Human Emotions

Emotions (sometimes called “feelings”) differ from thoughts and biological drives. Thoughts are brain processes in the forebrain and are visualizations. Drives are need-specific and satisfaction oriented. Emotions express themselves as the awareness of general positive or negative affections (for example, joy, sorrow, good, bad). Since emotions are neither visualization, nor goal-oriented, they are fairly abstract phenomena in the brain. As such, emotions are neither describable nor measurable in physical terms (they can be described or measured only through their symptoms), and are of “fuzzy” nature.

Emotions are based in the limbic system of the mid-brain. Through nerval projections, as from the amygdala and, possibly, some nuclei of the basal ganglia, they can indirectly stimulate thought responses (and subsequent behavior) in the forebrain through valuation of thought associations. Such emotions have the effect of modifying synaptic signal strength in associative links and, consequently, modifying thought sequences. The emotional association attributed to a visualization can be memorized (for instance, through a synaptic formation or bus connection to the amygdala or the basal ganglia).

It is important to note that the emotional valuation of visualizations can be modified through subsequent experience and thought. For example, learning that a person has acted unselfishly, in order to benefit you, adds emotional warmth to your visualization of that person. The opposite is true, too. In other words, the difference in personal experiences results in differences how people attach themselves to the same perception or thought association. This includes the variability of ethical judgment.

It is important to note that emotions come in a variety of different dimensions (flavors), including:

Emotions originate in the limbic system of the mid-brain, but influence the “sympathetic” nervous system. Generally recognized is the impact that this specialized nervous system exerts on the stomach, the heart, and the blood vessels (for example, stomach cramps, heartbeat, vasal dilatation). Thus, ancient thinking placed important emotions, especially love, in the heart. The English language indicates that “disgusting” emotions make people feel sick, while good deeds give them a “warm” feeling. Vice versa, heart trouble, and lack of oxygen can lead to emotions of anxiety. A pleasantly warm environment can lead to the same emotions that, in turn, can cause the body to relax and increase circulation. Symptoms and causes (well-being and emotions) in these loops are sometimes interchangeable. The impact of these emotions on decision-making, as well as the impact of certain actions on emotions, are also somewhat reciprocal.