Two Algorithms of Our Brain

Our brain is so complex that we are still developing their computational models. Below are two algorithms of our brain, which give us adaptability in various environments.

Processing of images

Our brain processes images in excellent ways.

We can recognize laterally inverted images, due to the built-in mechanism of our brain. When we recognize an image which is not laterally symmetrical, it is stored in both hemisphere of our brain, with the original version in one hemisphere and a laterally inverted image in other hemisphere, so that we can recognize images independently of lateral symmetry, as two laterally inverted objects are usually just the same thing. Research finds that when the connection between the two hemispheres is lost, this ability is hindered, which makes people recognize laterally inverted objects as two different ones.

Besides inversion, our brain can also rotate images. We can recognize images within angle of rotation of about 45 degrees clockwise and anticlockwise. Moreover, our brain recognizes vertically inverted images, which is also flexible for rotation. So the image in a 360 degrees rotation can be recognized within a range of 180 degrees, summed by two 90 degrees from vertical symmetry.

Handling of variable workload

The functioning of our brain requires the nutrient supply of the cerebrospinal fluid, which has a stable volume, meaning our brain cannot increase the energy consumption for handling greater intellectual workload.

However, our brain has developed specialized brain areas, which competes for the fixed nutrient supply. If there is a greater intellectual workload, our brain will allow more CSF, thus nutrients to flow to the responsible brain areas, at the same time reducing nutrient supply to other brain areas. Therefore, we are specialized for intellectual activities at the cost of not doing well in other activities.

The process above is temporary. However, there are also permanent processes. The mapping of our brain is constantly changing, like how mathematicians use the ability of recognizing facial expressions for mathematical symbols.