CGS Lecture 2
History: How to Find Out About the Brain/Mind?
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The study of the brain and mind involves the development of ideas and hypotheses1.
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It also requires the development of methods to explore these ideas1.
Beginnings - The Ancients
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The first written mention of the brain dates back to 1700 BC2.
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There is a copy of a surgical treatise from 3000-2500 BC that discusses how to treat skull injuries based on 48 cases, noting whether each case is an ailment that can be treated, one to be tried, or one that cannot be treated2.
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The Edwin Smith surgical papyrus, Case six, concerns a skull fracture that exposed the cortex3.
Medieval Cell Doctrine (199-1200 AD)
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During this period, the concept of ventricles was important4.
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Cell 1 (lateral) was related to common sense and sensory input4.
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Cell 2 (middle) was associated with reason and thought4.
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Cell 3 was linked to memory4.
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The early church focused on the nonmaterial nature of the soul4.
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A. du Laurens, a professor of medicine in 1597, referenced Aristotle in describing the ventricles as diverse chambers in the brain related to thought, imagination, and memory5.
Rebirth of Brain Science
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Andreas Vesalius of Padua (1514-1564): A significant figure in the rebirth of brain science and a great Renaissance anatomist6.
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He used dissection to study the human body and brain6.
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Vesalius claimed that ventricles are not the seat of the soul and mind and noted that animals also have ventricles6.
Modern Era of Cortical Localization
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Phrenology:7
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Founders: Franz Josef Gall (1758-1828) and J.C. Spurzheim (1776-1828)7.
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Theory: The cortex consists of 35 intellectual-affective faculties, suggesting different parts of the brain perform different functions, detectable by bumps on the skull7.
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Methods: Examining skulls of both "insane and criminals" and "intelligent and accomplished" people and making conclusions based on skull shape to determine personality7.
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Broca's and Wernicke's Areas:8
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Broca's area is in the frontal lobe on the left side8.
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Wernicke's area is associated with damage/lesions that result in speech that doesn't make sense8.
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Aristotle:
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Aristotle argued for the heart as the center for sensation and movement9.
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He believed the heart was affected by emotion, the source of blood which is necessary for sensation, warm, essential for life, and connected with all sense organs9.
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He thought the brain was not affected by emotion and is bloodless9.
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Timeline of people thinking about the brain:10
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pre-Renaissance: includes figures such as Alcmaeon, Hippocrates, and Plato.
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Renaissance: includes Leonardo da Vinci and Vesalius.
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post-Renaissance: includes Willis, Malpighi, and Purkinje.
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1800s: includes Broca, Wernicke, and Golgi.