Many Minds From 'On Humans': Can the brain understand itself?
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Dec 31, 2025 
Matthew Cobb, a biologist and historian of science renowned for his work on neuroscience, dives deep into the complexities of the human brain. He discusses the historical shift from viewing the heart as the center of thought to recognizing the brain's role. Cobb illuminates the evolution of ideas like phrenology and localization of function, alongside the modern challenges of understanding consciousness. He critiques the limitations of psychiatric drugs and the ambitious yet flawed Human Brain Project, all while exploring how consciousness may emerge from neural interactions.
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Galen's Pig Demonstration
- Matthew Cobb recounts Galen's public demonstration pressing a pig's brain and stopping its squeal to argue the brain controls voice.
- The demonstration convinced Galen but changed little public belief because people still felt emotions in the body.
Anatomy Shifted Belief To The Brain
- Vesalius's 1543 anatomy revealed the brain's staggering complexity and weakened the heart-as-mind view.
- Complexity of structure helped shift learned opinion toward brain-centered explanations by the 18th century.
Broca's Discovery Of Speech Localization
- Cobb tells the Broca story: Broca found speech loss in patients with lesions in the front left part of the brain.
- That evidence forced reconsideration of localization despite earlier philosophical resistance.