Peace of Mind

Readers marveled at what cognitive neuroscientists are uncovering about the biology of the brain and its impact on human feelings, part of our HEALTH FOR LIFE package. One pointed to the intangible, transcendent "dimensions of consciousness." Another stated simply: "Science reveals more mysteries than it explains."

The Biology Behind Our Feelings
In "Sad Brain, Happy Brain" (HEALTH FOR LIFE, Oct. 6) Michael Craig Miller, editor in chief of the Harvard Mental Health Letter, shares the mental myopia of so many of his colleagues: that the whole can be understood by observing the parts. In dismissing the intelligence of a brain cell as no smarter than an amoeba, he dismisses one of the greatest wonders nature has come up with in 3 billion years of evolution—that a single human cell can simultaneously manage 10,000 chemical reactions while coordinating this activity with the other 10 trillion cells in our body. When Miller can explain how the cell manages to do this, then he and his colleagues may be ready to discuss faith, love and understanding.
Michel Mortier
Zug, Switzerland

It is, of course, in the best interests of neuroscience to declare the physical brain to be the origin of all behavior. For myself and others, something intangible (call it mind or spirit) is nevertheless at our disposal, overriding fear with insights and peace of mind that transcend the "fully engaged" brain. Ironically, it is only when the brain becomes quiet that this additional dimension of consciousness is discovered.
Robert Maurice
Covington, Louisiana

While I enjoyed the article "Sad Brain, Happy Brain," I fear it may engender antipathy toward cognitive neuroscience. The author allows that many people are "put off by the notion that such rich experiences could be reduced to mechanical or chemical bits," but he does not adequately address these fears. Research has shown that these "chemical bits" are as mysterious as consciousness and, indeed, history has shown that science generally reveals more mysteries than it explains.
Shannon Synan
Belchertown, Massachusetts

That human consciousness and emotion arise from billions of interconnected cells is not the least bit surprising given our experience with computer technology. A page on a screen was created from hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of interconnected cells each indistinguishable from the other. What is important is that the cells in a computer are organized in such a way that when stimulated as a group by an external signal, they produce a hopefully intended result. It's not surprising at all that the brain might function in a similar manner. Given that looking at individual cells (bits) in a computer yields no information about the macroscopic behavior of a computer program, it seems hardly imaginable that looking at individual brain cells in a human being would give us any insight into human behavior. To understand how the brain "works" to produce consciousness, intelligence and emotion, we need to do a little reverse engineering. What appears important to study are the stimuli that trigger the related aggregates of cells in the brain, and the networked structure of those interconnections. If we can reproduce the networked structure of human cells with a computer network of cells, and apply the appropriate stimuli, we will be looking at a truly intelligent machine.
Garrett A. Hughes
Honeoye Falls, New York

Michael Craig Miller's "Sad Brain, Happy Brain" claims that there is consensus among philosophers and scientists that "all mental processes derive from operations in the brain." But it is not true that mental states are just brain processes. If I am angry that I lost the softball game, it must be true that there was a softball game and that I lost it: my anger is a relation between me and the game, and a softball game is not a brain process, nor does the softball game happen in my brain. Furthermore, if I say, "We lost the game," the meaning of my words is established by the community of English-language speakers, not by the neurotransmitters swishing in my head. Killing off the old notion of soul does not suffice to show that the mind and the brain are the same thing.
Douglas P. Lackey
Chair, Department of Philosophy
Baruch College
New York, New York

Examining China ' s Growth
Kudos to Newsweek for being the first "in years" to interview the reticent Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao (" 'We Should Join Hands'," Oct. 6). Of the few loaded questions posed by Fareed Zakaria, the one that most captured my attention begins with the preface "Many people see China as a superpower." The prime minister, with characteristic candor and humility replied, "China is not a superpower" because of "millions of people living in poverty." It serves as a warning to Americans that if we don't solve "the current financial crisis" soon, a large number in the United States may be knocking at the doors of poorhouses, and that will pull us down from the status of being the world's superpower. Let us stop finger-pointing at nations like China when the worst human-rights violations have been committed by unregulated Wall Street moguls whose unrestrained greed has brought on us the current crisis.
Kangayam R. Rangaswamy
Waunakee, Wisconsin

I read Fareed Zakaria's interview with Wen Jiabao. How could he be satisfied with the Chinese prime minister's response that referred to the Dalai Lama's separatist activities and ask no follow-up question? As you pointed out, Wen invited Zakaria to interrupt him, and he did no such thing. Such an interview could well have appeared in a Chinese newspaper.
Huang Juei-min
Tai-chung, Taiwan

China greatly impressed the world in the superb arrangements for the Olympic and Paralympic Games ("Too Large to Grow So Fast," Oct. 6). But can it now rise to the challenges it faces in terms of sustainable energy production? With the world's fastest-growing economy, plus the largest population of any country on the planet, that will be far from easy. Seventy percent of China's growing energy needs are met by using coal. The disastrous effects on the air quality of the whole region, in addition to polluting China's land and rivers, are well known. With some 50 new coal mines opening annually, the Chinese government urgently needs to find viable alternative sources of energy. The industrial revolution, which China is still undergoing, is transforming the country. To a large extent, coal miners are paying the price of such rapid progress. The privately run mines of China are a byword for unsafe practices. The vast and windy highlands of Inner Mongolia and Tibet could surely have many wind-power generators installed, and the energy produced could be transferred from those underpopulated regions to others, where it is in high demand. Those heights could support solar-power plants, as well. Additionally, China's vast coastline could generate great amounts of wave-produced electricity. If such measures are introduced on a wide scale and swiftly (as is clearly necessary), then it is to be hoped that the present generation of Chinese coal miners—some 5 million—will be the last to have to undertake such dreadfully dangerous and underpaid work. The introduction of such measures would also help China escape from its unenviable position as the world's greatest producer of greenhouse gases. China awed the world with the Olympic Games. We must hope that similar levels of government energy and support can now be directed to these pressing, and much longer-lasting, challenges of clean and safe energy production.
Paul Surtees
Hong Kong

Polish President ' s Views of Russia
Polish President Lech Kaczynski is playing a dangerous game by making provocative statements about Russia ("How the West Got Georgia Wrong," Oct. 6). He seems to be under the impression that he can make anti-Russian statements with impunity and then hide behind the skirts of NATO. Eastern European nations who indulge in anti-Russian rhetoric should remember that Russia is almost paranoid concerning security issues and cannot help but feel threatened when countries—not only former Soviet satellites, but also former Soviet Republics—are clamoring for membership in the European Union and NATO. The installation of missile shields in countries such as Poland and the Czech Republic, with historic feelings of enmity toward the Russians, leave the Russians feeling that such measures are aimed against them, despite assurances from the United States and NATO that they are intended to counter Middle Eastern countries that sponsor terrorism. NATO needs to display caution when offering the Membership Action Plan to diplomatically immature East European and former Soviet Republics. Ethnic, cultural, religious and political differences in this unstable region could easily draw NATO into a war for something as trivial as a minor border dispute. The Polish president is correct in saying that the international community needs to convince Russia that the imperial era is over. However, it would be more useful to fully engage with the Russians in consultations and dialogue on common problems in this highly volatile region than simply condemn them as the aggressors (such as in Georgia) and leave them isolated, alone and, most dangerously of all, insecure.
Peter E. Perkins
Randpark Ridge, South Africa

Mosquito-Borne Diseases
As stated clearly in your article ("On the Trail of a Ferocious Killer," Oct. 6), pursuing the goal of eradicating malaria by vaccines may be an expensive and interminable task. Perhaps it is more feasible to yet again tackle the disease vector—the mosquito—by diverting some of this effort toward the creation of genetically modified mosquitoes that have a reduced ability to infect humans. For example, if mosquitoes were unable to fly, it would be much easier to protect ourselves against highly localized, flightless, water-needing pests. Hence infection rates for all mosquito-borne diseases, not only malaria, would plummet and the ecosystem should, hopefully, be relatively unaffected.
Mark Tucker
Hailsham, England

State Schools in Sweden
A Reference is made in "Moving Beyond Mrs. Thatcher" (Oct. 6) to a recent Swedish reform providing state funding to independent schools and allowing parents to enroll children in such institutions. However, as long as there are only a handful of schools that are not state controlled, the vast majority of Swedish parents have no realistic option other than to continue sending their kids to state schools, where the standard of education often is inferior, discipline is nonexistent and teachers' qualifications are sometimes below acceptable levels.
Bo Dahlberg
Nairobi, Kenya

Framing the News
Your cover of Sept. 29, "It's Not as Bad as You Think," sits framed on my desk and I look at it for consolation every time I read another newsmagazine. Your moderately upbeat cover story on the global financial crisis was a welcome change from the doom and gloom monopolizing all other media. Thank you, and please God you are right!
Karl H. Pagac
Villeneuve-Loubet, France

Exemplar of Women ' s Rights
You report in "In Golda's Footsteps" (PERISCOPE, Oct. 6) on "an unprecedented feat in a Western democracy" of having women poised to head the branches of Israel's government: prime minister, speaker of Parliament and head of the Supreme Court. This feat is to be applauded considering the region's standards when it comes to gender equality. However, I would like to point out that another country has already achieved this "unprecedented feat" and surpassed it. In 2005 and 2006, the highest offices in New Zealand were held by women: the sovereign Queen Elizabeth II; the governor-general, the queen's representative in New Zealand, Dame Silvia Cartwright; Prime Minister Helen Clark; Speaker of the House of Representatives Margaret Wilson; and Chief Justice Dame Sian Elias. Some additional facts: the CEO of the largest company valued on the New Zealand Stock Exchange, Telecom NZ, is Theresa Gattung, and from 1997 to 2001 both the prime minister and leader of the opposition were female. New Zealand has consistently shown that all human beings enjoy rights and has been an important voice, for example, by having the world's first openly transsexual member of Parliament, Georgina Beyer (1999–2007). Most notably, New Zealand was the first country to give women the right to vote.
Toni Evans
London, England

' Don ' t Call This Art '
PERISCOPE'S Oct. 6 Fast Chat "Food For the Fishes" with Danish artist Marco Evaristti, famous for his subversive art installations, left me utterly disgusted. How duplicitous for Evaristti to take an anti-death-penalty stance in his latest project by saying that if people don't feed his goldfish the freeze-dried flesh of an executed Texan inmate the fish will die, when in fact in a previous show Evaristti puréed live fish in a blender. Such shows are pure perversity. On the other hand, if Evaristti truly wants to protest the death penalty, there are other artistic ways that don't involve killing living things, let alone vilifying a corpse in such a revolting manner. Don't call this art, but pure debauchery. It's a pity that the financial sponsor of this is not revealed. We have the right to know whom to boycott.
Louis Brennan
London, England

Commenting on the U.S. Elections
Yes, America is a unique place whose values should be an example for the world ("Worlds Apart," Oct. 6). But should we say that America is now on the wrong track and it is time to return to the first seeds it sowed? Both Barack Obama and John Mc Cain were determined to prove to doubting Americans that they were the ones to restore the vision cherished by the Founding Fathers. Considering the lies of the Bush administration and the recent financial crisis, should one not wonder whether America can regain its credibility? It is time to heed Abraham Lincoln's warning that "at what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? … If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher."
Dan Chellumben
Amboise, France

So John Mccain would "aim for some grand victory over all terrorists." Hadn't we heard that before from someone who is now largely seen as a failure in office? Reducing today's complex realities to John Wayne-like formulas invites more trouble and strife. For a while, I criticized Barack Obama for falling back on his promise to abandon politics as usual; when denigrating your opponent at all costs was the order of the day, Obama was trying to convince the electorate that voting for McCain would be like presenting Bush with a third term. Originally, this sounded like an oversimplification. Yet there was and is more than a grain of truth to the charge. Moral absolutism may have its place from time to time, but it is downright dangerous when unchecked by the power of reason. McCain's most appalling move? Appointing Sarah Palin as his running mate.
Werner Radtke
Paderborn, Germany

Your comparison of "hot" John McCain and "cool" Barack Obama was right on the money ("The Vices of Their Virtues," Oct. 6). We had repeatedly heard McCain advocate the most extreme response in his proposed solutions to our problems. He either wanted to bomb someone or fire someone or suspend his campaign. Obama is much more nuanced and analytical in his approach. We need a president who advocates reasoned discussion and solves problems pragmatically.
Mark Challis
West Des Moines, Iowa

Perhaps NEWSWEEK should check the readings on its thermometer. Barack Obama may be "cool" to the rock-star crowd, but the Obama-Biden ticket is cold when it comes to reality, voting in lockstep with fellow Democrats to oppose qualified judges, and Obama has yet to reach across the aisle to join a bipartisan solution on anything. And while John McCain may have been too "hot" for your editors, the McCain-Palin ticket was clearly the warmest combination around, with clearheaded solutions based on common sense, American values and a record of constructive service to their nation.
Hank Nuss
Corpus Christi, Texas

I think Barack Obama's candidacy created a powerful wind of cool reason to clear away the choking smog of hot militaristic thinking and religious fanaticism that has dragged the United States down in world opinion and tarnished our Constitution. John McCain is a brave man who served his country well, but his time has passed. President Obama's combination of steady, sensible decisions and inspiring leadership will be a powerful advantage in the challenging world we face.
Valerie Millar
Sunnyvale, California