The Train of Thought…

The idea basically centres around a nearly literal train of thought…
Where the rails for the train are the neural passageways, the trains are the chemicals that travel the passageways and the neurotransmitters are the passengers, and also there is a train station which would be like the cell body…

From that you can probably guess what's coming…

For a proper train of thought the exchange (of passengers getting on and off the train) should be seen to happen whilst the train is at the station…
This is opposed to the passengers trying to get out of the train whilst it is still moving and also whilst not aligned with the station's platform…

What this translates to is quite interesting…

If the neurotransmitters disperse whilst being properly aligned, the thought or sensation ensuing will be more correct, if not, then the thought or sensation may be premature, less correct, and may cause discomfort…

As I did come up with the idea myself I am not so sure how true this is to reality…
If true, the kind of implications may be:-
- People should be careful with their thoughts to make sure they are well-timed, precise and patient.
- Uncomfortable thoughts may have something to do with this concept at some times.
- Thoughts can be improved on by visualising the mental train of thought.
- We could understand the thoughts of others by being more aligned with our own thoughts.
- The truth of mental state may best be acquainted with when the train is stationary at the station, and true character of someone will best be known when the mental state is well acquainted with.
- Study into mental conditions could be better understood by combining this concept along with all other important mental concepts.
And this would be just to name a few…

A closing thought would be that the train goes basically in two directions, to and from the station nearest the main hub (the brain) and the outlying areas (the body and the rest of the brain).

Please respond to this thread with your comments…

what do you mean by the neurotransmitters dispersing?
and how can a thought be stalled? any attempt to exert power over the thought would necessitate the thought's existence, it being already premature if it was going to be. Also, what does it mean for a thought to be premature?

your idea seems to have potential, though you need to explain it better.

To start with , I don't know an awful lot about the subject, I just had a basic idea to share…
I can only apologise if the thinking behind the concept is erroneous…

Neurotransmitters dispersing (would be like the passengers getting off the train) is where the neurotransmitter has reached it's destination, no longer being transported, it then ‘disperses' or activates in the particular centre it was destined for…

I guess what you meant by thoughts stalling, was where the ‘train is stationary'… If that is so, then, what is meant is that the passengers are at their ‘stop', where they do move out of the train, away from the railway lines. I guess you would ask “How can a thought stop?” (or stall as you put it).
The answer would centre around perhaps a need to pin-point a particular area being activated within the neural passageway. For this, a thought may be considered to be stationary long enough for the thought to be read…

“…any attempt to exert power over the thought would necessitate the thought's existence, it being already premature if it was going to be…”

Well, people do have premonitions… Perhaps more often than you may think…
However, the next step (especially in communication) is well within sight, and this means we do work ahead of ourselves, but also that we need to pronounce thoughts much like we do words…

A thought being premature happens when the passengers attempt to get off the train, at the wrong stop.
Many factors contribute to this effect, some may include:-
- Lack of control behind one's thoughts
- Assumptive thinking (where one assumes something without properly checking it out, and where the definition of the thought is not quite well-known
- Polluting chemicals in the system, especially those that would work on the transmitters themselves

One thought I had since posting the thread yesterday is, that, the train may make a number of stops on it's journey. This may explain how we can propagate the movement of the chemicals within the neural passageway. Although, most of the passengers get off the train at the end of the line…

There is more to this…
Will post more as it comes…

Just now I've realized what this means by means of first hand experience...

I'm not exactly sure if this runs along with your thought... but the idea of being so incredibly happy you're just at a loss of words and "lost all train of thought"

relating it to your imagery, a passenger is so facinated by the scenery from the train that they miss their stop and is too distracted by what they're seeing outside the window... when they finally realize ... wow where the helll am I, I'm completely lost.


^___^; idk just a thought

I think this idea of trains and stations is a great way to look at the subject of neurons. If you look at the structure of a neuron, the train (the action potential) leaves from the station (the axon hillock), it travels along the track (the axon) which is only one way and branches off all over the place and at different distances, some of which may be on the fast track (because the axon is myelinated). The junctions on the track are (the contacts or synapses) - that's great I like that.

I have found it really hard to visualise how this neural network stuff and the structure of neurons works, this is quite helpflul to me thanks. All I need now is for someone to explain how directly and indirectly gated ion channels work - anyone want to explain this process in laymans terms for me?

all I know is that the ion channels are a bunch of proteins that regulate the voltage gradient along the cells in your body.

in this case, transmitting across synapses. in essence, it could be the "fuel" of those trains maybe?

hey nicely put, still not sure i understand it but a very nice explanation.

Wow, quite a bit to say here.

I will explain the situation of thought and information as best I can for you all. Thought is binary, basic 1's and 0's, on and off. When a neuron fires it is an all or nothing situation, there is no half way, there is no missing your stop. The intensity of the stimulus does not matter. The potassium-sodium transfer either surpasses the threshold and switches the neuron's electrical charge, or it does not. Here I have provided a more detailed quote from a site I looked up for you all.

"If a neuron has fired, the electrical impulse that has been generated stimulates the boutons and results in electrochemical activity which transmits the signal across the synapses to the receiving dendrites.

At rest, the neuron maintains an electrical potential of about 40-60 millivolts. When a neuron fires, an electrical impulse is created which is the result of a change in potential to about 90-100 millivolts. This impulse travels between 0.5 to 100 meters per second and lasts for about 1 millisecond. Once a neuron fires, it must rest for several milliseconds before it can fire again. In some circumstances, the repetition rate may be as fast as 100 times per second, equivalent to 10 milliseconds per firing. "