Blind Sight

[Sriram]

Hi everyone,

Here is an article about Blind sight which is a phenomenon by which people who are blind are also able to 'see' things.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170428-i-have-a-strange-second-sight

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It ranks among the most curious phenomena in cognitive neuroscience. A handful of people in the world have “blindsight”: they are blind, but their non-conscious brain can still sense their surroundings.

Milina Cunning, from Wishaw in Scotland, lost her sight in her 20s, and later realised she had this blindsight ability. She has been studied extensively by researchers.

“If I was to throw a ping pong ball at Milina’s head, she would probably raise her arm and duck out of the way, even before she had any awareness of it,” says Jody Culham, a scientist who has scanned Cunning’s brain.

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Cheers.

Sriram

[Robbie]

I've heard of this sririam, think it doesn't apply to anyone born blind. The people concerned have a good idea of where things and people are placed, can sense movements & hear sounds (as long as hearing is OK) applicable to actions which most of us wouldn't notice. They are able to visualise which those blind from birth cannot.
Very good article, thanx.

[Sriram]

I've heard of this sririam, think it doesn't apply to anyone born blind. The people concerned have a good idea of where things and people are placed, can sense movements & hear sounds (as long as hearing is OK) applicable to actions which most of us wouldn't notice. They are able to visualise which those blind from birth cannot.
Very good article, thanx.

Hi Robbie,

Actually the lady is able to know how obstacles are placed in other places as well. So...its not just about sensing something through habit or past experience.

It is really about the sub/unconscious mind and how it guides some people.   We know of somnambulism (sleep walking) where people open doors, walk about sometimes in precarious places, maybe even drive, and still manage to come back to their bed safely....without being consciously aware of what they did.

The sub/unconscious mind is a very intriguing subject and there is lots hidden there. Hypnotism is also probably connected to the sub/unconscious mind.

Cheers.

Sriram

[Robbie]

Undoubtedly hypnotism will uncover the sub or unconscious though I don't believe it really happens without someone first of all consciously surrendering themself &then they can come out of it at will.

This bit interesting - 'Actually the lady is able to know how obstacles are placed in other places as well. So...its not just about sensing something through habit or past experience.'

[Sriram]

More excerpts from the article.......

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“When I went to see Dutton, there were quite a few tests he wanted to do. One of them was: he placed chairs out in the corridor in the hospital. He asked me to walk through the chairs. He said: ‘Just walk through at your normal walking pace.’ I walked my normal pace, and I kept bumping into them. So I got to the other end of the corridor, and he said: ‘Right, now try and walk a bit faster now and go back through them.’

“So I walked faster, and I just went through them, one by one, and I didn’t hit them once. And it was just amazing.
“The way Dutton explained it was ‘Don’t think about it too much, just go and do it. Don’t think too much in your mind.’ It was my subconscious mind telling me how to do that task and to avoid hitting the chairs.

 It’s the same if the family have left things lying in the middle of the living room floor. I say ‘you need to tidy up, so I don’t trip over these things’. If there is something lying there, like a handbag or shoes, I can see it and I miss it, or I go to pick it up.

“But I’ll try to look at you, and I know you’re sitting there, sitting close… but I just can’t see you.

“It’s strange the things I can see but I’m not meant to see because I’m blind.”

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[Robbie]

I wanted to find out more about Milna Cunning but there is no info on the internet, that I could see.
Must be a Scottish thing  .

Interesting wiki article -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blindsight

There's also a sci-fi novel called 'Blindsight' by Peter Watts.

[floo]

Undoubtedly hypnotism will uncover the sub or unconscious though I don't believe it really happens without someone first of all consciously surrendering themself &then they can come out of it at will.

This bit interesting - 'Actually the lady is able to know how obstacles are placed in other places as well. So...its not just about sensing something through habit or past experience.'

I had one session with a hypnotherapist some years ago for a problem which was psychosomatic in nature. At no point did I feel out of control. It did help me for a while, until a load of other problems of that nature came knocking on my brain! 

[Robbie]

Hypnotism is all a bit of a con but feeling relaxed and dreamy is pleasant & makes one receptive. Self hypnosis does that but you are right, we all have control.

[floo]

Hypnotism is all a bit of a con but feeling relaxed and dreamy is pleasant & makes one receptive. Self hypnosis does that but you are right, we all have control.

I used a qualified hypnotherapist, whom as I said I did find helpful, especially as I find relaxing extremely difficult, if not impossible.  I think the stage hypnotists are in a different league altogether.

[jeremyp]

“If I was to throw a ping pong ball at Milina’s head, she would probably raise her arm and duck out of the way, even before she had any awareness of it,” says Jody Culham, a scientist who has scanned Cunning’s brain.

Well, there's a logical contradiction.

[Sriram]

Well, there's a logical contradiction.

What is the contradiction?   We know that the unconscious mind takes decisions before the conscious mind is aware of it.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414145705.htm

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Contrary to what most of us would like to believe, decision-making may be a process handled to a large extent by unconscious mental activity. A team of scientists has unraveled how the brain actually unconsciously prepares our decisions.  Even several seconds before we consciously make a decision its outcome can be predicted from unconscious activity in the brain.

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