brain

            As someone who is studying in Japanese at Haverford College, I have always found language and its relationship with the brain interesting. I have always wondered what gives humans the ability to comprehend language and I have always wondered how this ability is different from any other animal’s ability to interpret sound. I have additionally wondered how the ability to hear could affect language comprehension. In other words, is having that “input mechanism” really necessary for understanding and creating spoken language?

 The human nervous system is made up of three overall types of neuronal connections. These connections link sensory neurons to the rest of the nervous system, the nervous system to motor neurons, or neurons within the nervous system to other neurons in the nervous system. Inter-neuronal connections are by far the most numerous of all connections in the nervous system, while sensory neuron connections are relatively sparse. Because of this disproportionate number of connection types, it is essential that the human brain be able to derive complex reactions from very few sensory inputs. The link between olfaction and memory provides a truly remarkable example of this ability. Olfa

             Emotions are a vital part of our lives.  They increase human interaction and allow us to express our feelings to those around us.  But where do emotions come from? How do we interpret a situation which makes us happy or sad? If the definition of emotion varies, then how does this affect the treatment of patients with emotional disorders such as depression?

A page from Transmetropolitan, by Warren Ellis