Question

It is clear that the brain is an important part of the body. One of your classmates has been recruited to be a subject in a fictional experiment looking at the functions of the various regions of the brain. The researcher is conducting the "removal studies" in order to better identify these functions. All participants has been given the choice of which brain structures she/he is willing to give up. What advice would you give your classmate concerning which three brain structures would you would recommend she/he be willing to give up and which structures to keep? Why? You do not have to remove an entire division, like the forebrain, rather it can be a one single portion of the the division.

Answer 1

Prefrontal Cortex. People who have successfully have their Prefrontal Cortex removed via lobotomy have demonstrated diminished intensity in emotions and a more stable personality. Others described their demeanour as child-like.

Left Hemisphere. Removal of the left hemisphere has been done successfully in the past using a procedure called Hemispherectomy. One case reports a five-year-old who due to seizures had the left part of his brain removed completely.

He went on to live a normal life and even developed some superior skills especially in the area of language.

Occipital Lobe

There is a case with a boy who was only 6 years and 11 months when the removal of the occipital lobe amongst other parts was performed on him. By the time he was 11, his brain had rewired itself.

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