Autonomic Reflexes:

The autonomic reflexes (...) operate perfectly well in this flesh and blood body:

• [Respondent]: ‘There are 4 brains in the human body: intellectual, emotional, motor and instinctive. Why are the all emotional and instinctive brains’ functions considered as ‘unuseful’ and the others (thinking and moving) as useful? It’s a point I don’t understand.
• [Richard]: ‘As all I am pointing the finger at is the instinctual passions and the intuitive ‘presence’ they form themselves into – and not the instincts per se – then in your ‘4 brains’ model it is only the ‘emotional brain’ which is the spanner in the works. A readily observable instinctive reaction in oneself, that is not necessarily affective, is the automatic response known as the reflex action (inadvertently touch a hotplate, for instance, and there is an involuntary jerking away of the affected limb) or the startle response.
A classic example of this occurred whilst strolling along a country lane one fine morning with the sunlight dancing its magic on the glistening dew-drops suspended from the greenery everywhere; these eyes are delighting in the profusion of colour and texture and form as the panorama unfolds; these ears are revelling in the cadence of tones as their resonance and timbre fills the air; these nostrils are rejoicing in the abundance of aromas and scents drifting fragrantly all about; this skin is savouring the touch, the caress, of the early springtime ambience; this mind, other than the sheer enjoyment and appreciation of being alive as this flesh and blood body, is ambling along in neutral – there is no thought at all and conscious alertness is null and void – when all-of-a-sudden the easy gait has ceased happening.
These eyes instantly shift from admiring the dun-coloured cows in a field nearby and are looking downward to the front and see the green and black snake, coiling up on the road in readiness to act, which had not only occasioned the abrupt halt but, it is discovered, had initiated a rapid step backwards ... an instinctive response which, had the instinctual passions that are the identity been in situ, could very well have triggered off freeze-fight-flee chemicals.
There is no perturbation whatsoever (no wide-eyed staring, no increase in heart-beat, no rapid breathing, no adrenaline-tensed muscle tone, no sweaty palms, no blood draining from the face, no dry mouth, no cortisol-induced heightened awareness, and so on) as with the complete absence of the rudimentary animal ‘self’ in the primordial brain the limbic system in general, and the amygdala in particular, have been free to do their job – the oh-so-vital startle response – both efficaciously and cleanly.
Cattle, for example, are easily ‘spooked’ by a reptile and have been known to stampede in infectious group panic. (Richard, Actual Freedom List, No. 25a, 16 February 2003).

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Autonomic:

autonomic: physiol. functioning independently of the will; esp. denoting the parts of the nervous system serving organs which control the normally involuntary functions of the body. (Oxford Dictionary).

Autonomic:

• autonomic or autonomical (adj.): 1. occurring involuntarily or spontaneously; 2. (physiology): of or relating to the autonomic nervous system; 3. (botany): also: autonomous (of plant movements) occurring as a result of internal stimuli; (adv.): autonomically. ~ (Collins English Dictionary).

• autonomic (adj.): relating to or controlled by the autonomic nervous system; [e.g.]: “autonomic reflexes”; (synonym): involuntary (controlled by the autonomic nervous system; without conscious control); [e.g.]: “involuntary muscles”; “gave an involuntary start”. ~ (Princeton’s WordNet 3.0).

• autonomic (adj.): 1. (a.) of, relating to, or controlled by the autonomic nervous system; (b.) occurring involuntarily; automatic: an autonomic reflex; 2. resulting from internal stimuli; spontaneous; (adv.): autonomically. ~ (American Heritage Medical Dictionary).

• autonomic (adj.): 1. autonomous; 2. of, pertaining to, or controlled by the autonomic nervous system; 3. (biology): internally caused; spontaneous; (adv.): autonomically. [1825-35; from auto-, Greek, combing form of autós, ‘self’ + -nom(y), a combining form meaning ‘distribution’, ‘arrangement’, ‘management’; e.g.: astronomy; economy; taxonomy; from Greek -nomia, combing form of Greek nómos; akin to némein, ‘to manage’, ‘control’ + -ic, suffix meaning of, relating to, or characterised by, from Old French -ique, from Latin -icus and Greek -ikos]. ~ (Webster’s College Dictionary).

Reflexive:

reflexive (adj.): of or relating to a reflex; viz.: an involuntary response to a stimulus; an unlearned or instinctive response to a stimulus. ~ (American Heritage Dictionary).

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