And since we know the mind does it, the brain (almost) has to; it seems that people here for the most part get that.
What's surprising is that the field doesn't; while it's true that neuroscientists won't deny that the human brain does rumination disconnected from current inputs, neither does it receive much attention (speaking as a postdoc in the field). Brain science is important, useful, and fun, but it's not yet a complete field; people here have noted the conspicuous absence of an explanation for consciousness. The field really hasn't worked hard enough on it yet to make me think that one doesn't exist.
I think we'll get that explanation of consciousness only after brain science starts paying more attention to "spontaneous activity," that is, thinking.
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And since we know the mind does it, the brain (almost) has to; it seems that people here for the most part get that. What's surprising is that the field doesn't; while it's true that neuroscientists won't deny that the human brain does rumination disconnected from current inputs, neither does it receive much attention (speaking as a postdoc in the field). Brain science is important, useful, and fun, but it's not yet a complete field; people here have noted the conspicuous absence of an explanation for consciousness. The field really hasn't worked hard enough on it yet to make me think that one doesn't exist. I think we'll get that explanation of consciousness only after brain science starts paying more attention to "spontaneous activity," that is, thinking.