Functional Organization of the Central Nervous System

THERE ARE THREE PROPOSITIONS relating to the central nervous system which seem so self-evident from clinical observations that they require no further demonstration of their validity. The first proposition is that a man’s mind is a function of his brain. The second is that his mind and body function as a single unit, so that it is a mistake to relegate the study of mind to the psychologist or the philosopher as if it were a separate entity that could operate in any way other than as a part of an organic whole. The third proposition is that whatever disturbs a man’s normal equilibrium, whether it is mental or physical, chemical or molecular, tends to set in motion a chain reaction of readjustments in which the central nervous system plays an essential part. Holding these convictions, the practicing physician would like to have additional scientific information about mind-brain and mind-body relationships, feeling that any increase of insight into these problems would greatly augment his effectiveness in dealing with mental and physical disabilities. There are many serious difficulties to be overcome before such problems can be subjected to laboratory analysis, yet there are recent indications that progress is being made. Scientists in several fields of investigation have begun to study the brain from quite different approaches. The cybernetics group are studying machines with complex electrical circuits that enable them to carry out tasks that had previously been performed only by thinking human beings. Other groups, interested in information theories and quantum me-