= 27d567bc2d48d9f40e9ccc20ea370b15)
Annoyance comments on Inhibition and the Mind - Less Wrong
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
= 783df68a0f980790206b9ea87794c5b6)
Loading…= b715d02e85f7b3b4ae65ca3d3e450868)
Subscribe to RSS Feed
Powered by Reddit
= f037147d6e6c911a85753b9abdedda8d)
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
Comments (29)
It needn't look like the grasping reflex when in use by another system. I'm not familiar with the neurology, but if the grasping reflex that can appear in case of trauma is produced by the same system as in the baby (rather than being a chance similarity), then I'd bet money that that system is a functional component of the healthy adult, not a piece of scrap that is being suppressed.
Does anyone want to put up £100 against my £100? I've just googled it, and although I've seen the suppression hypothesis asserted in several places, I haven't found any investigation of the matter.
I think there's some confusion here about what I mean. I will attempt to clarify.
The grasping reflex only occurs when something foreign touches a baby's hand or foot, not when the baby touches itself. It requires the processing resources of the brain to distinguish between the two, which is why this reflex is not mediated by the peripheral nervous system.
As the baby ages, the reflex - by which I mean the action of grasping - dwindles and ceases. It no longer occurs.
The parts of the brain responsible for triggering the action still exist and are known to continue to function. However, their final result no longer occurs.
When sufficient frontal lobe damage takes place, the reflex appears again, which suggests that they either counter the signal from the reflex center or override it.