3 ms·

It seems like the reason his intellectual capacity stayed the same may be because the beam did not touch his frontal lobes, but passed through his midbrain all

by Aqueous 12y ago

It seems like the reason his intellectual capacity stayed the same may be because the beam did not touch his frontal lobes, but passed through his midbrain all the way to the back of his head, and appears to have exited near the occipital lobe. The occipital lobe is where the visual cortex is located, which could explain why he saw a light brighter than a "thousand suns." I'd be curious to know what his visual-spatial capacity and perceptual acuity was after this accident, though as a physicist he would probably rely on these systems heavily. Someone with a better neuroscience background might be able to confirm that this is why the beam seems to have left his personality and intellectual ability in tact. Anyone?

jobvandervoort 12y ago
The brain is incredibly plastic. In different degrees, it has been observed that neurons around a destroyed area mitigate the problem by taking over lost function. In addition, abstract processing in the brain occurs over larger areas (think large neural networks). It is not established how exactly. It can be reasoned that to achieve some form of thought, followed by action, multiple sensory modalities have to be integrated. For this large, spatially divided, parts of the brain are necessary. Personality and intellect are therefore likely an emergent property of the entire network, not so much restricted to the frontal lobe. It's a shame he is not thoroughly studied. I'm curious to see the actual extend of the damage. I hypothesize that his seizures are a product of plasticity around the damaged areas.
- Aqueous 12y ago
  Yes, alterations elsewhere could most certainly have an impact on personality and intellect - but certainly a person with severe frontal lobe damage suffers more profound personality changes and working memory deficits than someone who experiences damage elsewhere, correct? I'm reminded of the story of Phineas Gage who had severe injuries to his frontal lobes, and according to people who encountered him displayed poor judgment/impulsivity for the rest of his days. There have been challenges to these reports, with some saying that Phineas Gage was very functional even after the accident. I'm inclined to believe that the truth is somewhere between "Severely disabled" and "Perfectly functional," which means some aspects of reports about his personality changes are accurate.
  - jobvandervoort 12y ago
    Yep, that seems fair to say. Must note that it seems that the damage that Phineas endured was much more substantial. Considering the complexity of personality and behavior and our lack of understanding of their representation in the brain, I wonder how far we would get than this type of anecdotal evidence if given the change to investigate. Personality tests are mostly, if not completely useless.

by Aqueous 12y ago

jobvandervoort 12y ago

The brain is incredibly plastic. In different degrees, it has been observed that neurons around a destroyed area mitigate the problem by taking over lost function. In addition, abstract processing in the brain occurs over larger areas (think large neural networks). It is not established how exactly. It can be reasoned that to achieve some form of thought, followed by action, multiple sensory modalities have to be integrated. For this large, spatially divided, parts of the brain are necessary. Personality and intellect are therefore likely an emergent property of the entire network, not so much restricted to the frontal lobe. It's a shame he is not thoroughly studied. I'm curious to see the actual extend of the damage. I hypothesize that his seizures are a product of plasticity around the damaged areas.

Aqueous 12y ago
Yes, alterations elsewhere could most certainly have an impact on personality and intellect - but certainly a person with severe frontal lobe damage suffers more profound personality changes and working memory deficits than someone who experiences damage elsewhere, correct? I'm reminded of the story of Phineas Gage who had severe injuries to his frontal lobes, and according to people who encountered him displayed poor judgment/impulsivity for the rest of his days. There have been challenges to these reports, with some saying that Phineas Gage was very functional even after the accident. I'm inclined to believe that the truth is somewhere between "Severely disabled" and "Perfectly functional," which means some aspects of reports about his personality changes are accurate.
- jobvandervoort 12y ago
  Yep, that seems fair to say. Must note that it seems that the damage that Phineas endured was much more substantial. Considering the complexity of personality and behavior and our lack of understanding of their representation in the brain, I wonder how far we would get than this type of anecdotal evidence if given the change to investigate. Personality tests are mostly, if not completely useless.