
Does the brain feature built-in noise? - byrneseyeview
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg19826611.400&print=true
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silentbicycle
This is behind a registration barrier, _and I haven't read it_ , but the gist
of similar articles I've read was that, in certain systems (communication
between neurons, for example), adding small amounts of noise can help signals
to pass further. Parts of the signal that may not have otherwise been noticed
may then get bumped over the threshold. (Or, in mechanical cases, by randomly
canceling out inertia.)

In other words, if you scramble the surface detail of something _slightly_ ,
you may notice aspects of it that might not have otherwise seemed significant.
There is, of course, a point past which you are looking at too much noise to
be useful.

Discuss.

(See also: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stochastic_resonance> )

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bprater
Can someone with an account please paste the article?

