Can Physics Help to Model the Brain Functions?

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Can Physics Help to Model the Brain Functions?

• Mostafa M.Dini

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The model and the case study

• The case study

• The model

• The case study is to confirm that
• 1) Daily stressful events stimulate the
  same-emotionally induced memories, causing the
  emotion to pop into a dream.
• 2) The releasing emotion is the core of a dream
  narrative with a mixture of characters, actions
  and scenes borrowed from all of them.

• In this model it is claimed that
• Brain is an elastic material (visco-elastic) and
  physical input stresses strain the tissues.
• Daily high stresses cause overstrains, and the
  elasticity will degrade. Sleep is a necessity
  to recover the elasticity property.

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Terminology

• Neuroscience / Psychology

• Physics / Kinematics

• Neural Networks
• Stress
• Emotion
• Memory
• Memory building and Dream
• Synchronized firings
• Activation potential
• Brain activity

• Networks configuration
• Stress, strain and elasticity
• Overstrain
• Memory (for elastics)
• Synaptic reconfiguration and equalization
• Fractals
• Required activation energy
• stress flow or free energy flow

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Neural networks

• Neural networks are configured in different
  arrangements of hierarchical, series, parallel
  and loop orders depending on the structure of the
  area.
• Different neural networks grow according to the
  neuron types available in a location,

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Neural Network mapping

• The bigger the nodes, the more complex the
  neural network is. The thicker the blue line, the
  denser the connections are (Human connectome
  project).
• This map provides the possible routes for
  communications. But, the communication between
  nodes through the connections needs certain
  circumstances of overcoming the minimum required
  activation energy or resonating condition which
  straining of the elastic brain can create such a
  condition (Model).

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Memory sites, types and building

• Memories are saved by means of the plasticized
  configuration of neural networks (Model).
• About 10000 neural networks are sufficient to
  save a specific memory (engram) 1.
• Different areas save different types of memory.
• Memory building is physically a process of
  synaptic change consolidation2.

• Some theories explain the location of
  memories inside neuron cells and in molecular
  scale (e.g. DNA configuration)1, but there is
  a shift recently from molecular structure to
  neural networks for encoding memories3,4.
• Molecular structures store the genetic
  information, which have a catalytic effect on the
  activity in any location.
• 1 The Curious Perils of Seeing the Other Side
  Jamil Zaki Scientific American Mind July 2012
• 2 - can the hypothesis of synaptic plasticity
  explain long-term memory consolidation?
  Arshavsky YI. 2000
• 3- Brain plasticity mechanisms and memory
  Bruel-Jungerman E, Davis S, Laroche S. 2000.
• 4- Synaptic plasticity, memory and the
  hippocampus a neural network approach to
  causality Neves G, Cooke SF, Bliss TV. 2007.

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Sleep and memory consolidation

• Memory consolidation is a combined processes of
• reconfiguration in synapses within a network due
  to an overstrain caused by a source of that
  memory (in NREM stages) (Model),
• stabilization of the memory in the location (in
  REM stages) (Model),.
• Memories are functionally linked by the
  communications between the plasticized networks.
• 1- Synaptic plasticity and memory an
  evaluation of the hypothesis Martin SJ, Grimwood
  PD, Morris RG. 2006.

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Stress

• Psychological

• Physical (kinematics)

• Refers to mutual actions of forces across any
  section of the brain.
• In nonlinear range, emotion and memory building
  are involved.
• It is normally within the safe range of
  absorption in brain as a viscoelastic material.
  However, there is the yield or rupturing point on
  overstraining extreme which can hurt or rupture
  the tissues (headaches and stroke as evidences)
  (Model).

• Refers to an excessive or a long term exposure to
  outside pressures 1.
• Stress causes change in plasticity which underlie
  the changes in learning and memory building 2.
• 1 - Synaptic plasticity in learning and memory
  stress effects in the hippocampus Howland JG,
  Wang YT. 2008).
• 2 - Synaptic plasticity in learning and memory
  stress effects in the hippocampus Howland JG,
  Wang YT. 2008.

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Overstrain and emotion

• Emotion relief acts as a safety valve to release
  the overstrains to protect the brain
  tissues(Model).
• Emotion relief also recovers the brain
  elasticity property and its functioning
  efficiency (Model).
• Physical pain and pleasure are accompanied
  straining and relaxing the strains. It is assumed
  that the physical pain and pleasure are the
  origins of the other emotions (Model).
• (Graph from The Mechanics of Human Brain Tissue)

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Straining and a brain activity

• Straining synchronizes the firing and makes it to
  develop (Model).
• Strains change the firing gate distributions over
  the synapses and make the network ready to
  resonate (Model)
• synchronized firing clouds could be fractal-like
  over neural networks, and considered as an energy
  packet (Model)
• Developing fractals, network by network, is like
  a free energy transfer along a pathway and
  accompanies a brain activity(Model).

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The steps associated to a brain activity in
kinematics words
Stress Releasing
Accumulating Strains
Local Synapses Reconfiguration


Processing
Input
Waking Outputs
Memories
Needs Desires
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The steps associated to a brain activity in
psychological words
Emotions (introversion)
Dreams
New Memory Building


Processing
Information
Conclusions (extroversion)
Memories
Needs Desires
(Knowledge)
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Dreams are self-relevant thoughtswhich release
daily stresses

• In waking thoughts induce emotions
• In sleep emotions create images

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Case Study

• To support the kinematics theory and the claim
  that Any dream has
• 1) a common emotion with a daily stressful
  event,
• 2) the emotion in the dream is reinforced by
  at least one previous memory and
• 3) it borrows the characters, actions and
  scenes which reflect individually or together the
  same emotion",
• about 190 dreams were noted and analyzed,

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Case Study(analysis results)

• For 190 dreams, the result shows a ranking of the
  claim confirmation as follows
• 26 very high
• 43 high
• 21 moderate and
• 10 weak or cannot be rated

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Dream is a Conversation Within elements
Inputs, Memories (working, short long-term) and
Emotions
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If in the model many assumptions and claims
are considered, it continuously would be
counter-checked by new findings. The model is
being developed for software. Partnership
opportunities are welcomed.

• Thank you
• Questions