No, the person's mind, that is, the part of you that is you (not your brain, but housed inside of it so to speak - think Descartes here) is transformed/reformatted into a program/avatar and then uploaded into the Matrix or Construct.

The scientific explanation I would be most likely to accept is the fact that neurons in our brains send information via electrical impulses, i.e firing of the synapses.  I would assume these signals are able to be interpreted by the programs that run the jack-in chairs.  Granted these would have to be fairly complicated programs as they have to take the environment of the matrix, what we are "seeing" and "feeling" and "upload" it into our minds then take the reactions our brains are telling we should have and convert it to the actions our RSI's are taking.

.....kind of like when morpheus says its "the mental projection of your digital self"? so the mind sends (projects) a digital representation of what we are doing into the matrix?

OK THIS IS THE EXPLINATION OF HOW IT WORKS!  

Almost exactly right on Voltemort, think of it like this.

Right now you are looking at a computer screen, and maybe have some music going. Soo right right now you're eyes are transimitting a signal to your brain telling the brain what it is seeing. Then the brain interprets this signal and it makes a picture out of it. The same happens with our ears. The ears send the electrical impulse signal to your brain telling the brain what it is hearing. The brain then interprets the signal and makes a sound out of it.

The same works for all your other senses as well. IE, touch, taste, and smell.

Now let's say... what if you could block all those eletrical impulses that are going to your brain. Soo while your body is trying to send signal to your brain, it is blocked off and the signals are not going through.

Now your brain isnt getting any signals..so it is just sitting there.

Now what if we operated on your brain, thus making the jack on the back of your neck. This would allow us to take a long needle almost like a TV cable wire and plug it into the back of your head. And just like with a tv, the cable sends impulses to your head. Telling it what it sees, and hears. But also what it tastes, smells, and feels.

just like how a tv is recieving eletrical signals, and then those signals are converted into a picture and sound on the screen. The same thing will happen in your head.

So, You just created artificial sensory feelings. So you could be siting in your chair in the real, but all your senses are saying we're in the ocean.

Your brain would then project all the necessary images, smells, sounds, feelings (ie touch), and tastes given on what the signals are saying it feeling and it would be like you are in the ocean.

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this explains how you feel and see the matrix. But how do you interact with it?

Well Our brain in normal circumstances sends a signal back down to all your muscles and eyes,  all your body parts pretty much. Saying what it should do. Like right now My brain is telling my fingers to type.

But lets say once again there is a block. Your brain does not receive any messages from the rest of your body. But it also cannot SEND any messages to the rest of your body.

And just like cable, where you order a movie on demand, or a pay per view special. You tv sends a signal back to the original destination of where the input signal is coming from. And when the signal reaches back to  "the source" , "the source" then sends the pay per view back to your tv.

Now let's put this in matrix terms. Soo the matrix is sending you signals telling you what your senses are feeling and so forth. But then Your brain says ok legs, we're in the ocean, So let's swim. But your REAL legs dont being to swim. That brain signal saying "legs swim" is rerouted and is sent to your RSI (in the matrix) and you begin to swim in the matrix.

Your brain then says look around, and you RSI gets the signal to use the RSI's eyes and head and neck muscles to look around. Just as if you were doing it in the real. then based on what your eyes see and you feel when turning your neck in the matrix, the signal of what you feel and see are sent back into your brain. And the brain interprets that signal and makes the image of what the RSI eyes saw and the sensory image of your neck turning.

Now with these two things combined you are fully submerged in the Matrix. All your sensations and actions are being diverted from your body to a cable which then relays it to your RSI body and then back to your brain in the real.

and just like in a computer game like mxo, everyone else is jacked into the same video game and server that you are. thus you see and can interact with eachother.

I hope you understand that. If not tell me what you dont understand and I'll try to clear it up for you.

ALSO your RSI in the matrix is indeed a mental projection of your digital self.

EDIT: so your RSI is in the matrix server. and that is what the signals are going to and from.

I think im getting it Mercio.....so the brain also sends out what its feeling, seeing, smelling, etc. to the RSI in the Matrix?

That will explain alot about how the mind is inside of the matrix....in order for the RSI to move the brain has to send signals out to

it along with the sensations.....i think the sensations are the key here......so the RSI now has the information of whats going on in the brain...

so thats how you are conscious inside of a computer program....the body isn't real but the sensations you are getting are coming in as electrical

signals from the brain because the brain is also getting those sensations from the computer, making it real....

Morpheus once said...

"What is real? How do you define real? If you're talking about what you feel, taste, smell, or see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain."

EDIT: and i think you got it Voltemort!