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Brain biophysics: perception, consciousness,
creativity. Computer Brain Interface (CBI)
Dariusz Man and Ryszard Olchawa
Institute of Physics, Opole University,
Oleska 48, 45-052 Opole, Poland
{dariusz.man,rolch}@uni.opole.pl
http:/fizyka.uni.opole.pl
Abstract. The paper presents connections between perception, aware-
ness, and creativity from the biophysical point of view. Attention was
drawn to human senses’ limitations and their influence on cognition.
The role of interfaces connecting brain with computer (BCI) and par-
ticular role of Computer Brain Interface (CBI) are indicated which the
authors believe will be the next stage of human brain supporting tech-
nology evolution. It will enable the growth of perception, awareness, and
creativity, and consequently lead to social development.
Keywords: Brain biophysics, perception biophysics, positive feedback
1 Introduction
Human brain is the most complex biophysical structure that the science tries to
describe. Despite multiple attempts to recreate the essence of brain, it’s func-
tioning is still a mystery. It may be tied to large amount of it’s building elements
[1] or not yet discovered mechanisms of this complex environment. By analyzing
brain as a physical structure it is possible to distinguish high number of log-
ical elements (neurons) above all. This number is estimated to be 1011 , and
due to numerous synapses (about seven thousand per neuron) results in 7 ×1014
functional connections. The human brain has been estimated to contain approxi-
mately 100 trillion synapses [2]. Such amount equals to about 88 TB of computer
data storage and nowadays does not seem shocking. The estimated connection
amount of 7 ×1014 is achieved in an assumption that every synapse is perma-
nently tied to one other neuron. In this case, a selected synapse can be attributed
with logical value of 1 if it is connected to a selected neuron or logical value of
0 if it is not connected. However, if we consider the dynamic nature of synapse
and neuron connections and assume it may connect with any other neuron, it is
possible to attribute synapse with logical value of 0 if it is not connected with
any neuron or logical values from 1 to (1011 −1) in case of connection with
one of (1011 −1) remaining neurons. This results in a drastic increase in pos-
sible functional connections configurations. Excluding configurations in which
two synapses of the same neuron connect with the same one from the remaining
2 Brain biophysics: perception, consciousness, creativity
neurons, the number of connections of one neuron with others equals to number
of combinations without repetitions given by Newton binomial series
1011 −1
7×103.
Total number of neuron connection configurations can be given by equation
1011−1
7×103×1011
2,
with division by two allowing to avoid counting the same connection between
neurons twice. The approximate value of this equation is 1053132 . Each of the
connections forms a logical path that can be responsible for a specific action[3].
Synapses may be in one of two states: conduction, that is conducting the neural
impulse (logical 1); or no conduction, that is blocking the neural impulse (logical
0). Therefore, on the basic level the brain functions in a binary system, similar
to processors in our computers. Each stimulated neuron is accompanied by elec-
tric current which in turn induces electromagnetic field. Similar to computers,
brain functioning is accompanied by a specific background of varying electric
and electromagnetic potentials. These potentials can be registered in the form
of EEG signal (electroencephalograph). Richard Catona was the first man to
register these potentials on open brains of rabbits and monkeys. The results to-
gether with experiment description were published in British Medical Journal in
1875. Many years later, in 1924 psychiatrist Hans Berger conducted research on
EEG use on people and published his results in 1929 [4]. However, EEG was fully
approved by scientific community only in 1937. Currently, encephalography is
one of routine medical diagnosis methods used by neurologists and psychiatrists
despite its nature still not being sufficiently clarified. EEG measurement tech-
nology evolved together with development of electronics, physics, and neurology.
Microelectronics and digital technology in particular accelerated its development
by creating modern tools and opening new areas of research for scientists. One
of such areas is brain-computer-interface (BCI) which allows direct brain control
of adequately prepared applications [5–7]. It appears that researches on brain
functioning enter a new phase and leave medical practices to become subjects of
physics and engineering studies. This is an obvious success as the complex nature
of the problem requires involvement of researchers of many scientific disciplines.
2 Perception
Perception is organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory informa-
tion coming to brain through sensory organs in order to understand the environ-
ment [8]. On this basis we build ideas a model of the world that surrounds us. In
reality, it is sub jective and far incomplete idea. We will now approach this prob-
lem from the physicist’s perspective instead of the psychologist’s. The first thing
to notice is tremendous limitations of sensory organs which means that we miss
Title Suppressed Due to Excessive Length 3
an information, or rather a really big amount of it, in relation to what our senses
can register and process. Our brains acquire about 90% of information from two
senses only: sight (about 80%) and hearing (about 10%). The remaining 10% of
information is distributed between smell, touch, and taste senses Fig.1.
Fig. 1. The Percentage schema input form of information acquired by the human
senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste.
The idea of reality built by brain is therefore mostly based on sight. We
will now explore the physical capabilities of this detector which converts electro-
magnetic energy into nerve impulses (electric current). Eye construction ensures
good processing of quanta of the energy E(E=h3:h- Planck’s constant, 3-
frequency) of the wave length scope from 380 nm to 740 nm [9, 10]. However, the
multitude of information that surrounds our brains is placed in scope of energy
ranging from several thousand kilometers to a ten thousandth of a picometer of
wave length Tab. 1.
For this reason majority of information in form of electromagnetic radiation
that reaches the sight organ is invisible. The Universe and nature that surrounds
us constantly sends out information about its energetic state at the speed of light
but most of it eludes our perception. Similar to this situation is a problem of
information acquisition via the hearing organ. Sound wave travels the air at the
speed of about 340 m/s and our ears can process acoustic waves ranging from
20 Hz to 20,000 Hz (cycles per second) [11] which equals wave lengths from 17
m to 2 cm, Tab. 2. The reality is far worse as majority of us cannot register
the full hearing range. While it is true that everyday communication (human
speech) requires much narrower frequency range: 130-1000 Hz for women, 65-
500 Hz for men; the world that surrounds us emits acoustic waves ranging from
a fraction to millions Hz. A sound that is lower in frequency than 20 Hz is
infrasound, and a sound above 20 kHz ultrasound. Many natural phenomena
including water waves, wind, wing movement of birds, fan centrifugation, etc.
generate infrasounds, often high powered, that may have negative influence on
human organism. On the other hand phenomena including surface tension of
crystal structures (e.g. rocks, steel, glass), piezoelectric effects, and echolocation
4 Brain biophysics: perception, consciousness, creativity
Table 1. Summary of parameters of electromagnetic waves (frequency and length) for
various types of waves.
Types of electromagnetic waves. Frequency Wavelength
Sources [Hz] [m]
Power engineering: Variable currents
and pulse
1 to 102300000 ×103to 3000 ×103
Corded phones 102to 1043000 ×103to 30 ×103
Hertz’s waves 104to 1013 30 ×103to 0.03 ×10−3
Radio waves:
Long waves 1.5×105to 3 ×1052000 to 1000
Medium waves 0.5×106to 2 ×106600 to 150
Short waves 0.6×107to 2 ×10750 to 15
Ultrafast waves 0.2×108to 3 ×10815 to 1
Microwaves: Radar, Technologies mili-
tary
3×108to 1013 1 to 0.03 ×10−3
Infrared: matter of temperature higher
up 0K.
1012 to 4 ×1014 0.03 ×10−3to 790 ×10−9
Visible light: Sun 4 ×1014 to 8 ×1014 790 to 390 ×10−9
UV: sun, electric arc 8 ×1014 to 3 ×1016 390 to 5 ×10−9
Radiation of character quantum
Roentgen’s rays 3 ×1016 to 3 ×1020 10000 to 1 ×10−12
Rays γ1018 to 1022 300 to 0.03 ×10−12
Cosmic rays 1022 to 1024 0.03 to 0.0003 ×10−12
FREQUENCY LENGHT
[Hz] [m]
20 17
25 13.60
40 8.50
80 4.25
160 2.125
320 1.062
500 0.68
1000 0.34
2000 0.17
4000 0.085
10000 0.034
20000 0.017
Table 2. Summary of parameters of acoustic waves in the human hearing range. The
range most frequently used in voice communication is marked in bold.
Title Suppressed Due to Excessive Length 5
in animals (e.g. bats, dolphins), generate ultrasounds. Unfortunately, this kind
of information is unavailable for human mind. The world we build in our imagi-
nation is imperfect and perhaps even in certain cases entirely wrong. Therefore,
how are we to perceive nature if our perception is flawed. Correct stimuli iden-
tification and interpretation by our brains is a completely different matter (we
will leave this task for psychologists and psychiatrists).
3 Awareness
State or ability of being aware that is condition of thoughts, feelings, and will
as well as accompanying phenomena; recognition of own deeds and feelings by a
subject [12]. If awareness is mind’s ability to reflect ”objective reality” and con-
stitutes the highest level of psychological development, we must consider what
decides and builds awareness. It would appear that there are five distinct compo-
nents that influence the level of. The first is perception which is responsible for
gathering the information. Because the information must be processed and cor-
rectly allocated, knowledge and experience are necessary. In order to draw con-
clusions and take optimal decisions based on the processed informations we use
intelligence. Our decisions and assessment are further verified by ethics. There-
fore, perception, intelligence, knowledge, experience and ethics Fig.2. model our
awareness.
Fig. 2. Elements influencing the development of awareness.
It would appear that broadening the area of our knowledge through studying
and perception by e.g. using certain interfaces we are able to influence our aware-
ness. Physics, and particularly biophysics and BCI technology, play an important
role here which is broadening the electromagnetic and acoustic waves registering
and processing capabilities to an area currently unavailable for our senses. This
will create entirely new cognitive capacity, particularly when linked directly to
brain and will most probably have a significant influence on our awareness.
4 Creativity
Currently, there are a few more or less extensive definitions of creativity. The
word itself is derived from Latin creatus which means creative. Therefore, cre-
ativity is a process which leads to emergence of new solutions, exactli ”Over the
6 Brain biophysics: perception, consciousness, creativity
course of the last decade, however, we seem to have reached a general agreement
that creativity involves the production of novel, useful products” Michael Mum-
ford 2003 [13] . Social development is the effect of creativity which we owe to
the growing awareness and the rapid human development during past decades
is amazing. In the beginning of the XX century horses were the basic means of
transportation, a solution that lasting for thousands of years. Half a century age
text written on paper was the basic mean of information and nowadays thanks
to digital technology we have a variety of options. In 1969 people landed on
the Moon and there are thousands of satellites over our heads including the
International Space Station. We are now timidly begin the era of space explo-
ration, however what we have achieved as a species for the last hundred years can
be considered a miracle when compared to everything our civilization achieved
during thousands of years. There can be only one diagnosis of this enormous de-
velopmental acceleration considerable increase in sciences’ development, physics
and chemistry in particular. This development was made possible thanks to the
discovery and use of new devices that broadened our perception which became
a positive feedback Fig.3. Creativity provides the means to broaden perception
which in consequence leads to the development of awareness and creativity.
Fig. 3. Diagram of positive feedback reinforcing development of civilization.
5 Conclusion
It would appear that humanity stands before another phase of development ac-
celeration. Technology allows significant broadening of cognition. Interfaces that
connect our brains with computers and mediate the use of machines allow ex-
ploration of entirely new areas. Imagine a device that processes electromagnetic
wave lengths ranging from radio waves to gamma waves in a way understand-
able for human brain instead of eyes with a limited functionality. Additionally,
such device could increase the optic sensitivity and allowing magnification in
any range (physically possible). Imagine a wide range interface that processes
sounds from hearing range as well as infra- and ultrasounds instead of ears.
This would certainly change our perception of the world and introduce the new
area of awareness. In order to achieve it, we must further develop the BIC tech-
nology and create safe and non-invasive Computer Brain Interface (CBI). We
must once again look at the problem from the biophysics’ perspective to fully
Title Suppressed Due to Excessive Length 7
understand new capabilities that could appear thanks to this technology. The
so-called reality is in fact a virtual world based on the acquired data and cre-
ated by the neurons of our brains (this problem was discussed in detail during
a lecture cycle in Opole University Institute of Physics and I and II Konfer-
encja Mzg Komputer (BCI Conference) in Opole University of Technology and
described [14]). The current state and perception capabilities of our main senses
are surprisingly weak. If we assume that length of electromagnetic waves ranges
from about 3 ×10−16 m to 3 ×108m in nature (24 orders of magnitude), our
sight registers barely 10−9% of available information. What does that mean? It
is as if one was to make an opinion on the content of a library that contains
a billion (109) books after reading a single book! Food for thought. In case of
hearing, we are able to only register about 2×10−2% of all acoustic information.
Our main senses do not allow for reasonable data collection about the Universe.
Here physics comes to our aid once again. Microscopes, telescopes, and spectro-
scopes built by scientists further increase the capabilities of sight. However, this
knowledge is available to a small group of people. This, coupled with growing
specialization in sciences often makes it impossible to take a holistic approach
to problems. This is why creating new tools, most importantly the CBI, appears
to be a necessity on one hand and on the other a natural process of creativity
evolution of our civilization.
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