Dec
24
Nature With Nurture
Tabula Rasa is the philosophical term, which states that every individual are born as a blank slate with nothing on his or her memory lane. It states that all the knowledge an Individual gets is by their own experiences and sensory perceptions of their outer world. Genes actually cannot determine a trait because genes are never sufficient in seclusion. While the band of genes while interacting with each other with the medium of DNA gets complex signals from environment which makes the traits of the individual, hence producing new interpretations. Therefore, on scientific notes, Tabula Rasa is correct to some level, yet the heredity do effects on some level. Genes may have a substantial contribution, including psychological traits such as intelligence and personality. Still environment in other circumstances influences principally to develop the traits. That is, the individual takes a big part all his knowledge by his own experiences.In fact, Tabula Rasa can be better understood by the example of computer science in which an autonomous agent is created by inputting a program for reasoning and planning to achieve some goals without feeding any built-in data or information of the environment of their task. In same way, individuals are considered to have a brain preprogrammed to control and understand emotions and natural responses. Every individual although develops his own abilities and knowledge base on that pre-programmed brain to complete his tasks.
The relation between memory and intelligence is not been established until now by neuroscience and psychologists.
However, if I talk of some older methods to answer it, then Yoga and Vipassana comes in front which talks of Impermanence nature, which states that every conditioned existence (full of memory and traits) is inconsistent and remains in flux, changing repeatedly. That is, with environment and newer experiences, the traits will change and so will memory because they are in impermanence state (unsatisfied state). By self-observing and introspecting, an Individual can study the deep interconnections and developed reasons between mind and the body which provides a person to understand all his biases and misconceptions himself and hence try to get freedom from the memories and past experiences which makes his traits. It can be understood as checking of one’s own mind slate and watching what is misconceived and biased. Yoga Sutra of Patanjali discusses Vipassana as a meditation (self-observation and try) to understand one’s own deep-rooted biases and misconceptions rationally. When one gets proper picture of the slate of his memory lane and traits, he must further meditate to achieve the state of Samatha (Buddhist term) or Dharna (Vedic term) (Calmness, equality, absence of positive/negative vibes, hence unbiased state)! After that, the individual while being an unbiased slate can get the correct reasons and proper motives to lead his life with unchanging traits and memory.So, according to Yoga and Theravada, Meditation is to loosen one’s acquired traits due to social and genetically based bindings and understand the reasons and acquire new set of Unchanging rational(Reasonable, on which person has properly meditated and resolved) traits which will be unchangeable (If right) and Individual will never compromise on that.That is, the person will actually become Individual, will discover his “I”.
If we further look about the problem of nature versus nurture,I think every characteristic of life has a genetic base; otherwise, it would not exist. After that, it is dependent on Individual’s premises (nurture). as for example, the child in Tare Zameen Par got proper direction and director hence he got his happiness, otherwise he might have failed.
The genes have a very little and limited role to play while making the Mind of an Individual.
Brain is very complex with extreme numbers of billions of cells and 100 times more numbers of connections between neurons while a genome does not possess that much genes. Therefore, complex and flux like brain for the making of Mind cannot be dependent on genes or genome for too much extent.
Second thing, which is very important, is, the developing brain, or forming Mind is very flexible and flux like and this flexibility is pervasive upto, every cell constituent the brain. Just like the bones, a child may break his bones easily, yet he can remake them easily too. similarly, if someone’s left hemisphere is damaged during the childhood, data shows that the chances of recovering the abilities dependent on left-hemisphere (like speaking) can be recover easily, even in the absence of the left-hemisphere, while it is in almost all cases of such damages in adults, the adults looses their abilities permanently.
It signifies that even the neurons are not dependent on any predefined program like fate, although they can swing their functions depending on the needs situations and context.
Yet, genes do play a role or other. I guess there is some freedom.
Brain is very complex with extreme numbers of billions of cells and 100 times more numbers of connections between neurons while a genome does not possess that much genes. Therefore, complex and flux like brain for the making of Mind cannot be dependent on genes or genome for too much extent.
Second thing, which is very important, is, the developing brain, or forming Mind is very flexible and flux like and this flexibility is pervasive upto, every cell constituent the brain. Just like the bones, a child may break his bones easily, yet he can remake them easily too. similarly, if someone’s left hemisphere is damaged during the childhood, data shows that the chances of recovering the abilities dependent on left-hemisphere (like speaking) can be recover easily, even in the absence of the left-hemisphere, while it is in almost all cases of such damages in adults, the adults looses their abilities permanently.
It signifies that even the neurons are not dependent on any predefined program like fate, although they can swing their functions depending on the needs situations and context.
Yet, genes do play a role or other. I guess there is some freedom.
Related Posts
1 views2 Responses to “Nature or Nurture?”
Leave a Reply
Mohan Kumar Says:
December 24th, 2007 at 10:39 pmyou have cool blog first .. And about this post , there are lots of freedom in this nature . I think wee , the mankind misleads the nature ! Kepp Blogging !
Artificial Vs Natural | Reason for Liberty Says:
January 31st, 2009 at 5:41 pm[…] different from nature. And that causes the point of contention between natural and artificial. This duality between Nature and Human is asserted by two means, firstly, it is said that Human Constructs are artificial, they are not […]