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The Brain 123

[Image of Paramecium]

Paramecium

DNA into its two complementary strands when a cell divides. In single-celled organisms, including paramecium, the ends of the tubes stick out of the body and form the cilia that drive the organism along.

The presence of tubulin in complex, single-celled organisms provides a clue that the smallest information processing unit might not be the neuron. Some single cell organisms, such as paramecium, display complex behavior: hunting for prey and escaping danger. This suggests they can process small amounts of information without the need for a matrix of neurons. Since we evolved from these organisms, why wouldn’t our brain cells take advantage of this sub-cellular intelligence?

The structure of tubulin lends itself to digital processing as the molecules forming the walls have two stable states and can flip between them. We might recognize this as the basis of a binary computer, and cells might have little computers within them. They would not need to process many bits to be useful. Perhaps single-cell organisms developed information processing capabilities in their micro tube structures that allowed them to better survive and, as their nervous systems evolved, they coupled these structures to form the brains we see today. This piece of theory is not too controversial. After all, nerves have wiring within them to carry information to the synapses and it’s likely this wiring is involved in the thinking process. But Hameroff is not finished. He has teamed up with Roger Penrose to bring quantum mechanics into the picture.

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