hey that hurts!

this past week I was reminded of something I had read in a book about a year ago, and I was surprised to learn I hadn't written it down anywhere. last winter semester I was in a cognitive neuroscience class that required us to read a book about phantom limbs, limbs that have been severed from one's body. even though these people are missing limbs, many of them still feel the limb. for example one might feel that their missing arm is itching or in pain. this can be an excruciating experience given that they cannot do anything to ease the suffering.

example of what I'm talking about: http://pann.nate.com/video/212461511

the book gives several theories as to why something like this would happen. one that is very briefly fleshed out explains that we often think our brains are limited to our body's experience, but this isn't necessarily true. there are several different simple experiments you can do to trick your brain into thinking any innanate object is an extension of your body. (given that its been a year I'm a little bit hazy about these details.) for example you can place one of your hands on top of a table and the other directly underneath it. have a second person gently caress the top of your hand above the table. after a minute or so remove the hand on top of the table as the second person continues to make the same caressing motions, but on the surface of the table. after a minute or so remove the second hand from underneath the table as the second person continues to do the same motion. if done correctly, when the second hand is removed you should/could feel the carassing that is being done to the table.

i did this experiment once and felt like it "kind of worked". the author of the book explained how they did this to someone in one of their labs and then brought in a person with a hammer and with it, acted as if he was going to pound the table. the subject of the experiment wigged out, he thought the guy was going to hit his hand! whether or not this actually works it creates some interesting ideas. despite the fact that the object isn't directly connected to the brain via neuron pathways the brain has designated a portion of itself to feel for the object as if it were.

i wonder if this is connected to the Atonement. how did and is Christ able to vicariously experience our pain and suffering (and joys)? becoming one with the Savior is an interesting idea.

we know that we as humans do not use our brains to their fullest capacity, could it be that our brain isn't used to its fullest capacity because its not all for us? it's not for our experience, but to process and feel the experiences for those around us?

i really like the idea that our experience is not limited to our bodies. for any of those interested about this concept i'd recommend reading "Johnathon Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach. it's a short, but great book.