Why is the human brain so weak?

[Disgustipated]

Slightly related to my mental health thread, but this is with more focus on why the human brain evolved the way it did. I've been reading a lot about borderline personality disorder, and a little bit about other disorders (like bipolar), and I just can't figure out why this happens. Someone I love suffers from one of these things, and I possibly do as well. Why can't the human brain overcome these things? Why is it so weak?

I would ask why evolution caused this, although it's easy to see how it happened. Because it is possible for people who have BPD to have children, and then this carries onto their children. I'm not implying these are genetic disorders, they are not. They are taught by the parents to their children in infancy and early childhood.

What I'm really asking is why humans have such complex emotions. Why is this necessary for our existence? Animals seem to get by just fine using mostly instinct alone. Why can't humans be like this? Are complex emotions beneficial to humans from an evolutionary point of view? Would we be as successful as a species if we didn't have complex emotions? In short, why aren't we more like Vulcans?

 

[Mr. Dictator]

I think mine's fairly strong, it has to juggle dumb belles on a daily basis.

In all seriousness, humans have emotions because we do. I'd say the positive ones, such as love, brotherhood, etc. serve to keep us in touch with the needs of the group. The flip side is a necessary aspect of duality.

I don't know if I'd want to be a Vulcan anyways.

Also, I was pretty sure that BPD was genetic. Chemical imbalances, etc. That's not to say that a person with BPD could, say, imprint the behavior onto a child who doesn't have it.

 

[emzie]

I wholeheartedly disagree with your assessment. You show me an animal that relies on its brain more, and I'll listen to any argument about it being weak.

 

[Mr. Dictator]

I wholeheartedly disagree with your assessment. You show me an animal that relies on its brain more, and I'll listen to any argument about it being weak.

Sorry, this is the last post lacking an actual serious discussion point. I'm drinking a pot of coffee and staying in tonight, so I'm in a mood.

Actually, I'll add another discussion point.

Lets start with a simple question, why is BPD an argument against having emotions?

 

[El_Machinae]

Emotions are beneficial. Many of the higher animals with higher brain function have strong emotions, because emotions help motivate. But humans have cognition added on top of those basal structures, and so we perceive our emotions a lot more completely. They do more than motivate, they distract our cognition (as well as often augmenting it).

 

[amadeus]

Human brain strong. Why you insult strong brain?

 

[emzie]

To expand upon what I said, you could ask, "why do horses have legs that, if broken, spell the end of the horse?" or, "why don't birds have a backup if their wings break?"

 

[Kozmos]

Slightly related to my mental health thread, but this is with more focus on why the human brain evolved the way it did. I've been reading a lot about borderline personality disorder, and a little bit about other disorders (like bipolar), and I just can't figure out why this happens. Someone I love suffers from one of these things, and I possibly do as well. Why can't the human brain overcome these things? Why is it so weak?

I would ask why evolution caused this, although it's easy to see how it happened. Because it is possible for people who have BPD to have children, and then this carries onto their children. I'm not implying these are genetic disorders, they are not. They are taught by the parents to their children in infancy and early childhood.

What I'm really asking is why humans have such complex emotions. Why is this necessary for our existence? Animals seem to get by just fine using mostly instinct alone. Why can't humans be like this? Are complex emotions beneficial to humans from an evolutionary point of view? Would we be as successful as a species if we didn't have complex emotions? In short, why aren't we more like Vulcans?

Because empathy helps the survival of the group a helluva lot more than pure rationality. I used to think completely the opposite. It would work that way too, no doubt, but is not a world I would like to live in.

 

[innonimatu]

What I'm really asking is why humans have such complex emotions. Why is this necessary for our existence? Animals seem to get by just fine using mostly instinct alone. Why can't humans be like this? Are complex emotions beneficial to humans from an evolutionary point of view? Would we be as successful as a species if we didn't have complex emotions? In short, why aren't we more like Vulcans?

That's an interesting question, because it ties into the whole "is competition good or bad?" thing. If humans were entirely logical and competitive they'd be asocial animals. Human societies would not have evolved, specialization would not have evolved, nor probably language, certainly not writing and all the trappings of civilization.

I don't think it was just an accident that this intelligent species happens to be a social one. And It may be that this "weakness" of the brain, this variability between individuals, is a requirement in individuals of a social species. We mist be flexible enough to grow into, or assume, different roles. And who's to say that what is now classified as abnormal in the brain is really abnormal, what is classified as a mental disease/disorder is really a mental disorder? I'm rather skeptical of the modern deluge of mental disorders, to me it looks like and old-fashioned money and power grab by a class going on: psychologists and psychiatrists kind of replaced priests as authorities on how people are supposed to be and behave... same old game.

 

[MantaRevan]

Because empathy helps the survival of the group a helluva lot more than pure rationality. I used to think completely the opposite. It would work that way too, no doubt, but is not a world I would like to live in.

So, with this assumption, one could infer that eventually since that is not longer relevant we could eventually "evolve out" out of our emotions?

 

[Kozmos]

So, with this assumption, one could infer that eventually since that is not longer relevant we could eventually "evolve out" out of our emotions?

No, I don't think so. We're always leaning towards greater empathy. [DISCLAIMER: My opinion purely and not backed by any science, statistical data or facts.]

 

[Perfection]

Slightly related to my mental health thread, but this is with more focus on why the human brain evolved the way it did. I've been reading a lot about borderline personality disorder, and a little bit about other disorders (like bipolar), and I just can't figure out why this happens. Someone I love suffers from one of these things, and I possibly do as well. Why can't the human brain overcome these things? Why is it so weak?

I don't think it has anything to do with the presence of strong or complex emotions. A person with bipolar disorder doesn't have more complicated emotions then me.

The answer comes down to gene combinations. Genes are sort of like cards in a poker hand. Some cards might be marginally better then others, but really what determines how good your hand is is not the goodness of the cards themselves, but the combination they're in. AKQJ9 (different suits) is a crap hand, 22223 is a great hand.

 

[Disgustipated]

Another question is if mental problems are more prevalent in modern society. You can argue that people can easily identify them more, so they are reported more, but I'm not so sure. There may be something about modern city dwelling, and lack of struggle that causes more mental problems like depression.

Another question is if these disorders existed in the past, how did people cope with them. How did couples stay together. I ask this because what I'm reading seems to indicated people with borderline personality disorder may be incapable of romantic relationships. So this does relate to my personal life, and certain decisions I may make in the near future (which I won't go into). So how did all these marriages survive in older times then? What is different now, that wasn't different back then? Why are all these relationships failing?

 

[Perfection]

So how did all these marriages survive in older times then?

Why do you presume they did?

 

[amadeus]

There may be something about modern city dwelling, and lack of struggle that causes more mental problems like depression.

Depression and suicide rates are higher in rural areas than in urban areas. Also, whites have higher rates of depression and suicides than blacks and Hispanics. Do you have an alternate hypothesis, one that would try to explain as to why depression is more prevalent in rural areas?

 

[Birdjaguar]

Another question is if mental problems are more prevalent in modern society. You can argue that people can easily identify them more, so they are reported more, but I'm not so sure. There may be something about modern city dwelling, and lack of struggle that causes more mental problems like depression.

Another question is if these disorders existed in the past, how did people cope with them. How did couples stay together. I ask this because what I'm reading seems to indicated people with borderline personality disorder may be incapable of romantic relationships. So this does relate to my personal life, and certain decisions I may make in the near future (which I won't go into). So how did all these marriages survive in older times then? What is different now, that wasn't different back then? Why are all these relationships failing?

Perhaps in the past those with what we identify as "mental" disorders today were seen as normal and people coped or they had "accidents".

 

[Princeps]

Because its made of fats and cholesterol.

 

[warpus]

I would ask why evolution caused this, although it's easy to see how it happened. Because it is possible for people who have BPD to have children, and then this carries onto their children. I'm not implying these are genetic disorders, they are not. They are taught by the parents to their children in infancy and early childhood.

What I'm really asking is why humans have such complex emotions. Why is this necessary for our existence? Animals seem to get by just fine using mostly instinct alone. Why can't humans be like this? Are complex emotions beneficial to humans from an evolutionary point of view? Would we be as successful as a species if we didn't have complex emotions? In short, why aren't we more like Vulcans?

It's not because our brain is weak - it's because it's so complex.

It's basically a 6 layered brain, each one evolved on top of another one. I think it's 6 layers anyway.. One of them is an amphibian brain, one is a reptilian.

So yeah... it's incredibly complex. Every once in a while something will go wrong. You can't compare it to the Vulcan brain because Vulcans don't exist.

 

[G-Max]

It's because it came about through a series of random, trial-and-error evolutionary increments, each of which was stuck with the weaknesses of the previous ones. At no point did evolution say "now that the brain has gotten so big, the best move is to scrap the whole thing and design a brain of equal size from scratch".

It's kind of like an aircraft carrier built around the Titanic built around a yacht built around a speedboat built around a canoe built around a pair of water wingies, with a jetski and Spanish Galleon laying around somewhere that we're not using anymore.

 

[Flying Pig]

It's because it came about through a series of random, trial-and-error evolutionary increments, each of which was stuck with the weaknesses of the previous ones. At no point did evolution say "now that the brain has gotten so big, the best move is to scrap the whole thing and design a brain of equal size from scratch".

That's a good analogy except that it's wrong. Evolution edits out bad changes as well - the only exception to which is if the bad change always accompanies a good change which more than cancels it out, or the bad change doesn't have an impact on the number of grandchildren that an organism has.