[MD] Intellectual and Social

[Krimel]

[John]
My point is my hypothesis that S/O consciousness is created by infant
nurture in mammalian development.

That's the way it seems to me.  I'm reliying upon my emotional
intuitiveness because I believe the same subtle cues of expression I see and
chemical cues I smell subconsciously inform me.

For more solid proof, I was hoping Krimel would jump in here about now
because it was his posting back when I was new on this list that led me to
this hypothesis - about the physical development of the mammalian brain.

Lizards and amoeba and all biological beings take action - with this I
agree.  But the emotional attachment to self I see only in the mammals.

[Krimel]
The whole deal about the triune brain is pretty well known. The brain can be
thought of a consisting of three layers. The spinal cord and brain stem are
the first layer and include the basic functions needed for a complex
organism to survive. This includes monitoring heart rate and breathing,
balance, hunger, that sort of thing. The next layer is the midbrain which is
more highly developed in mammals. It is involved in emotional processing and
four of the five sensory pathways terminate in the thalamus which is part of
this layer. Combined with the other midbrain structures we get a sense of
good or bad from this layer. The third layer is the cortex and is most
developed in humans. It allows for greater integration of our sensory
experience and coordination of past experience with present input.

Now a flaw in all of this is that it is not as though humans have cortex
evolving on top of the mammal brain and a reptile brain. All three layers
have changed and adapted over time so that our "reptile brain" is
distinctively human. 

As for the idea that emotions require self awareness, I think not. The issue
of self awareness is usually decided by the Mirror test. Most animals regard
their mirror images as some other animal but humans, most apes and elephants
apparently, recognize _themselves_ in mirrors. This is an ability that human
acquire during the first year or so of life. The French psychoanalyst Jacque
Lacan makes a huge deal out of this.