I've read that a baseball player's brain performs over a hundred
calucaltions in the time it takes to hit the ball after the pitcher's
release.  What I am curious about, in general, is: in what manner are
the number of calculations increased as the number of objects
increases?  For example, a baseball player trying to find the right
plane to swing on to hit two baseballs at the same time.

Related question:  Two expert martial artists face each other.  One
suddenly has to fend off a persistent barrage of punches arriving at
approx. 3/sec.  Are the number of calculations in his brain incresed
or decreased (two baseballs at the same time is a special
circumstance, warding of a multitude of punches is something the
martial artist has specifically trained for)?  Does specific training
allow for fewer calculations or has the brain been conditioned to work
even faster?

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Request for Question Clarification by siliconsamurai-ga on 26 Feb 2005 03:30 PST

Curious, will you accept very strong evidence that your assumptions
are wrong and that your question can't be answered meaningfully as an
answer to this question??

Perhaps this link will help
http://www.ai-forum.org/topic.asp?forum_id=1&topic_id=3327


There is simply no proof that human or animal brains do "calculations"
in the digital sense, it is very likely they are much more analogous
to analog computers than digital ones and there is no meaningful way
to measure "calculations" in analog computers.

There is no particular evidence that you can meaningfully compare a
neuron with a flip-flop circuit.

There is a great deal of evidence that the human brain does NOT do the
same thing as calculating the path of a ball.

The calculation you speak of requires calculus. Does that mean that if
you don't understand calculus you can't decide where a ball is likely
to go?

If the brain did this by "calculation" then the answer would be yes,
but we all know that even a child can catch a ball.

MRIs can easily measure the amount of brain activity but there is no
known link between that and any sort of "calculation."

Only "rain man" types appear to actually do computations and no one
really understands how they do that either.

"educated guess" I'm sorry, but it takes an incredible stretch to make
such a guess and it certainly wouldn't be educated in any sense of the
word.

You are talking about artificial intelligence and that is probably the
most difficult branch of computer science.

No one can quantify the number of "calculations" made in a human or
other brain but perhaps some other researcher can provide other useful
information.

Actually Silicon, I believe the number of calculations can be
quantified, at least to some degree.  Our brains can analyze data
received through our eyes, ears, etc., to determine with some degree
of accuracy, speed, launch angle, spin, location, etc.

Now, with that much information, using physics, a person on paper
could determine the ball's path and destination. Our brains do the
same thing, but instead uses many instantaneous calculations as the
ball moves along it's path, to arrive at one conclusion.

It doesn't seem like too much of a stretch that someone can at least
make a fairly accurate "educated guess" as to how many instantaneous
caluculations had to take place to determine where to swing the bat.

Derek,
 
            Perhaps if you would accept term 'neuron firings' in place
of the calculations, you can get some estimates.
The firings can be measured, and EEG picture show pattern of activation
when you concentrate on a task.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003931.htm

Problem is that computer is simple and understood, and we can measure 
calculation in FLOPS
http://www.answers.com/topic/flops

In case of brain we can 'see' firings, but have no sure way to connect that
 with calculations. Mechanism of long term memory, which is important
when visual cortex 'sees' a ball as an ball, rather then a bird, is
not fully understood.

@Curious

I think what Silicon is trying to say is that our brains do these
'calculating' tricks like an analogue computer - say a load of pulleys
and levers.

Hence it is pointless to talk of 'calculations'
- how many calculations are done when you draw a circle using a compass ?

related question ? curious you really should break up compound
questions into individual questions to get the best answer.

That said, I hold a black belt and have taught sword fighting, I can
guarantee you that I don't do calculations during a match or practice.

What you are talking about is probably best understood as a
conditioned reflex. That is why martial arts involve learning and
practicing so many different moves and counter moves, so your reflexes
are conditioned for any eventuality.

Un-narrow your minds.  Use a little imagination.  What goes on in
nature isn't math is what you all are getting at, yet we try to
explain the universe with math. Math isn't the beginning and the end. 
Math is a way to explain what already takes place naturally and has
always been there before we had any comprehension of "math."  If
Nature could talk, it would probably say "Call it Math, call it what
you want. It doesn't matter - it's what I do."  For instance, a
scorpion knows where it's prey is without even seeing it. How? 
Vibration.  It feels vibrations with all of it's legs.  Then it
analyzes the difference between when it felt the vibrations in at
least two different legs.  From that analysis, angle and distance of
position and speed and direction of movement are very precisely
determined.  Well that takes trigonometry and calculus to "calculate".
 But no, I don't think the scorpion sat through math class.  Calculus
and trigonometry are the refinements of observations made about
systems and patterns that already exist - we didn't create the
universe with our "math".  Humans have great minds but the world
didn't begin with us.  So much goes on beneath the surface that we
don't understand.  Because it isn't proven yet doesn't mean it isn't
valid.  Some things require imagination.  Silicon I know you aren't
consciously doing calculations during your martial arts but you also
don't consciously remind yourself to breathe or blink or pump the
blood through your body.

So work with me here.  Relax. Imagine. Try to see more than what is
proven. It's an interesting topic.

You are asking for a mathematical/scientific answer to a question you
acknowledge isn't mathematical. Since you reject a scientific answer,
I believe you have posted this question in the wrong category.

Explaining or describing gravity or quantum mechanics using math is
one thing, attempting to count something which doesn't exhibit
discrete measurable events is quite another.

you remind me of the doctors who say "It's all in your head" in
response to their patients complaints of ailments the doctor hasn't
heard of or doesn't understand.  Just because a question doesn't have
scientific data, yet, to support it, doesn't mean it doesn't belong in
the scientific category.

I'm definitely on to something.  All science begins with questions and
intuition and observations.  The proof doesn't exist first.  And the
question isn't invalid just because it can't be proven right away. 
Consider it a beginning - one day this will make sense and you will
remember.