Legend of the Cyber Heroes-Chapter 66 - Additive Construction

66: Chapter 66 Additive Construction

66 -66 Additive Construction

The human brain is split into the left and right hemispheres.

These two hemispheres are connected by a “corpus callosum” composed of approximately two hundred million nerve fibers. novelbuddy.cσ๓

This bundle of nerve fibers is located right in the center of the brain and has an arch-like cross-section.

If the corpus callosum is removed, then the connection between the two brain hemispheres will be severed.

In other words, if you want to study the function of just one hemisphere, you simply need to remove a person’s corpus callosum to do so.

Of course, removing someone’s corpus callosum just for research would be too inhumane.

But there indeed exist people in the world who completely lack a corpus callosum.

Among these people, a large group consists of those who suffered from epileptic seizures that could not be controlled by medical means at the time and thus had to be treated by severing the corpus callosum.

Such people without a corpus callosum are called “split-brain patients.”

In the 1960s, Roger Sperry, a biology professor at the University of California, conducted a series of experiments on split-brain patients.

If an image is placed to the left or right side of a split-brain patient, the visual signal will first be transmitted to the corresponding brain hemisphere.

Sperry’s initial test consisted of having willing split-brain participants sit in front of a wooden board.

This board had a row of light bulbs arranged horizontally.

The light bulbs would flash on either side of them.

When the researchers asked the participants to report what they saw, they all stated that they only noticed the light bulbs on the right side flashing.

Subsequently, the researchers had the light bulbs on the left side of the participants’ field of vision flash independently.

This time, they had no response.

The only reasonable explanation seemed to be that the right hemisphere, responsible for the left field of vision, was unable to process this visual signal and was a “blind spot.”

But the next experiment overturned this interpretation.

When the researchers asked the participants to identify all the light bulbs that had flashed, although they verbally said “only the right side flashed,” their hands accurately pointed out the light bulbs that had flashed on the left side, with a high accuracy rate that was statistically significant.

In other words, the right hemisphere could actually see and process visual signals.

However, this visual signal could not enter the language faculties or be translated into articulable sentences.

Split-brain patients, even if they saw the bulbs on the left side flash, could not express it verbally.

Because the right brain does not handle language functions.

Another experiment by Sperry had the participants copy simple three-dimensional drawings (like cubes, for example) with both their left and right hands.

They could mostly accomplish the task with their left hand, but their right hand could only produce a bunch of incomprehensible two-dimensional lines, without a trace of the “three-dimensional sense.”

This is because the left brain does not manage “spatial imagination”—that is the job of the right brain.

For these experiments and a series of subsequent research, Roger Sperry was awarded the 1981 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

The California Institute of Technology’s school magazine conveyed congratulations to him with the words, “Sperry, congratulations to both the left and right hemispheres of your brain!”

Of course, this research result later faced criticism within the academic community.

The criticisms mainly focused on the idea of “lateralization of brain function” and the way this concept was communicated to the public and media.

In fact, within Sperry’s own experiments, there was evidence to suggest that the human right hemisphere is not entirely incapable of understanding language, just that its mode of comprehension is vastly different from the left hemisphere’s.

And this kind of language recognition by the right hemisphere might also be an important part of ordinary people’s language comprehension.

Normal individuals do not possess only one side of the brain, nor do they have two brains.

The left and right hemispheres simply have their own specializations.

When a person reads a story, the left hemisphere is engaged in understanding the written language.

It extracts meaning from the arrangement of words and sentences and translates language symbols into speech, enabling it to be understood in the mind.

Meanwhile, the right hemisphere is responsible for understanding the story’s emotional expressions, imagining specific visual scenes, and forming an overall impression of the story’s style.

This is the complete operation of the brain.

And so it is with Cyber Martial Arts.

External strength requires intuitive imagination of geometric problems and the arrangement of tactics.

Meanwhile, Inner Strength is intertwined with language function.

“Therefore, for beginners in Martial Arts, I recommend an arrangement with Inner Strength chips in the left hemisphere and External Sect in the right hemisphere.

But this does not mean that you can handle all combative strategies with just half a brain.

Especially when it comes to advanced Inner Strength, it will certainly involve whole brain functions.

Yet, I still recommend placing Inner Strength chips in the left brain,” Hero Xiang Shan said earnestly.

Yuki looked at Xiang Shan, her body shaking slightly, struggling to hold back her laughter.

Xiang Shan sighed, “Was my explanation not clear enough?”

Yuki nodded, “Very clear.”

“So, do you have any problems with me reorganizing the electronic parts inside the cranial cavity?”

Yuki shook her head.

“Then what are you laughing at?”

“I’m sorry, Master…” Yuki convulsed, “The way you had a wire tie up your skull…

it reminded me of the time you used a kettle lid as a skullcap.”

Xiang Shan grew furious, “Is the kettle lid joke never going to die?

Besides, that was just a makeshift solution!

I’m going to get a better skullcap now, understand?”

He had pulled this wire from the wreckage of Little Poison Insect’s prosthetic body.

Yuki quickly nodded in agreement.

“The young cannot be taught.” Xiang Shan shook his head, moving toward the underground section.

The Z organization possessed biorefining tanks as well as furnaces, enabling them to refine metals and silicon on their own.

However, these resources ultimately needed to go through specific processing to be transformed into usable resources.

This kind of processing tool is the 3D printing technology.

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a technology that builds objects layer by layer using a digital model file as the base and bonding materials such as powdered metal or plastic.

In simple terms, as long as you have the corresponding materials and digital model prepared, it can quickly produce tools of any shape.

The “materials” here could even be living biological cells.

In November 2012, Scottish scientists used human cells to print artificial liver tissue with a 3D printer for the first time.

Compared to traditional industry’s subtractive manufacturing, which starts with producing a rough shape and then removes excess parts with cutting tools, it is much more resource-efficient.

What’s more important is the flexibility of 3D printing technology.

Unlike traditional industries that require various molds for producing parts, a single machine can manufacture an infinite variety of components.

And compared to physical molds, “digital models” could be regarded as almost “costless.”

If one is willing to share.

When Yuki heard this, he nodded, “This seems somewhat similar to ‘Martial Arts’…”

“Correct.

The digital model is a kind of ‘information.’ Apart from the small amount of electrical energy consumed for ‘inputting’ and ‘erasing’, it almost has no other costs,” Xiang Shan sighed, “Information should be the least costly thing in the information age.

It’s just a pity that some rules set by the powerful prevent this information from being properly shared.

They can continue the wealth and advantages accumulated in past eras…”

Xiang Shan seemed a bit lost in thought.

If not for the fact that the simplistic voice system was unable to express his complex emotions at the moment, Yuki might have detected the unusual tone in his voice.

Xiang Shan always felt that when it comes to this topic, he was unusually…

unusually…

“Master, that must be the 3D printer you mentioned!” Yuki pointed excitedly ahead.

Xiang Shan came back to his senses and nodded.

In front of the master and apprentice were three 3D printers of different specifications.

One larger and more high-end, with two smaller ones.

Xiang Shan proceeded as usual, testing this 3D printer.

Three mechanical arms extended from above the printer, each equipped with dozens of nano-sized nozzles connected to fine tubes.

These nozzles sprayed out nano particles evenly in mid-air as magnetic fields precisely directed the motions of the metal powder.

Another mechanical arm descended from above, its micron-sized mechanism heating these components.

Then, another arm emitted high-frequency mechanical waves, causing a kind of periodic motion to permeate the metal solidification process, controlling the alignment of the alloy crystals.

A small component was instantly completed.

Xiang Shan’s body shook slightly.

For some reason, he felt even more…

even more…

More familiar with the process.

Indeed, familiar…

All the meticulously memorized parameters flowed from his memory, infused into the machine with his Inner Strength.

Yuki watched in shock as the printer’s electronic panel refreshed wildly, nearly turning into a mess of chaotic colors.

Soon, Xiang Shan’s consciousness reached the data that had just been added.

“A highly versatile prosthetic framework, alloy parameters for external armor, firearms…

Tch, this needs some research.

I think the organization’s firearms seem to reflect better design ideas than the ones I remember.” Xiang Shan held his head, “Additionally, adjustments are needed for…

Gleayard’s wireless transmitter, and it’s necessary to integrate the batteries of Paulus and Lev…”

If he could choose, Xiang Shan would really like to switch to the batteries from Gleayard or Blue Steel Vulture Daniel.

Gleayard was a heavy-duty vehicle prosthesis, and Daniel was simply a flying prosthesis — their batteries far outperformed anything Xiang Shan had at hand.

Unfortunately, there had been no time to remove Gleayard’s battery at the time, and if he had taken it then, he wouldn’t have been able to fire Iron Dust at the Welfare Officer.

Daniel’s battery, on the other hand, had been directly blown up by anti-aircraft guns.

“Besides, the new spine should have separate motion units installed on each segment.

In the worst-case scenario, the spine must be able to detach from the prosthetic body with the skull attached.”

“Right, and a protective skull…”

“Also, there are some components needed for when the ‘donkey’ is upgraded…”