Deep Down, You Are a Scientist

Abstract

Although we are not aware of the scientific experimentation occurring in our brain on a momentary basis, the scientific process is fundamental to how our brain works. This process involves three key components. First: hypotheses. Our brain makes hypotheses, or predictions, all the time. Every movement that we make involves predicting [1] – where will my arm end up if I engage this muscle, how heavy is the cup of coffee that I am planning to grasp and bring to my mouth, etc. A stark example is the familiar experience of going up the stairs in the dark (or while reading email on your phone) and almost falling because you expected, predicted, that there would be one more stair. We could have simply lifted our legs and decided whether there is a stair or not based on sensory feedback (do I feel a hard surface or not?), but anyone who has traveled up a flight of stairs in pitch dark knows that this is extremely slow and attention-demanding. Our normal stairclimbing is quick and effortless thanks to accurate predictions.