Submission + - Researchers May Have Discovered How Memories are Encoded in the Brain (gizmag.com) 1
Zothecula writes: While it’s generally accepted that memories are stored somewhere, somehow in our brains, the exact process has never been entirely understood. Strengthened synaptic connections between neurons definitely have something to do with it, although the synaptic membranes involved are constantly degrading and being replaced – this seems to be somewhat at odds with the fact that some memories can last for a person’s lifetime. Now, a team of scientists believe that they may have figured out what’s going on. Their findings could have huge implications for the treatment of diseases such as Alzheimer's.
The real article is fascinating (Score:1)
Craddock TJA , Tuszynski JA , Hameroff S (2012) Cytoskeletal Signaling: Is Memory Encoded in Microtubule Lattices by CaMKII Phosphorylation? PLoS Comput Biol 8(3): e1002421. doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1002421 http://www.ploscompbiol.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1002421 [ploscompbiol.org]
Spells out how they made physics-based models of human neurochemistry show operation as logic gates. Turns out the operation of a simple AND gate can be made very difficult to understand!