PSYCHOLOGY & ME: PHINEAS GAGE

Phineas Gage was born July 9, 1823 and died May 21, 1860.Phineas Gage was an American railroad construction foreman. On September 13, 1848, 25-year-old Gage was foreman in Vermont. After a hole was bored into a body of rock, one of Gage's duties was to add blasting powder, a fuse, and sand, then compact the charge into the hole using a large iron rod. Possibly because the sand was omitted “the powder exploded, carrying an instrument through his head an inch and a fourth in [diameter], and three feet and [seven] inches in length, which he was using at the time. The iron entered on the side of his face...passing back of the left eye, and out at the top of the head.^”(from a witness that was there).

scienceblogs.com

After accident, he was in the hospital for around a year. He saw a series of doctors. People expected him to die. However, gradually he became better. First he moved. Then, he started walking. Then, he begged to be allowed to visit his parents. He went outside. He recovered well both physically and mentally. “He said he was not in pain, however he had a queer feeling that he was unable to describe.” After the surgeries friends said he was “no longer Gage”. Before he had the accident been a kind, responsible, respectable, young man. After, he was completely different. He couldn’t hold down a job. He had tantrums in which he would say the most vulgar things. He was impatient, and had the “animal passions of a strong man” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phineas_Gage).

                                                                       boston.com


                  Phineas Gage was a case study. From him, scientists learned two main things. First, they learned about brain localization. Meaning, each part of your brain has a specific task. You can lose one and the rest will still function. Gage’s friends found him“no longer Gage,” Harlow wrote. Second, this case study showed that our ability to control ourselves lies in the frontal lobe. Without it, a person has no control over themselves. Second, we learned about brain lateralization. This is the theory that left and right sides of the brain can control many different parts of your body.