The brain is not wired with few enough interactions to actually isolate a network like that. The number of connecting synapses is massive, outnumbering neurons by 100-1000x. And more importantly, the connections are spread all over the place.

E.g., when I was in grad school for neuroscience, I attended a multimodal sensory symposium where I learned that huge numbers of neurons in primary sensory cortices (V1, A1, etc) responded to stimuli from other senses. E.g., 20% of your primary visual neurons fire when you get auditory stimuli.

You're assuming these networks can be disentangled. There's no evidence that the brain is modular in the way you propose.

It seems this would be under the assumption that the "dark" network is simply disconnected from the "primary" network, if indeed such a thing exists.

One would assume, especially with the measurable loss in gray matter, that these networks are being destroyed and thus couldn't be reconnected even if stimulated to do so.

But perhaps pruning isn't such a binary process and it is these damaged -- but not destroyed -- networks which cause such severe dysfunction.

I'm excited and grateful to the brilliant minds which give hope to so many. A+, would science again.

Not every person with schizophrenia has used drugs.

No shit. But there is already a link between drug use and sudden onset schizophrenia, which is what I'm talking about here.

Similarly armchair: An alternative to reducing the bridge might be trying to actively increase it - the brain reconfigures (right?) so perhaps we can with careful drug use open up the dark area and allow the regular brain to use that sector again. The difference between cleaning a room in your house and nailing the door shut.

Maybe that is in part what is happening anyway? Or is there evidence to show that the section of the brain becomes under-utilised. (no I didn't RTFA; will get right on it!)

I am pretty sure you hit the limit of the network analogy.

>the brain reconfigures (right?)

Right. New neurons, axons, synapses, and more are constantly being generated in the brain (though, perhaps not under certain conditions).

It seems unlikely that any area of the brain would be unconnected, or at least, unconnected for very long.

It's knowing how to manage a person or situation once you open up a 'dark' area; I'd prefer the terminology that an area is 'dark' is rather referred to as something you're simply conditioned to (or suppressed/repressed) - it's underneath your conscious level, as otherwise it would leave you less able to function in day-to-day life.

Practicing meditation is a kin to understanding oneself.

"I found it easier than many to accept the epistemological notions of the world internal and external as dependent concepts enforced by ignorance and perceptual challenges."

Source:https://www.reddit.com/comments/1piku6/

Indeed. Great read, thanks.