# Science from Science Fiction
**URL:** https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/science-from-science-fiction/17209
**Category:** Conversation
**Tags:** Science
**Created:** [April 7, 2025, 8:12pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/science-from-science-fiction/17209 "2025-04-07T20:12:23Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Dan\_Eastwood](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/Dan_Eastwood)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2025, 8:12pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/science-from-science-fiction/17209/1 "2025-04-07T20:12:23Z")
From the March 26, 2025 Nature News …
[First map of human brain mitochondria is ‘groundbreaking’ achievement](https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00848-z)
> Wielding a tool _typically used for woodworking,_ the study’s authors divided a slice of frozen human brain ― from a 54-year-old donor who died of a heart attack ― **into 703 tiny cubes. Each cube measured 3 × 3 × 3 millimetres,** which is comparable to the size of the units that make up standard 3D images of the brain. “The most challenging part was having so many samples,” says Picard.
I am reminded of the following passage from [Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy …](https://esl-bits.eu/ESL.English.Learning.Audiobooks/Hitchhikers.Guide/31/text.html)
> [@](#):
>
> “Hey, will you get this, Earthman,” interrupted Zaphod. “You are a last generation product of that computer matrix, right, and you were there right up to the moment your planet got the finger, yeah?”
>
> “Er…”
>
> “So your brain was an organic part of the penultimate configuration of the computer program,” said Ford, rather lucidly he thought.
>
> “Right?” said Zaphod.
>
> “Well,” said Arthur doubtfully. He wasn’t aware of ever having felt an organic part of anything. He had always seen this as one of his problems.
>
> “In other words,” said Benjy, steering his curious little vehicle right over to Arthur, “there’s a good chance that the structure of the question is encoded in the structure of your brain—so we want to buy it off you.”
>
> “What, the question?” said Arthur.
>
> “Yes,” said Ford and Trillian.
>
> “For lots of money,” said Zaphod.
>
> “No, no,” said Frankie, “it’s the brain we want to buy.”
>
> “What!”
>
> “Well, who would miss it?” inquired Benjy.
>
> “I thought you said you could just read his brain electronically,” protested Ford.
>
> “Oh yes,” said Frankie, “but we’d have to get it out first. It’s got to be prepared.”
>
> “Treated,” said Benjy.
>
> **“Diced.”**
>
> “Thank you,” shouted Arthur, tipping up his chair and backing away from the table in horror.
>
> “It could always be replaced,” said Benjy reasonably, “if you think it’s important.”
>
> “Yes, an electronic brain,” said Frankie, “a simple one would suffice.”
>
> “A simple one!” wailed Arthur.
>
> “Yeah,” said Zaphod with a sudden evil grin, “you’d just have to program it to say What? and I don’t understand and Where’s the tea? Who’d know the difference?”
>
> “What?” cried Arthur, backing away still farther.
>
> “See what I mean?” said Zaphod, and howled with pain because of something that Trillian did at that moment.
>
> “I’d notice the difference,” said Arthur.
>
> “No, you wouldn’t,” said Frankie mouse, “you’d be programmed not to.”
>
> Ford made for the door.
😃
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### Author:  [@system](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/u/system)
#### Post date: [April 14, 2025, 8:12pm UTC](https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/science-from-science-fiction/17209/2 "2025-04-14T20:12:53Z")
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