
What can we learn from slime mould? - iciac
https://www.camerongordon.site/post/what-can-we-learn-from-slime-mould
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phs318u
The slime mould is a thing whose "brain" [0] is the thing itself?

Also, it's not a fruit [1].

[0] I know "brain" is probably the wrong word to use here. Not sure what is.

[1]
[https://nethackwiki.com/wiki/Slime_mold](https://nethackwiki.com/wiki/Slime_mold)

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VierScar
The way you describe it being a brain sounds a bit like the China Brain
thought experiment
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_brain](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_brain))

Basically, china has a population of around 1b, which is also roughly how many
neurons we have in the human brain. If we fully understood each neuron, and
told each human the rules to follow, could we make a brain out of other people
who have brains? It seems crazy to have a brain be the size of china when they
are usually so small, and yet, why not?

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nefitty
Yes, it would be possible. Consciousness is emergent, independent of the
substratum on which it occurs.

I think an extra dimension could be added if each individual person (node)
could communicate with any other node, using a cellphone. Can brains do that
now, or do they play telephone with messages?

Thanks for mentioning this thought experiment. It's making me think.

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TeMPOraL
Here's the kicker. Don't ask if all these people could simulate a human brain.
Observe them talking, exchanging physical messages, and communicating
electronically over large distances. Look at these people - or better yet,
_all_ people on this planet - and ask yourself, if they're the neurons, then
what thoughts is the global brain thinking right now?

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vageli
Could we of lesser minds even conceive the thoughts of a brain whose nodes are
themselves individual brains? Considering a global mind is even more
interesting—what do we make of the neurons who are disconnected and limited in
communication methods? Are there any biological corollaries?

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TeMPOraL
> _Are there any biological corollaries?_

Not sure about disconnected neurons, but this made me think about our
electronic communication, the ability for any one of us to effortlessly reach
thousands or millions of people (like I do by just writing this comment).
There is a biological equivalent of that in real brains: _epileptic seizures_.
Perhaps the meta-consciousness of humanity is having an attack right now.

