The Sirens ’ of Odysseus – or Sisyphus ’ Boulder : An ode to science and art
Written by Eduarda Streit Morsch
Society for Neuroscience Conference 2017 ; Washington DC , 15th November 2017 In the classical book of Homer , Odysseus had to cross the island of Anthemoessa to be reunited with his homeland . “ Dive thy ship swiftly past the island ”, Circe warned the Greek hero : for the island was home to beautiful – but tragic – creatures called Sirens . They were half mermaid , half bird ; and even more beautiful than the Siren ’ s face were their voices , which were able to lure numerous sailors to death .
Aware of the danger he was putting his men in , and acutely aware of the prophecy put on him , Odysseus told his men to fill their ears with beeswax to protect themselves from the lovely , wicked singing of the Sirens . Together with it , he ordered his men to tie him up on the ship ’ s mast and no matter what he would scream or beg , they were not to let him loose .
Upon hearing the chant of the creatures and their beautiful faces , Odysseus quivered , “ Come hither , come hither , brave Odysseus !” they called , and Odysseus pleaded to be released . His men only bound him tighter .
It is said that the Sirens die when they are not able to lure men to their final fate . After Odysseus ’ triumphant plan , it is believed that the Sirens indeed perished after their failure . This passage of the Odyssey can have its meaning extrapolated in many ways to modern daily life . For instance , a sudden burst of passion for someone unreachable or untouchable – Odysseus tied to the mast would be the passion itself , only to be released when logic once again takes over of one ’ s mind ( it can even be a literal rope and bondage , if in any case you are into that ...). One can even extrapolate to a mechanism of axonal regeneration after injury .
Yes , you heard it right ! In 2017 , Dr . Frank Bradke gave a lecture at the Society for Neuroscience about his work on axonal growth following injury . To make a long story short , he compared severed axons to Odysseus on the mast , unresponsive to growth arrest cues from the environment , these represented by the Sirens . The successful regeneration after injury would be then portrayed by the safe passage from the Anthemoessa islands .
Too great of an extrapolation ? Maybe . Or rather beautifully explained ? Yes , and please give me some more of that !
Ever since my interest in neuroscience arose , I have always tried to observe things happening at a second level of perception . I do not know exactly how to explain it , but I think there is a word that would maybe convey what I mean : apophenia , or , as Wikipedia describes it , “ The tendency to attribute meaning to perceived connections or patterns between seemingly unrelated things ” or “( implies ) an universal human tendency to seek patterns in random information ”.
We , human beings , are comfortable when we can find patterns in the random . Like the gambler ’ s fallacy or the pareidolia ( I wrote a text about the “ apparent ” anatomical findings in Michelangelo ’ s paintings : revistacapitolina . com . br / sobre-jesus-emtorradas ). We find meaning in these patterns and these artificial , made-up meanings can be considered our own little instinct of survival ( unless you are a nihilist , in which case you are now rolling your eyes at my own little idiosyncrasies ).
However , getting back on track – I always try to find a bridge between my personal interests ( art , writing , human behavior ) and the cold , sterile analytical side of science . Even though I am fascinated by axon growth and migration mechanisms , I confess I almost dozed off while Dr . Bradke delineated all the molecules , signaling pathways , and Taxol-induced stabilization of microtubules … but on the next
22 | NEUROMAG | July 2018