What Is Psychological Spin? A Thermodynamic Framework for Emotions and Social Behavior

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The article "The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation representing Psychological Spin" is framed on the quantum character of perception following the Fermionic mind hypothesis.

It is a manuscript filled with several cross-disciplinary connections. The work fits within the long-standing tradition of applying the language of physics (quantum mechanics in particular) to the description of cognitive processes (thinking and awareness).

 

However, some issues need to be solved and/or improved.

1)       The authors propose that perception represents a closed thermodynamic cycle that can be modeled via the reversible Carnot engine.  However, perception is a basic term in psychology, and it is crucial to assess how this proposed functional definition relates to the accepted definition. In addition, the relationship between perception and cognition (which is also discussed) should be defined.

2)       Many current research and theories on perception, including different scales, e.g., behavioral, cognitive neuroscientific, and molecular, can be referenced to show contribution to the related fields, including psychology and brain science.

3)       The authors should give a clear definition of emotion. The term "social temperature" does not seem very useful since it is referred to the temperature of public consciousness.  

4)       The quantum character of perception is phenomenological rather that mechanical. The paper provides a novel view but does not make clear predictions: the authors are required to suggestpossible experiments to verify their hypothesis.

5)       Figure 2 is rather crowded and difficult to read.

 

The paper makes progress in appraoching emotions from the perspective of natural sciences. It integrates the thermodynamic and quantum-theoretic approaches, usually considered separately, into a unified cognitive account.   Therefore, I recommend the publication of the manuscript after major revisions.

Author Response

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to submit a revised draft of the manuscript “The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation representing Psychological Spin" for publication in the Journal Psych. We appreciate the time and effort in providing feedback on our manuscript and are grateful for the insightful comments. Our responses are incorporated in red within the manuscript. Please see below, also in red, for a point-by-point response to your comments and concerns. All page numbers refer to the revised manuscript file with tracked changes. 

The article "The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation representing Psychological Spin" is framed on the quantum character of perception following the Fermionic mind hypothesis.

It is a manuscript filled with several cross-disciplinary connections. The work fits within the long-standing tradition of applying the language of physics (quantum mechanics in particular) to the description of cognitive processes (thinking and awareness).

We greatly appreciate the constructive assessment of the manuscript.

Below are the detailed responses to the reviewer specific points:

1. The authors propose that perception represents a closed thermodynamic cycle that can be modeled via the reversible Carnot engine.  However, perception is a basic term in psychology, and it is crucial to assess how this proposed functional definition relates to the accepted definition. In addition, the relationship between perception and cognition (which is also discussed) should be defined.

We defined perception and its relationship with cognition:

Introduction P.2: According to the scientific definition, perception is the process whereby sensory stimulation is translated into organized experience, whereas cognition is the process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, intellect, experience, and the senses.  Therefore, although cognition is highly abstract and flexible (Nes et al., 2021), it shows a systematic relationship with perception (Montemayorand  & Haladjian, 2017).

 

2. Many current research and theories on perception, including different scales, e.g., behavioral, cognitive neuroscientific, and molecular, can be referenced to show contribution to the related fields, including psychology and brain science.

Introduction P.2: Perception is an adaptive interface (Hoffman et al., 2015) shaped by natural selection to guide adaptive behaviors that improve evolutionary fitness. Intelligent response to stimulus requires a veridical modeling of the physical environment, centering on the intuition of the physical laws. The lion’s ability to catch its prey requires a superior management of the muscles against gravity. “Space-time tells particles how to move” according to John Wheeler and gravity similarly instructs the lion's movement.

Introduction P.3: Emotions' varied personal histories cultural, and brain activity profiles (Suhaimi et al., 2020; Torres et al., 2020) represent only positive or negative motivation (Hesp et al., 2021; Kao et al., 2015). For example, need, such as hunger or thirst, gives rise to an increasingly positive time error in the illuminance matches of objects relevant to that need (Gilchrist & Nesberg, 1952). The expectation influences the perception (Bruner & Minturn, 1955) of stimulus. Although emotions are multi-dimensional representations due to personal history, social context, and the qualities of the stimulus, they can be pared down to instant feelings for or against, with a surprising analogy to the photon spin (Surov, 2022).

 

3. The authors should give a clear definition of emotion. The term "social temperature" does not seem very useful since it is referred to the temperature of public consciousness.  

We defined emotions as suggested.

Introduction P3: Consciousness' constant accompaniments are emotions. Although there is no scientific consensus on a definition (Adolphs et al., 2019), emotions are thought of as mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. In our discussion, we will use a narrower definition, as deviations from the psychological balance of the mind. In this definition, emotions represent the homeostatic regulators, which aid in the recovery of the resting state (Peil, 2014; Wolff et al., 2018).

We replaced the expression "social temperature" with psychological temperature in the introduction.

Introduction P3: Like temperature, which indexes internal energy, psychological temperature measures the intensity of emotions and arousal [15], [17]–[19]. While arousal is the physiological and psychological state of the sense organs stimulated to a point of perception, psychological temperature includes the intention to respond. For example, low arousal stabilizes focus, but high arousal causes oscillating information processing. Emotions' varied personal histories, cultural, and brain activity profiles [20], [21] represent only positive or negative motivation [22], [23]. For example, need, such as hunger or thirst, gives rise to an increasingly positive time error illuminating objects relevant to that need [24], where the expectation influences the perception [25] of stimulus. Although emotions are multi-dimensional representations due to personal history, social context, and the qualities of the stimulus, they can be pared down to instant feelings for or against, with a surprising analogy to the photon spin [10].

 

4. The quantum character of perception is phenomenological rather that mechanical. The paper provides a novel view but does not make clear predictions: the authors are required to suggest possible experiments to verify their hypothesis.

 

For verification, we propose mathematical (a) and experimental methods (b).

Discussion and Conclusions, P14.

1. The mathematical method of category theory can verify the hypothesis and social spin.
2. The Pauli exclusion principle describes the behavior of all fermions (particles with half-integer spin). In consciousness science, the amygdala is responsible for the need for personal space. The Pauli exclusion principle represents a critical tendency in social interaction and leads to animals’ territorial needs and hierarchic social structures. Stress is equivalent to pressure in the physical world, which causes contradictory tendencies to dominate. Therefore, the Pauli exclusion principle applies to stressed and anxious people.

 

5. Figure 2 is rather crowded and difficult to read.

We appreciate the suggestion to clean up the crowded figure. We were happy to comply with this constructive suggestion. We also added a new Figure 2 on P6.

P11: see Figure 3.

Figure 3. The thermodynamic origin of spin Sensory interaction with the environment triggers the evoked cycle. The endothermic reversed cognitive cycle (top), which requires attentional focus, absorbs energy from the environment, representing up spin. The energy flow supports mental growth and parallels up spin (top right). Stress triggers the exothermic cycle that degrades mental energy (bottom). The energy flow toward the environment parallels down spin (bottom right).

Figure 2. The role of the cortex in emotion formation Emotions' multidimensional manifestation can be separated into positive and negative conditions (Kao et al., 2015). Stimulus triggers sham rage, a directionless motivation. Emotions meaning and directionality emerge from the brain's memory library.

 

 

We appreciate the careful consideration of our paper, the constructive feedback, and the encouragement of our work. 

 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

After a thorough review of the article, it's evident that the connection to quantum theory is not sufficiently substantiated. The current form of the article would benefit from major revisions to strengthen its arguments and to provide a more robust foundation for its claims.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

The English level of the provided text can be characterized as "advanced" or "professional". It is structured coherently and employs a formal tone suitable for academic or professional correspondence.

Author Response

In the following, we will show that competition and conflict in stressed populations can be traced back to a fundamental principle of physics. 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The paper proposes the idea of psychological spin which can help better explaining the nature of emotions and their role in understanding consciousness. The paper is interesting and well-written. It contains a huge amount of relevant references. The paper can be improved based on the following comments:

- The Authors' own work and own ideas should be better emphasized, especially in the Introduction.

- A takeaway message of the paper has to be put in the Conclusions.

Author Response

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to submit a revised draft of the manuscript “The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation representing Psychological Spin" for publication in the Journal Psych. We appreciate the time and effort in providing feedback on our manuscript and are grateful for the insightful comments to our paper. Our answers are incorporated within the manuscript, highlighted in red. Please see below, also in red, for a point-by-point response to your comments and concerns. All page numbers refer to the revised manuscript file with tracked changes. 

The paper proposes the idea of psychological spin which can help better explaining the nature of emotions and their role in understanding consciousness. The paper is interesting and well-written. It contains a huge amount of relevant references. The paper can be improved based on the following comments:

- The Authors' own work and own ideas should be better emphasized, especially in the Introduction.

We added to the Introduction a paragraph in the introduction:

P3-4: Our earlier work introduced the fermionic mind hypothesis [32], [33], a cohesive theory of consciousness. It defines consciousness as the awareness of being separate from the environment. The organism reliance on the sensory system for survival embeds the brain within its environment. Intelligent response to stimuli is possible because the brain adopts the physical laws for its operation In the following, we investigated whether the brain’s reversible perception cycle, which represents endothermic or exothermic conditions, acts analogous to particle spin.

- A takeaway message of the paper has to be put in the Conclusions.

P14-15: The Pauli exclusion principle describes the behavior of all fermions, including consciousness (particles with half-integer spin). The principle shapes matter, and leads to territorial or personal space needs in social animals. Because stress acts as time pressure, it causes contradictory tendencies to dominate. The resulting competition can explain the hierarchic social structures and the increasing inequality over history.

In conclusion, the fermionic mind hypothesis explains the physics of the mind as the wholesale adoption of the physical laws into a temporal organization. The Pauli exclusion principle outlines the devastating consequences of stress on human welfare. A better understanding of consciousness and emotions has potential applications in education, social policy, psychiatry, animal husbandry, and artificial intelligence research.

 

 

We greatly appreciate the reviewer's evaluation of our work and the constructive suggestions for improvement.

 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 4 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation 2 representing Psychological Spin

Appraisal: The topic is interesting, potentially novel. However, Reading and assessing the manuscript I found a series of “language” problems. Indeed, in a theoretical study I’m usually expect to find technical terms. For example I read that a stimulus “disturbs” (please see commentaries) and I was reading the articles that were cited. I did not find the verb “to disturb”, because a stimulus doesn’t disturb the brain rhythms. Please check the language and use specific terms.

Similarly, a more specific definition of basic concepts should be necessary. For example, it is not clear the definition of emotion.

Importantly, It is not clear the role of the arousal in the manuscript. Please disambiguate it.

Moreover, a more clear discussion should be needed to introduce the math functions in the manuscript. I found them not very well-explained.

The sections should be organized in a more intelligible way. Some concepts from clinical and social psychology are mixed with other concepts from neurobiology. In this way, the authors need to organize the content better.

The quality of the figures is not good and I advise to improve it. The tables need to be reorganized.

You can find here some specific commentaries and suggestions that can be useful to organize the manuscript.

My commentaries:

“Social temperature or arousal:” I found interesting the explanation given, but I don’t understand why the authors described it before the introduction. According to me, this information could be integrated in the introduction in order to clarify some important basic concept.

Line 30 - The intricate relationship between cognition and physics is a subject of philosophical contemplation and scientific inquiry.-  a ref is needed here.

Line 53-58 : A reference is needed. Moreover, the authors need to interleague these statements with the following ones. The connection between sub-particles and spin cannot be obvious for readers without a specific knowledge.

Line 62-66: Emo-62 tions' varied personal histories cultural, and brain activity profiles (Suhaimi et al., 2020; 63 Torres et al., 2020) represent only positive or negative motivation (Hesp et al., 2021; Kao 64 et al., 2015).- This statement is not clear. I don’t understand the in which manner the brain activity can be related to motivation, if you are writing about emotions. Motivation and emotion are different constructs in psychology, neuroscience etc. Similarly, for the Statement “Therefore, emotions function at the top of the homeostatic 73 hierarchy”: I advise a specific connection.

Stimulus 77 disturbs the brain's infra low (<0.1Hz) activations (Xu et al., 2022) and suppresses ? limit 78 cycle activity in favor of the simultaneous emergence of ? oscillations in the thalamocor-79 tical circuit (Lefèbvre, 2022).- This sentence is not clear.

“The brain ensures an intelligent response to stimuli by adopting 83 the physical laws for its operation” What about reflexes?

“In human psychology, the particle mass corre-104 sponds to emotional rigidity or difficulty to change” Difficulty to change is not a particle, but it depends by a series of processes and functions.

The term resting state needs to be disambiguated. Resting state is a concept from cognitive neuroscience applied to brain imaging.

Author Response

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to submit a revised draft of the manuscript “The Thermodynamics of Perception Forms Intrinsic Motivation representing Psychological Spin" for publication in the Journal Psych. We appreciate the time and effort in providing feedback on our manuscript and are grateful for the insightful comments to our paper. The answers are incorporated within the manuscript, highlighted in red. My direct response to the reviewer comment is in italics. Please see below, also in red, for a point-by-point response to the reviewer’s comments and concerns. All page numbers refer to the revised manuscript file with tracked changes. 

Appraisal: The topic is interesting, potentially novel. However, Reading and assessing the manuscript I found a series of “language” problems. Indeed, in a theoretical study I’m usually expect to find technical terms. For example I read that a stimulus “disturbs” (please see commentaries) and I was reading the articles that were cited. I did not find the verb “to disturb”, because a stimulus doesn’t disturb the brain rhythms. Please check the language and use specific terms.

We have changed the sentence as follows:

P3: Arousal-dependent inputs shape dynamics in occipital cortex circuitries by suppressing ? limit cycle activity in favor of the simultaneous emergence of ? oscillations (Hutt and Lefèbvre, 2022), indicating the thermodynamic consequences of perception.

Similarly, a more specific definition of basic concepts should be necessary. For example, it is not clear the definition of emotion.

We inserted in the Introduction a paragraph defining emotions.

P3: Similar to fermions’ permanent feature of the half spin, consciousness' constant accompaniments are emotions. Although there is no scientific consensus on a definition (Adolphs et al., 2019), emotions are thought of as mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. In our discussion, we will use a narrower definition, as deviations from the psychological balance of the mind. In this definition, emotions represent the homeostatic regulators, which aid in the recovery of the resting state (Peil, 2014; Wolff et al., 2018).

Importantly, It is not clear the role of the arousal in the manuscript. Please disambiguate it.

We defined arousal in the Introduction:

P3: Like temperature, which indexes internal energy, psychological temperature measures the intensity of emotions and arousal (Escobar et al., 2021; O'Neill & Schoth, 2022; Deli and Kisvarday, 2020; Deli et al., 2021). While arousal is the physiological and psychological state of the sense organs stimulated to a point of perception, psychological temperature includes the intention to respond. For example, low arousal stabilizes focus, but high arousal causes oscillating information processing, leading to erratic and arbitrary behavior.

Moreover, a more clear discussion should be needed to introduce the math functions in the manuscript. I found them not very well-explained.

We expanded the explanation of the math functions:

P4: The frequency of the oscillations through space and time is given by the wavenumber k and the angular frequency   respectively. These are both related to the total energy of the particle by the expression

(1)

where  is the reduced Planck constant, and m is the particle's mass. In human psychology, mental energy k is the ability or willingness to perform cognitive tasks, like problem-solving, focusing, and making decisions. Similarly, the energy is inversely proportional to attachments, which is analogous to physical mass.

Normalizing the wavefunction turns the total probability density of finding the particle or making a decision to one, as the mind always seeks meaning. At the boundary points at x=0 and x=B.

 

(2)

where Ψ is the wave function, representing the evolution of a thought.

The connection between the brain and body allows for homeostatic self-regulation (Criscuolo et al., 2022; Guterstam, 2015), with bodily signals supporting the sense of self. This dynamic system involves perception and response (Criscuolo et al., 2022), with a flexible organization that generates unified perception even in confusing situations (Chen and Spence, 2017). The fermionic mind hypothesis establishes this unity as a fundamental feature of consciousness and intellect (Deli, 2020a,b). Emotions also play a significant role in this system, triggering changes in behavior, hormones, and the body (Nashiro et al., 2022) to maintain a constant resting state. Therefore, emotions form subjective guidance, representing master regulators that adjust internal physiology with expectations.

The Stern–Gerlach experiment observes the deflection of a beam of silver atoms traveling in an inhomogeneous magnetic field. Thus, elementary particles behave like little magnets in a magnetic field. The so-called spin is the orientation of the quantum degrees of freedom. The spin representation of information processing follows the Born rule (Born, 1926; Don et al., 2020). Let α be an observable vector with eigenvalue  for an eigenvector from an orthonormal basis of eigenvectors {  If a system such as a brain is in state  then the probability Pr(  that  is observed for α equals  Furthermore, let B∈ ,  i.e., B is a collection of vectors that is a subset of a 4-dimensional Hilbert vector field (each vector in this Hilbert space has coordinates (x,y,z,t),t= instant in time. The Born rule for an observable is

Pr(  =    (3)

(3)

which is the probability that the particle x is found in region B in brain state .

 

The sections should be organized in a more intelligible way. Some concepts from clinical and social psychology are mixed with other concepts from neurobiology. In this way, the authors need to organize the content better.

The manuscript formulates physics analogies in consciousness science. Multidisciplinary findings from the fields of neuroscience, psychology, and social studies permit us to form a stronger argument.  

The quality of the figures is not good and I advise to improve it. The tables need to be reorganized.

We cleaned up and simplified Figure 3 and introduced a new Figure 2. Figure 1 was not changed. The tables were also simplified as suggested.

 

 

Stimulus                                                             Sham rage

 

                                                                          Positive emotions

                                                      

                                                   Stimulus                             Cortex                                   

                                                                           Negative emotions

                                       

 

 

 

 

P6: Figure 2. The role of the cortex in emotion formation Emotions' multidimensional manifestation can be separated into positive and negative conditions (Kao et al., 2015). Stimulus triggers sham rage, a directionless motivation. Emotions meaning and directionality emerge from the brain's memory library.

 

 

 

 

 

P11: Figure 3. The thermodynamic origin of spin Sensory interaction with the environment triggers the evoked cycle. The endothermic reversed cognitive cycle (top), which requires attentional focus, absorbs energy from the environment, representing up spin. The energy flow supports mental growth and parallels up spin (top right). Stress triggers the exothermic cycle that degrades mental energy (bottom). The energy flow toward the environment parallels down spin (bottom right).

P9: Table 1. Analysis of quantum cognition in comparison to fermionic characteristics.

 

Particle Type	Fermions	Consciousness
Quantum state	Wave function	Quantum cognition
Quantum mechanics	Individual particle behavior	Psychology and social sciences
Spin	An intrinsic angular momentum	The thermodynamic cycle’s direction
Pauli exclusion principle	Fermions cannot simultaneously occupy the same quantum state	A need for personal space and territorial needs
Complementarity	The context generated by the first measurement influences the next one	The context of the first question modulates subsequent responses
Wave-particle duality	The wave function collapses	Chaotic and probabilistic thoughts resolve into unified decisions

 

P13: Table 2. The thermodynamic and psychological consequences of basic emotions.

The thermodynamic cycle of cognition	Endothermic: Reversed Carnot cycle	Exothermic: Carnot cycle
Entropy	High entropy resting-state	Low entropy resting-state
Mental state	Positive emotions, novelty	Negative emotions, repetitious thinking, aggravation, and violence
Temporal orientation	Future orientation	Past focus
Degrees of freedom	Expanding degrees of freedom	Loss of degrees of freedom
Thermodynamic consequences	An endothermic cycle absorbs energy and entropy from the environment.	An exothermic cycle dumps energy and entropy onto the environment.
Consequences for the organism	Mental energy accumulation (intellect)	Mental energy degradation → insecurity, mental and immune problems, depression

 

You can find here some specific commentaries and suggestions that can be useful to organize the manuscript.

My commentaries:

“Social temperature or arousal:” I found interesting the explanation given, but I don’t understand why the authors described it before the introduction. According to me, this information could be integrated in the introduction in order to clarify some important basic concept.

We integrated the definition of psychological temperature (changed from social temperature) and arousal within the introduction.

P3: Like temperature, which indexes internal energy, psychological temperature measures the intensity of emotions and arousal (Escobar et al., 2021; O'Neill & Schoth, 2022; Deli and Kisvarday, 2020; Deli et al., 2021). While arousal is the physiological and psychological state of the sense organs stimulated to a point of perception, psychological temperature includes the intention to respond. For example, low arousal stabilizes focus, but high arousal causes oscillating information processing, leading to erratic and arbitrary behavior.

Line 30 - The intricate relationship between cognition and physics is a subject of philosophical contemplation and scientific inquiry.-  a ref is needed here.

Reference is added:

P1: The intricate relationship between cognition and physics is a subject of philosophical contemplation and scientific inquiry (Mitko and Fischer, 2020). “Is physics of the mind possible? Is it possible to describe the mind based on the few first principles as physics does?” asked Perlovsky (2016). 

Line 53-58 : A reference is needed. Moreover, the authors need to interleague these statements with the following ones. The connection between sub-particles and spin cannot be obvious for readers without a specific knowledge.

Thank you for pointing out the need to define the spin and elaborate on the physics background of this topic:

P2-3: Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that describes the behavior of nature at the scale of atoms and their constituent particles, like electrons. For example, the "spin" of the electron is intrinsic angular momentum without classical understanding (Ohanian, 1986). Fermions, like electrons, have half-integer spin values, which determine their characteristic behavior. For example, the Pauli exclusion principle affects only particles with half-integer spin, dictating that no two identical fermions occupy the same quantum state simultaneously. This principle is responsible for the organization of electrons in atomic orbitals, giving rise to the diverse chemistry and properties we observe in the macroscopic world. When electrons move around, they create a magnetic field and their interactions with macroscopic bodies contribute to magnetic fields.

Similar to fermions’ permanent feature of the half spin, consciousness' constant accompaniments are emotions. Although there is no scientific consensus on a definition (Adolphs et al., 2019), emotions are thought of as mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. In our discussion, we will use a narrower definition, as deviations from the psychological balance of the mind. In this definition, emotions represent the homeostatic regulators, which aid in the recovery of the resting state (Peil, 2014; Wolff et al., 2018).

Line 62-66: Emo-62 tions' varied personal histories cultural, and brain activity profiles (Suhaimi et al., 2020; 63 Torres et al., 2020) represent only positive or negative motivation (Hesp et al., 2021; Kao 64 et al., 2015).- This statement is not clear. I don’t understand the in which manner the brain activity can be related to motivation, if you are writing about emotions. Motivation and emotion are different constructs in psychology, neuroscience etc. Similarly, for the Statement “Therefore, emotions function at the top of the homeostatic 73 hierarchy”: I advise a specific connection.

We defined the relationship between emotions and motivation.

P3: Emotions' varied personal histories cultural, and brain activity profiles (Suhaimi et al., 2020; Torres et al., 2020) represent only positive or negative motivation (Hesp et al., 2021; Kao et al., 2015). For example, need, such as hunger or thirst, gives rise to an increasingly positive time error in the illuminance matches of objects relevant to that need (Gilchrist & Nesberg, 1952). Moreover, the expectation influences the perception (Bruner & Minturn, 1955). Although emotions are multi-dimensional representations due to personal history, social context, and the qualities of the stimulus, they can be pared down to instant feelings for or against, with a surprising analogy to the photon spin (Surov, 2022).

P5: Our emotional state is closely tied to both our physical and psychological well-being. Disruption of this balance can trigger a range of emotions, which in turn serve as a motivating force to restore equilibrium. For instance, hunger prompts food seeking, and even the elation experienced after winning the lottery represents only a temporary departure from our psychological equilibrium.

Furthermore, the actions to regain our unique, personal, and psychological balance are driven by emotions. For example, the excision of the cerebral cortex leads to violent reactions to external stimuli, the so-called sham rage, which underscores emotions energy nature, and motivational power (Figure 2, top). While our cortical memory library imbues emotions with a multidimensional and nuanced meaning, they fundamentally represent polar states (Hesp et al., 2021; Kao et al., 2015) (Figure 2, bottom).

We specified emotions' role in homeostasis:

P3: In addition, emotional clues interfere with and modify what we hear, see, or perceive (Xu & Schwarz, 2017), assuming a fundamental role in mental and psychological balance at the top of the homeostatic hierarchy (Babaev et al., 2018; Bechler et al., 2019). The resting state brain activity consumes most of brain energy (Wang, 2021), indicating its central role in self-determination (Fang et al., 2018).

Stimulus 77 disturbs the brain's infra low (<0.1Hz) activations (Xu et al., 2022) and suppresses ? limit 78 cycle activity in favor of the simultaneous emergence of ? oscillations in the thalamocor-79 tical circuit (Lefèbvre, 2022).- This sentence is not clear.

P3: Arousal-dependent inputs shape dynamics in occipital cortex circuitries by suppressing ? limit cycle activity in favor of the simultaneous emergence of ? oscillations (Hutt and Lefèbvre, 2022), indicating the thermodynamic consequences of perception.

 

“The brain ensures an intelligent response to stimuli by adopting 83 the physical laws for its operation” What about reflexes?

Thank you for pointing out this obvious contradiction with my sentence.  

Reflexes provide rapid and automatic responses to environmental stimuli, which enhance an organism's chances of survival. Reflexes are typically mediated by simple neural circuits, with direct transmission of sensory receptors to motor neurons, thus predating the evolution of the brain. Their persistence in complex organisms shows the hierarchic organization of regulatory mechanisms of living organisms.

“In human psychology, the particle mass corre-104 sponds to emotional rigidity or difficulty to change” Difficulty to change is not a particle, but it depends by a series of processes and functions.

P4: m is the particle's mass. Similarly, the energy is inversely proportional to attachments, which is analogous to physical mass.

The term resting state needs to be disambiguated. Resting state is a concept from cognitive neuroscience applied to brain imaging.

The resting state refers to the overall state of the brain when it is not actively engaged in tasks or external stimuli, including the DMN and various networks and regions that may be active or functionally connected during rest.

I highly appreciate the reviewer’s detailed scrutiny of our work and the constructive feedback, which encouraged us to strengthen our argument and the structure of our paper.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript is now ready to be published

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I believe that the authors improved their manuscript. 

Minor editing issues should be considered.

Reviewer 4 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

According to me, the authors improved the manuscript as I required. However, a language editing is required.