Schneider's Symptoms of the Second Rank

One of the first ideas that arose in connection with the consideration of problems of thinking from a biological point of view was the idea that thinking is a function of brain structures. As a result, more subtle research methods began to be developed, such as electroencephalography. These techniques can help us learn which areas of the brain are involved in solving a particular problem, such as solving a math problem. They revealed the existence of a number of areas of different levels; In addition, it turned out that their inclusion and work depend on the results of thinking.

This attempt, however, quickly revealed a couple of fundamental problems. The first difficulty is to agree on a typical area to which the EEG method can be applied and yet be able to show that its relationship to thinking is heterogeneous. Therefore, this method of research was not immediately applied to all areas of research. The next important point is the limitation of the conclusion that can be drawn from the analysis of a small area of ​​the brain or the connection of a limited part of the nervous system with the function performed by thinking. The idea of ​​a process of combining areas of neural material to perform specific functions has been well established. But to what extent does this occur in humans? What changes occur in the unification of areas when conditions change? How can the interconnection of different areas cause a change in human mental activity? At all times, the problem of brain division has worried neurosurgeons and neurologists. A dichotomous division into a somatotopic structure (afferent information is involved in the area of ​​the cerebral cortex before signals are transmitted to all higher parts of the brain) and associative interaction becomes the main thing in the work of the central areas. With this approach (internal areas of the cerebral cortex for conducting isolated analysis), the brain is like a “black box”. For example, area V2 of the optic nerve sends a visual signal to the temporal lobe of the brain for subsequent processing. Researchers have long recognized that a significant portion of the information emanating from the primary sensory area of ​​the visual field (occipital lobes) is sent to the middle areas - the area where the occipital-parietal zone intersects