<P> A little review of the <A NAME="tex2html1" HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Vortex-Neurons-Rodolfo-R-Llinas/dp/0262621630">book</A>, The i of the vortex, from neurons to self. <P> This is a stimulating book, from one of the modern fathers of neuroscience, Rodolfo Liinas (if anyone is interested in a video of him discussing the book, there is a great one online <A NAME="tex2html2" HREF="http://thesciencenetwork.org/programs/the-science-studio/enter-the-i-of-the-vortex">here</A>) where he attempts to build a coherent theory of consciousness as an emergent property of neurons. He does not only stay within the confinement of describing the current modern discoveries. He actually attempts to find a framework. <P> That framework stems from motricity, the capacity to move. Llinas argues that moving and being conscious are profoundly linked, in such that for one to move, one needs: <P> <UL> <LI>The capacity to move </LI> <LI>A perception of how one is moving and where </LI> <LI>The desire to move </LI> </UL> <P> From there it follows that the brain is essentially a prediction, or dreaming, machine, but the dream is always being modulated by the information coming from the senses. <P> All that does not, of course, spring from nothing. There is a evolutionary progress in the development of this three items, that according to my interpretation of Llinas' book, is what consciousness is all about. <P> There is a lot of technical information there, so my advice is, give this book a couple of readings, because Llinas is at the forefront of neuro research, and his compilation of recent finding is a worth reading in itself. 2009-08-27T13:40:45Z 50 a-review-of-the-i-of-the-vortex-from-neurons-to-self 2009-08-27T13:41:33Z 1