A follow-up about brain-computer interfaces with a focus on the history of pacemakers and cochlear implants. BCI tech is in its infancy, and while proving useful for patients, the economics and ongoing support may be tough. Thanks to my #neuroskyence commenters for leading me down this path.

Did you know that it's been more than 20 years since the first successful use of a brain computer interface to restore function to a patient with spinal cord injury? It seems our technology is finally catching up to the promise on both the computer and interface sides. #neuroskyence

This week my post is moving back into the brain science of personal identity, looking at cognitive dissonance. I’m trying to explore the what’s going on in the brain in everyday life. #Neuroskyence

The neuroscience tale of how purple, really magenta, is a synthetic color not found on the spectrum. We don't perceive the environment, but become aware of the brain's processing of color. I conclude, Kant was right, there is a priori knowledge. But he never realized it was neuronal. #neuroskyence

A change of pace post. How does the brain bind red to bicycle and blue to car when looking at a complex scene if color is extracted in one cortical area and form in another? And object recognition in yet another. Looking at Scholte and de Haan's recent review and going a bit further #neuroskyence

New post: How cortical maps, predictive models, and Searle’s Chinese Room describe a brain with no central observer. This is actually an update to a very old post on my site that gets a few search hits a month for “homunculus”. Love this 3D model. #neuroskyence open.substack.com/pub/jjvornov...

This week I delve a little deeper into the idea that our single threaded awareness is required for a real time regulator of behavior. The brain has to predict a unified, consistent model of self in the world in order to achieve goals. #neuroskyence open.substack.com/pub/jjvornov...

Here's my neurologist's take on the Severance show's concept of the divided self. While one couldn't literally divide the self so neatly, it's a clever assembly of the brain's abilities to divide memory and identity as seen in the clinic. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/im-a-neuro...

This week I explore the bottlenecks in human cognition. It is easy to see that the simplest computer can beat the fastest video gamer, but there’s a reason why slow, single-channel experiences of one thing at a time are the essence of awareness. #neuroskyence #neuroscience

This week's post is out. Digging deeper into the uploaded mind, I've left science fiction to look at progress in simulating C. elegans in silico. Another example of map ≠ territory. But how top-down ML constrains models. Simulate, don't copy! #Neuroskyence open.substack.com/pub/jjvornov...

I really don't think you can copy a mind into a computer. It would be like uploading a toaster. No toast. We can get a very convincing emulation, but not the person. A machine mind, on its own terms and talents, can be more capable that a brain. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/why-copyin...

I was listening to @seanmcarroll.bsky.social podcast with Annaka Harris. I realized that "split brain" patients really just were split cortex. The thalamocortical network was intact on both sides, unifying experience. We get so focused on awareness being cortical we forget mechanism #neuroskyence

Can we emulate a brain region—not by modeling every neuron and synapse—but by mimicking its spike traffic? Treat it like a black box. Record all the axons in and out. That’s the core idea behind the Large Axonal Model (LAM). A biologically grounded shortcut to brain emulation. #Neuroskyence 👇

Finally in this series on mind uploading and personal identity, we have the progressive replacement approach. I've made it the tale of replacing Stephen Hawking's brain with neuromorphic modules, leveraging real and imagined technology. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/saving-haw...

Next up is an exploration of what it would take to create an integrated emulation of the brain. I used the show Caprica as a jumping off point because it puts a human avatar in a machine mind with bad results. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/building-t...

A really nice summary of how birds took a different path toward intelligence than mammals. I wrote about his on my Substack: jjvornov.substack.com/p/is-anybody... #neuroskyence www.quantamagazine.org/intelligence...

Continuing to explore personal identity through the lens of mind uploading: if consciousness arises from the dynamic, embodied complexity of brain structure and function, can a map—no matter how precise—ever be the self? Continuity matters. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...

What’s needed to maintain personal identity if brain could stored as information and transferred? A meditation on some sci-fi tech. #neuroskyence jjvornov.substack.com/p/the-altere...

I've started a SubStack where I'm exploring my interests at the intersection of neuroscience and philosophy. I'm exploring personal identity and wandered into discussing animal consciousness. Have a look. open.substack.com/pub/jjvornov... #neuroscience #neuro #neuroskyence #neurosky