Speaker 1: Chapter one, What is the mind? Psychology is generally considered
to be the science of mind, although more properly it
is the science of mental states, thoughts, feelings, and acts
of volition. It was formerly the custom of writers on
the subject of psychology to begin by an attempt to
define and describe the nature of mind, before proceeding to
a consideration of the subject of the various mental states
and activities. But more recent authorities have rebelled against this demand,
and have claimed that it is no more reasonable to
hold that psychology should be held to an explanation of
the ultimate nature of mind than it is that physical
science beheld to an explanation of the ultimate nature of matter.
The attempt to explain the ultimate nature of either is futile.
No actual necessity exists for explanation in either case. Physics
may explain the phenomena of matter, and psychology the phenomena
of mind, without regard to the ultimate nature of the
substance of either. The science of physics has progressed steadily
during the past century, notwithstanding the fact that the theories
regarding the ultimate nature of matter have been revolutionized during
that period. The facts of the phenomena of matter remain,
notwithstanding the change of theory regarding the nature of matter itself.
Science demands and holds fast to facts, regarding theories as
but working hypotheses. At the best. Someone has said that
theories are but the bubbles with which the grown up
children of science amuse themselves. Science holds several well supported,
though opposing theories regarding the nature of electricity, But the
facts of the phenomena of electricity and the application thereof
are agreed upon by the disputing theorists. And so it
is with psychology. The facts regarding mental states are agreed upon,
and methods of developing mental powers are effectively employed, without
regard to whether the mind is a product of the
brain or the brain merely an organ of the mind.
The fact that the brain and nervous system are employed
in the phenomena of thought is conceded by all, and
that is all that is necessary for a basis for
the science of psychology. Disputes regarding the ultimate nature of
mind are now generally passed over to the philosophers and metaphysicians,
while psychology devotes its entire attention to studying the laws
of mental activities and to discovering methods of mental development.
Even philosophy is beginning to tire of the eternal why
and is devoting its attention to the how phase of things.
The pragmatic spirit has invaded the field of philosophy, expressing
itself in the words a professor William James, who said,
pragmatism the attitude of looking away from first things, principles, categories,
supposed necessities, and of looking forward toward last things, fruits, consequences, facts.
Modern psychology is essentially pragmatic in its treatment of the
subject of the mind. Leaving the metaphysics the old arguments
and disputes regarding the ultimate nature of mind, it bends
all its energies upon discovering the laws of mental activities
and states, and developing methods whereby the mind may be
trained to perform better and more work, to conserve its energies,
to concentrate its forces. To modern psychology, the mind is
something to be used, not merely something about which to
speculate and theorize. While the metaphysicians deplore this tendency, the
practical people of the world rejoice. Mind defined mind is
defined faculty or power, whereby thinking creatures feel, think, and will.
This definition is inadequate and circular in nature. But this
is unavoidable, for mind can be defined only in its
own terms, and only by reference to its own processes. Mind,
except in reference to its own activities, cannot be defined
or conceived. It is known to itself only through its activities.
Mind without mental states is a mere abstraction, a word
without a corresponding mental image or concept. So William Hamilton
expressed the matter as clearly as possible when he said,
what we mean by mind is simply that which perceives, thinks, feels,
wills and desires. Without the perceiving, thinking, feeling, willing, and desiring,
it is impossible to form a clear conception or mental
image of mind. Deprived of its phenomena, it becomes the
merest abstraction. Think about that which thinks. Perhaps the simplest
method of conveying the idea of the existence and nature
of the mind is that attributed to a celebrated German
teacher of psychology who was wont to begin his course
by bidding his students think of something his desk, for example.
Then he would say, now think of that which thinks
about the desk. Then, after a pause, he would add,
this thing which thinks about the desk, and about which
you are now thinking, is the subject matter of our
study of psychology. The professor could not have said more
had he lectured for a month. Professor Gordy has well
said on this point, the mind must either be that
which thinks, feels, and wills, or it must be the thoughts, feelings,
and acts of will of which we are conscious, mental facts.
In one word, But what can we know about that
which thinks, feels, and will rus and what can we
find out about it? Where is it? You will probably
say in the brain. But if you are speaking literally,
if you say that it is in the brain as
a pencil is in the pocket, then you must mean
that it takes up room, that it occupies space, and
that would make it very much like a material thing.
In truth, the more carefully you consider it, the more
plainly you will see what thinking men have known for
a long time. That we do not know and cannot
learn anything about the thing which thinks and feels and wills.
It is beyond the range of human knowledge. The books
which define psychology is the science of mind, have not
a word to say about that which thinks and feels
and wills. They are entirely taken up with these thoughts
and feelings and acts of the will. Mental facts in
a word, trying to tell us what they are, and
to arrange them in class and tell us the circumstances
or conditions under which they exist. It seems to me
that it would be better to define psychology as the
science of the experiences, phenomena, or facts of the mind, soul,
or self. Of mental facts in a word, in view
of the facts of the case, and following example of
the best of the modern authorities, in this book, we
shall lead the consideration of the question of the ultimate
nature of mind to the metaphysicians, and shall confine ourselves
to the mental facts, the laws governing them, and the
best methods of governing and using them in the business
of life. The classification and method of development to be
followed in this book is as follows. One the mechanism
of mental states, that is, the brain, nervous system, sense, organs,
et cetera. Two the fact of consciousness and its plans.
Three mental processes or faculties that is, one sensation and perception,
two representation or imagination and memory. Three feeling or emotion.
Four intellect or reason and understanding five will or volition.
Mental states depend upon the physical mechanism for manifestation. Whatever
may be the ultimate nature of mind, mental states, whatever
their special character, will be found to fit into one
of the above five general classes of mental activities. End
of Chapter one, Chapter two. The mechanism of mental states.
The mechanism of mental states. The mental machinery by means
of which we feel, think, and will consists of the brain,
nervous system, and the organs of sense. No matter what
may be the real nature of the mind, no matter
what may be the real nature of mind, no matter
what may be the theory held regarding its activities, it
must be admitted that the mind is dependent upon this
mechanism for the manifestation of what we know as mental states.
Wonderful as is the mind, it would seem to be
dependent upon this physical mechanism for the expression of its activities.
And this dependence is not upon the brain alone, but
also upon the entire nervous system. The best authorities agree
that the higher and more complex mental states are but
an evolution of simple sensation, and that they are dependent
upon sensation for their raw material of feeling and thought. Therefore,
it is proper that we begin by a consideration of
the machinery of sensation. This necessitates a previous consideration of
the nerves. The nerves. The body is traversed by an
intricate system of nerves, which has been likened to a
great telegraph system. The nerves transmit sensations from the various
parts of the body to the great receiving office of
the brain. They also serve to transmit the motor impulses
from the brain to the various parts of the body,
which impulses result in motion of appropriate parts of the body.
There are also other nerves with which we have no
concern in this book, but which perform certain physiological functions,
such as digestion, secretion, excretion, and circulation. Our chief concern
at this point is with the sensory nerves. The sensory
nerves convey the impressions of the outside world to the brain.
The brain is the great central station of the sensory nerves,
the latter having countless sending stations in all parts of
the body, the wires terminating in the skin. When needs
nervous terminal stations are irritated or excited, they send to
the brain messages calling for attention. This is true not
only the nerves of touch or feeling, but also of
those concerned with the respective senses of sight, smell, taste,
and hearing. In fact, the best authorities hold that all
the five senses are but an evolution of the primary
sense of touch or feeling, the sense of touch. The
nerves of the sense of touch have their ending in
the outer covering or skin of the body. They report
contact with other physical objects. By means of these reports,
we are aware not only of contact with the outside object,
but also of many facts concerning the nature of that object,
as for instance, its degree of hardness, roughness, etc. And
its temperature. Some of these nerve ends are very sensitive,
as for example, those of the tip of the tongue
and finger ends, while others are comparative, relacking in sensitiveness,
as for illustration, those of the back. Certain of these
sensory nerves can find themselves reporting contact and degrees of pressure,
while others concern themselves solely with reporting the degrees of
temperature of the object with which their ends come in contact.
Some of the latter respond to the higher degrees of heat,
while others respond only to the lower degrees of cold.
The nerves of certain parts of the body respond more
readily and distinctly to temperature than do those of other parts.
To illustrate, the nerves of the cheek are quite responsive
to heat impressions. The sense of sight, the nerves of
the sense of sight terminate in a complex optical apparatus,
which in popular terminology is known as the eye. What
is known as the retina is a very sensitive nervous
membrane which lines the inner back part of the eye
and in which the fibers of the optic nerve terminate.
The optical instrument of the eye conveys the focused light
vibrations to the nerves of the retina, from which the
impulse is transmitted to the brain. But contrary to the
popular notion, the nerves of the eye do not gage
distances nor form inferences of any kind. That is distinctly
the work of the mind. The simple oppice of the
optical nerves consists in reporting color and degrees of intensity
of the light waves. The sense of hearing, the nerves
of the sense of hearing terminate in the inner part
of the ear. The tympanum or ear drum, receives the
sound vibrations entering the cavities of the ear and intensifying
and adapting them. It passes them on to the ends
of the auditory nerve in the internal ear, which conveys
the sensation to the brain. The auditory nerve reports to
the brain the degrees of pitch, intensity, quality, and harmony, respectively,
of the sound waves reaching the tympanum. As is well known,
there are certain vibrations of sound which are too low
for the auditory nerve to register, and others too high
for it to record. Both classes, however, capable of being
recorded by scientific instruments. It is also regarded as certain
that some of the lower animals are conscious of sound
vibrations which are not registered by the human auditory nerves.
The sense of smell. The nerves of the sense of
smell terminate in the mucous membrane of the nostrils. In
order that these nerves report the odour of outside objects,
actual contact of minute particles of the object with the
mucous membrane of the nostrils is necessary. This is possible
only through the passage through which the nostrils of air
containing these particles mere nearness to the nostril will not suffice.
These particles are, for the most part, composed of tenuous gases.
Certain substances affect the olfactory nerves much more than do others,
the difference arising from the chemical composition of the substance.
The olfactory nerves convey the report to the brain the
sense of taste. The nerves of the sense of taste
terminate in the tongue, or rather in the tiny cells
of the tongue, which are called taste buds. Substances taken
into the mouth chemically effect these tiny cells, and an
impulse is transmitted to the gustatory nerves, which then report
the sensation to the brain. The authorities claim that taste
sensations may be reduced to five general classes, that is, sweet, bitter, sour, salty,
and hot. There are certain nerve centers having important offices
in the production and expression of mental states, located in
the skull and in the spinal column, the brain and
spinal cord, which we shall consider in the following chapter.
End of chapter two, chapter three, the great nerve centers.
The great nerve centers which play an important part in
the production and expression of mental states are those of
the brain and spinal cord, respectively. The spinal cord. The
spinal cord is that cord or rope of nerve substance
which is enclosed in the spinal column or backbone. It
leaves the lower part of the skull and extends downwards
in the interior of the spinal column for about eighteen inches.
It is continuous with the brain, however, and it is
difficult to determine where one begins and the other ends.
It is composed of a mass of gray matter surrounded
by a covering of white matter. From the spinal cord.
Along its length emerge thirty one pairs of spinal nerves,
which branch out to each side of the body and
connect with the various smaller nerves extending to all parts
of the system. The spinal cord is the great central
cable of the nervous telegraphic system, and any injury too
or abstruction of it cripples or paralyzes those portions of
the body the nerves of which enter the spinal cord
below the seat of the injury or abstruction. Injuries or
obstructions of this kind not only inhibit the sensory reports
from the affected area, but also inhibit the motor impulses
from the brain which are intended to move the limbs
or parts of the body. The ganglia or tiny brains
what are known as ganglia or tiny bunches of nerve centers,
are found in various parts of the nervous system, including
the spinal nerves. These groups of nerve cells sometimes called
little brains, and perform quite important offices in the mechanism
of thought and action. The spinal ganglia receive sensory reports
and issue motor impulses in many cases without troubling the
central brain regarding the matter. These activities are known as
reflex nervous action. Reflex action, what is known as reflex
nervous action, is one of the most wonderful of the
activities the nervous and mental mechanism, and the knowledge thereof
usually comes as a surprise to the average person, for
he is generally under the impression that these activities are
possible only to the central brain. It is a fact
that not only is the central brain really a trinity
of three brains, but that in addition to these, every
one has a great number of little brains distributed over
his nervous system. Any and all of which are capable
of receiving sensory reports and also of sending forth motor impulses.
It is quite worth while for one to become acquainted
with this wonderful form of neuro mental activity. A cinder
enters the eye, the report reaches a ganglion, a motor
impulse is sent forth, and the eyelid closes. The same
result ensues if an object approaches the eye, but without
actually entering it. In either case, the person is not
conscious of the sensation and motor impulse until the latter
has been accomplished. This is reflex action. The instinctive movement
of the tickled foot is another instance. The jerking away
of the hand burned by the lighted end of the
cigar or pricked by the point of the pin is
another instance. The involuntary activities and those known as unconscious
activities result from reflex action. More than this, it is
a fact that many activities originally voluntary, become what is
known as acquired reflexes or motor habits by means of
certain nervous centers acquiring the habit of sending forth certain
motor impulses in respet monster certain sensory reports, the familiar
movements of our lives are largely performed in this way,
as for instance, walking using knife and fork, operating typewriters,
machines of all kinds, writing, et cetera. The squirming of
a decapitated snake, the muscular movements of a decapitated frog,
and the violent struggles, fluttering and leaps of the decapitated
fowl are instances of reflex action. Medical reports indicate that
in cases of decapitation, even man may manifest similar reflex action.
In some cases. Thus we may see that we may
feel and will by means of our little brains as
well as by the central brain or brains. Whatever mind
may be, it is certain that in these processes it
employs other portions of the nervous system than the central brain.
The three brains. What is known as the brain of
man is really a trinity of three brains, known respectively
as one the medulla oblongata, two the cerebellum, and three
the cerebrum. If one wishes to limit the mental activity
to conscious intellectual effort, then and then only is he
correct in considering the cerebrum or large brain as the brain.
The medulla oblongata The medulla oblongata is the enlargement of
the spinal cord at the base of the brain. Its
office is that of controlling the involuntary activities of the body,
such as respiration, circulation, assimilation, etc. In a broad sense,
its activities may be said to be of the nature
of highly developed and complex reflex activities. It manifests chiefly
through the sympathetic nervous system, which controls the vital functions.
It does not need to call on the large brain
in these matters ordinarily, and is able to perform its
tasks without the plane of ordinary consciousness. The cerebellum. The cerebellum,
also known as the little brain, lies just above the
medulla oblongata and just below the rear portion of the
cerebrum or great brain. It combines the nature of a
purely reflexed center on the one hand, with that of
habit mind on the other. In short, it fills a
place between the activities of the cerebrum and the medulla oblongata,
having some of the characteristics of each. It is the
organ of a number of important acquired reflexes, such as
walking and many other familiar muscular movements which have first
been consciously acquired and then become habitual. The skilled skater, bicyclist, typist,
or machinist depends upon the cerebellum for the ease and
certainty with which he performs his movements without thinking of them.
One may be said never to have thoroughly acquired a
set of muscular movements such as we have mentioned, until
a cerebellum is taken over the task and relieve the
cerebrum of the conscious effort. One's technique is never perfected
until a cerebellum assumes control and direction of the necessary
movements and impulses sent forth from below the plane of
ordinary consciousness the cerebrum. The cerebrum or great brain, which
is regarded as the brain by the average person, is
situated in the upper portion of the skull and occupies
by far the larger portion of the cavity of the skull.
It is divided into two great divisions, or hemispheres. The
best of the modern authorities are agreed that the cerebrum
has zones or areas of specialized functioning, some of which
we see the sensory reports of the nerves and organs
of sense, while others send forth the motor impulses which
result in voluntary physical action. Many of these areas or
zones have been located by science, other remain as yet unlocated.
The probability is that in time science will succeed in
correctly locating the area or zone of each and every
class of sensation and motor impulse. The cortex, the area
of thought, memory, and imagination, has not been clearly located,
except that these mental states are believed to have this
seat in the cortex or outer thin rind of gray
brain matter, which envelops and covers the mass of brain substance.
It is moreover considered probable that the higher processes of
reasoning are performed in or by the cortex of the
frontal lobes. The cortex of a person of average intelligence,
if spread out on a flat surface, measures about four
square feet. The higher the degree of intelligence possessed by
a lower animal or human being, as a rule, the
deeper and more numerous are the folds or convolutions of
the cortex, and the finer its structure. It may be stated,
as a general rule, with but very few exceptions, of
the higher the degree of intelligence in the lower animal
or human being. The greater is the area of its
cortex in proportion to the size of the brain. The cortex,
it must be remembered, is folded into deep furrows or convolutions.
The brain in shape divisions and convolutions resembling the inner
portion of an English walnut. The interior of the two
hemispheres of the cerebrum is composed largely of connective nerves,
which doubtless serve to produce and maintain the unity of
function of the mental processes. While physiological psychology has performed
a great work in discovering brain centers and explaining much
of the mechanism of mental processes, it has but touched
the most elementary and simple of the mental processes. The
higher processes have so far to find analysis or explanation
in the terms of physiology.