Professor Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton) recently gave the Statutory Public Lecture of the School of Theoretical Physics. The lecture was held in UCD on Monday 19th May and was entitled “Are Brains Analog or Digital?”.
l-r: Prof. Werner Nahm (Senior Prof. & Director of the School of Theoretical Physics, DIAS), Prof. Arthur Jaffe (Chairman, Governing Board, School of Theoretical Physics, DIAS), Prof. Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton), Prof. Vincent Cunnane (Chairman of Council, DIAS), Mr. Cecil Keaveney (Registrar, DIAS).
Abstract of lecture:
We know that creatures like us have two separate systems for processing information, the genome and the brain. We know that the genome is digital, and we can accurately transcribe our genomes onto digital machines. We cannot transcribe our brains, and the processing of information in our brains is still a great mystery. I will be talking about real brains and real people, asking a question that will have practical consequences when we are able to answer it. I am not able to answer it now. All I can do is to examine the evidence and explain why I consider it probable that the answer will be that brains are analog.
Leave a Comment
Last Updated: 22nd March 2016 by mary
19th May 2014 – Statutory Public Lecture of the School of Theoretical Physics
Professor Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton) recently gave the Statutory Public Lecture of the School of Theoretical Physics. The lecture was held in UCD on Monday 19th May and was entitled “Are Brains Analog or Digital?”.
l-r: Prof. Werner Nahm (Senior Prof. & Director of the School of Theoretical Physics, DIAS), Prof. Arthur Jaffe (Chairman, Governing Board, School of Theoretical Physics, DIAS), Prof. Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton), Prof. Vincent Cunnane (Chairman of Council, DIAS), Mr. Cecil Keaveney (Registrar, DIAS).
Abstract of lecture:
We know that creatures like us have two separate systems for processing information, the genome and the brain. We know that the genome is digital, and we can accurately transcribe our genomes onto digital machines. We cannot transcribe our brains, and the processing of information in our brains is still a great mystery. I will be talking about real brains and real people, asking a question that will have practical consequences when we are able to answer it. I am not able to answer it now. All I can do is to examine the evidence and explain why I consider it probable that the answer will be that brains are analog.
Category: School of Theoretical Physics News & Events
School of Theoretical Physics
Irish Times today - Article on former STP, DIAS Professor Cornelius Lanczos. irishtimes.com/news/science/c… #DIASdiscovers
STP, DIAS - Upcoming Seminars: Tuesday 9 June 2020, 6pm Sean A. Hartnoll (Stanford University) ‘Bootstrapping Matrix Quantum Mechanics’ Tuesday 16 June 2020 2:30pm David Tong (University of Cambridge) 'Chiral Boundary States for Fermions' dias.ie/stp/ #DIASDiscovers
STP, DIAS Seminar Videolink: Date: 19 May 2020 Sudeshna Sen (University College Dublin) 'Interplay of Molecular Symmetry & Strong Correlations in Molecular Junctions' youtube.com/watch?v=u6CU4S…
DIAS, STP Seminar: Tues. 19 May 2020, 2:30pm ‘Interplay of Molecular Symmetry & Strong Correlations in Molecular Junctions’ Speaker: Sudeshna Sen (UCD) dias.ie/stp/ #DIASDiscovers
DIAS STP Seminar: Tues. 12 May, 3pm Title: 'Euclidean Quantum Field Theory: Axioms and Automorphic Forms' Speaker: Werner Nahm (DIAS)
CANCELLED - STP, DIAS Statutory Public Lecture – Monday 30 March 2020 'Dream & Realization of Quantum Communication' Prof Pan Jianwei (University of Science & Technology of China) Monday, 30th March 2020, 6.30pm Thomas Prior Hall, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
STP, DIAS Statutory Public Lecture – Monday 30 March 2020 'Dream & Realization of Quantum Communication' Prof Pan Jianwei (University of Science & Technology of China) Monday, 30th March 2020, 6.30pm Thomas Prior Hall, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 Tickets: eventbrite.ie/e/dias-stp-sta…
STP, DIAS Statutory Public Lecture – Monday 30 March 2020 'Dream & Realization of Quantum Communication' Prof Pan Jianwei (University of Science & Technology of China) Monday, 30th March 2020, 6.30pm Thomas Prior Hall, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 Tickets: eventbrite.ie/e/dias-stp-sta…
STP, DIAS 2020 Matrix Membranes and Emergent Spacetime Summer School: June 13th – 19th Workshop: June 20th – 22nd Apply : dias.ie/stpsummerschoo…
STP DIAS has released a new issue of its journal Communications of DIAS - Series A (Theoretical Physics) No. 31 (2019). ISSN 0070-7414 Grassmann Variable Analysis for 1D and 2D Ising Models by V. N. Plechko - Edited by T. C. Dorlas dias.ie/wp-content/upl…
Physicists Can Finally Peek at Schrödinger's Cat Without Killing It Forever livescience.com/schrodingers-c…
DIAS Events : Weds. 30 October @ 6:00 - 7:00 pm Samhain agus Science – The Stars Look Very Different Today... #DIASdiscovers dias.ie/event/samhain-…
STP, DIAS Events - Dublin Festival of History 2019 - On Now! 'The thoughts of Hamilton and Schrödinger that stood the test of time' Luuk Coopmans (DIAS)
STP, DIAS Events - Dublin Festival of History 2019 - THURSDAY 6.30PM 'The thoughts of Hamilton and Schrödinger that stood the test of time' Luuk Coopmans (DIAS) eventbrite.ie/e/the-thoughts…
STP, DIAS - Statutory Public Lecture 2019 - Prof. Don Zagier
STP Statutory Public Lecture 2019 Speaker: Prof Don Zagier (Max Planck Institute, Bonn) Title: Numbers, Knots, & Quantum Theory Date: Thursday 23 May 2019, 6pm. Venue: Robert Emmet Theatre, Trinity College, Dublin. Tickets: eventbrite.ie/e/dublin-insti…
DIAS Research Forum 2019 – Friday10 May, 3-5pm
A proud day for DIAS, celebrating our past and present female scientists: news that Dr Rebeca Garcia Lopez (DIAS) has received funding via @scienceirel Starting Investigator Research Grant & unveiling of the portrait of renowned scientist & 1st female Fellow of DIAS,Sheila Tinney Retweeted by STP, DIAS
We were sad to hear of the passing of Sir Michael Atiyah last week, aged 89. Atiyah was a great former chair of the board of our School of Theoretical Physics here at DIAS from 2000-2005. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis. (Below, pictured in DIAS's Conference Room) @StpDias Retweeted by STP, DIAS
Hi, can you mail me directly regarding the images of Schrodinger? grogers@stp.dias.ie