tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post8654076641510470694..comments2023-09-10T13:52:25.208+01:00Comments on Mind Your Head!: 700-year-old Brain Found Preserved!Neural Outlawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12299570389772377623noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-69945149505395511482010-03-19T15:01:45.777+00:002010-03-19T15:01:45.777+00:00Yes, there are plenty of far-out ideas in evolutio...Yes, there are plenty of far-out ideas in evolutionary psychology, but most of those come from dilettantes, not serious scientists. <br /><br />My core point is that the experimental method is not the only path to knowledge. It is entirely reasonable to rely on pattern-based thinking when no other means is available. The pattern-based approach will never yield results as objectively reliable as those produced by the experimental method, but its results should not be dismissed as inherently unreliable. When practiced by a fully-informed expert, the pattern-based method often yields impressive results.Chris Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14926445098765433310noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-83583553516189154032010-03-18T07:44:03.764+00:002010-03-18T07:44:03.764+00:00I believe Gary was referring to this study: http:/...I believe Gary was referring to this study: http://neuroskeptic.blogspot.com/2009/09/fmri-gets-slap-in-face-with-dead-fish.html<br /><br />Nevertheless, it doesn't matter because they used fMRI and the study you mentioned only performed structural analyses with MRI and CT.<br /><br />Btw, the evol psych red herring hurts your credibility more than it helps.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-79247031665070871222010-03-17T21:29:07.330+00:002010-03-17T21:29:07.330+00:00Gary, are you referring to this?Gary, are you referring to <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/neurophilosophy/2009/03/a_300_million_year-old_fossilized_brain.php" rel="nofollow">this</a>?Neural Outlawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12299570389772377623noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-45917327376330356262010-03-17T21:26:54.093+00:002010-03-17T21:26:54.093+00:00Are the readers here aware of the paper reporting ...Are the readers here aware of the paper reporting brain scans from DEAD fish!<br />GaryGarynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-61277241197283795132010-03-17T21:21:00.769+00:002010-03-17T21:21:00.769+00:00Neuroskeptic, the paper mentions that the neurons ...Neuroskeptic, the paper mentions that the neurons were intact enough for fatty acids to be detected, such as ginkgolic acid (C13:0), myristic acid (C14:0), pentadecanoic acid (C15:0), palmitic acid (C16:0), heptadecanoic acid (C17:0), oleic acid (C18:1), stearic acid (C18:0) and 10-hydroxystearic acid (C18:0 10OH). Also, Nissl bodies were present, but staining for microsporidia was not possible but some fungi-like structures were detected.<br /><br />Bearing in mind that the mummified brain is 80% reduced from it's original size, it's a wonder they were able to glean what they could using CT and MRI!Neural Outlawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12299570389772377623noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-33838856674653907582010-03-17T21:17:41.410+00:002010-03-17T21:17:41.410+00:00Gary, I just thought it'd grab some attention....Gary, I just thought it'd grab some attention. :-)<br /><br />Chris, I am in fact sympathetic to evolutionary psychology but I take care not to get too carried away with some of the far-out theories floating out there.Neural Outlawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12299570389772377623noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-55404613781706508312010-03-17T15:05:18.050+00:002010-03-17T15:05:18.050+00:00I realize that you're not denigrating evolutio...I realize that you're not denigrating evolutionary psychology, but I'd like to tackle the widely-held notion that there's no evidence in support of evolutionary psychology. May I remind you that there's also no evidence in support of the Big Bang theory? We have only the present state of the universe to go on -- we have to extrapolate backwards from present evidence to figure out what happened in the first microseconds of the Big Bang. True, we're able to rely on physical laws to make that extrapolation, but we're applying those physical laws in contexts in which they have never been tested. So what's the fundamental difference between Big Bang theory and evolutionary psychology? Why is the former theory trustworthy and the latter not trustworthy?<br /><br />For that matter, why not toss all the history books in the trash? After all, history isn't a science, so why shouldn't we dismiss the entire field? Historians engage in wild speculations based on flimsy evidence; they don't make any testable predictions, so their results are unworthy of serious consideration. Right?<br /><br />Again, I'm not attacking you, because I suspect that you are sympathetic to my arguments, but I would like to stomp on what I perceive to be misconceptions regarding the nature of knowledge.Chris Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14926445098765433310noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-41153796237337310922010-03-17T14:07:12.018+00:002010-03-17T14:07:12.018+00:00What does this have to do with evolutionary psycho...What does this have to do with evolutionary psychology?Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03590219288996610879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1808043121655847826.post-34146184278422272512010-03-17T11:26:38.903+00:002010-03-17T11:26:38.903+00:00Interesting. I wonder if any of the neurochemistry...Interesting. I wonder if any of the neurochemistry has survived intact, to allow people to do analyses like <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2009.11.010" rel="nofollow">these...</a>Neuroskeptichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06647064768789308157noreply@blogger.com