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Thanks to natural curiosity, man has always been interested measuring the speed of various phenomena – the speed of light, sound, the speed with which the Earth rotates … Scientists managed to calculate extremely accurate parameters in this regard. But what will they say on account of the speed of thought?
To assess the speed of any phenomenon, you need to know it beginning and the end. In our case, we will consider the beginning of the moment, when we receive sensory information, and the moment of the end of action we will consider it as an endpoint. In this context, “thought” includes processes related to perception (definition environment), decision making (determining what to do) and action planning (determining how to do this). Differences between these parameters are very vague. In addition, each of these processes can be considered in terms of a separate “thoughts”.
Ultimately, an attempt to give one meaning to the “speed of thought” – It’s the same as trying to determine one maximum speed for all types of transport, from bicycles to rockets. Imagine the differences between simple, quick reactions of a runner, the decision maker to start running after the start signal (about 150 ms), and more complex decisions, such as choosing the right moment for rebuilding a car from row to row with dense flow transport (from a few seconds to minutes).
Thinking is absolutely internal and very an individual process that is not easy to see. At its core lies the interaction of a complex network of neurons distributed throughout nervous system. Scientists can use special techniques to visualizations of the process, such as magnetic resonance tomography and electroencephalography to see which areas The nervous system is active during the thinking process. Most researchers agree that the most significant data the speed or effectiveness of the thinking process are time reactions – the time from the arrival of a certain signal to the moment when the action itself begins.
It is interesting to know that a separate thought can be formed and launched in less than 150 ms. Back to the runner on start: reception and perception of “start” signal information, solution start running, transferring a command to movement and, directly, itself movement involves a process that begins in the inner ear and countless nervous system structures pass before the moment he reaches the muscles in his legs. It all happens literally half that time enough to to blink.
Even though we may never succeed for sure determine the speed of thought, the study of time that takes planning and execution of actions, gives us unique information how efficiently our nervous system performs data processes, and how changes associated with movement, and cognitive disorders affect the effectiveness of our mental activities.
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