Final answer:
Brain data assists in understanding personality through advanced imaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which offers a real-time mapping of active brain areas, opposed to the outdated pseudoscience phrenology that linked personality traits to skull measurements.
Step-by-step explanation:
Brain data helps us study personality by using brain imaging techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), rather than analyzing fingerprints or examining hair samples.
An early pseudoscience that attempted to link personality traits with cranial features was phrenology, developed by Franz Gall.
However, unlike phrenology, today's neuroscience relies on empirical evidence and advanced imaging technologies like fMRI, which maps, in three dimensions, active brain areas during specific tasks, providing valuable insights into the neural correlates of personality.