From: Joscha Bach Sent: Wednesday, October 23, 2013 2:41 PM To: Jeffrey Epstein Cc: Joi Ito; Kevin Slavin; An Gesher; takashi ikegami; Martin Nowak; Greg Borenstein Subject: Re: MDF Am 22.10.2013 urn 16:01 schrieb Jeffrey Epstein <[email protected]>: > I would add the possiblity that each differentiated input has its own =ncrypted algorithm. and looking at it from too high an altitude =rovides little info about each one..i.e. optic nerve encrption =ifferent than nasal receptors . maybe even a one time code . that =Bows only the individual to access certain stored info. Indeed! Each individual will form its own code, for each modality. On =he other hand, these codes do not simply diverge, but they are the =esult of the individual's adaptation to its own (changing, =eveloping, deteriorating) physiology. The nervous system is designed to =xtract structure based on the statistical properties of the input, and =o compensate for defects. For instance, replacing the fine-grained =nput provided by the many receptors of the cochlea with a crude implant =today's models sample only a handful of frequencies) will usually =esult in a subjective experience of continuous auditory perception; =plicing the data of a few pixels into the optic nerve of a blind person =ay allocate those pixels their correct positions within the visual =ield. An interesting question: what are the limits of the plasticity of =he sensory modalities? For instance, could we switch modalities to some =xtent? More than hundred years ago, Stratton did a famous experiment, where he =ore glasses that turned the world upside down (using prisms). After a =ew days, his brain adapted and he would perceive everything as being =pright again. An experiment that I would like to see one day (and of which I am not =ware if someone already tried it): equip a subject with an augmented reality display, for instance Google Glass, and continuously feed a =isual depiction of auditory input into a c