head and his heart, mainly. If you moved parts of his brain to other locations, he'd have to protect all of them. During a fight, it may prove quite hard to protect your head(to not lose your vision) and all the places of your body where the brain is spread over at the same time.
Have it next to the input devices - if you notice a sword swing by your enemy, you have to react immediately in order to block it. If you have your senses far away from your brain, it may take you too long to react.
Have it all at a single place, in order to think fast. The closer the neurons and the shorter the paths that, the faster your thinking. Having your brain spread all over your body may not be a good idea concerning that.
Head and skull as they have evolved during the ages offer a quite good protection and it I wouldn't question evolution...
Cons
- A single strike can end your entire existence, in that case you may be better off if left disabled due to losing several brain case
An alternative could be having multiple brains
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think you may be better off leaving the brain in the head.
Pros
Less areas to protect - Horus knows that he has to protect his head and his heart, mainly. If you moved parts of his brain to other locations, he'd have to protect all of them. During a fight, it may prove quite hard to protect your head(to not lose your vision) and all the places of your body where the brain is spread over at the same time.
Have it next to the input devices - if you notice a sword swing by your enemy, you have to react immediately in order to block it. If you have your senses far away from your brain, it may take you too long to react.
Have it all at a single place, in order to think fast. The closer the neurons and the shorter the paths that, the faster your thinking. Having your brain spread all over your body may not be a good idea concerning that.
Head and skull as they have evolved during the ages offer a quite good protection and it I wouldn't question evolution...
Cons
- A single strike can end your entire existence, in that case you may be better off if left disabled due to losing several brain case
An alternative could be having multiple brains
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
$endgroup$
I think you may be better off leaving the brain in the head.
Pros
Less areas to protect - Horus knows that he has to protect his head and his heart, mainly. If you moved parts of his brain to other locations, he'd have to protect all of them. During a fight, it may prove quite hard to protect your head(to not lose your vision) and all the places of your body where the brain is spread over at the same time.
Have it next to the input devices - if you notice a sword swing by your enemy, you have to react immediately in order to block it. If you have your senses far away from your brain, it may take you too long to react.
Have it all at a single place, in order to think fast. The closer the neurons and the shorter the paths that, the faster your thinking. Having your brain spread all over your body may not be a good idea concerning that.
Head and skull as they have evolved during the ages offer a quite good protection and it I wouldn't question evolution...
Cons
- A single strike can end your entire existence, in that case you may be better off if left disabled due to losing several brain case
An alternative could be having multiple brains
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
answered 10 hours ago
LMDLMD
2845
2845
add a comment |
add a comment |
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$begingroup$
What do you mean by "motor generator"? Do you actually mean power supply, or do you mean "motor cortex"?
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
Also isn't the question more "what can be replaced with more useful stuff"? There aren't main empty spaces in most animal bodies, and where there are (eg. in birds) they have an important purpose, and filling them in will have problematic consequences.
$endgroup$
– Starfish Prime
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime 1. Context. 2. Air sacs?
$endgroup$
– Mephistopheles
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Now we're talking. I like this question, Meph. Objective, real-world examples can be used to justify fictional solutions, specific. The only weakness I can see is that between your title and your body text you have 4 question marks and the title question doesn't match the body questions well. But that's minor (watch for this in the future, don't let yourself get caught up in stream-of-consciousness writing). Cheers and +1!
$endgroup$
– JBH
7 hours ago
$begingroup$
@StarfishPrime Central pattern generator - I thought the OP was an idiot too. But apparently we are ;)
$endgroup$
– Mazura
5 hours ago