Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1895-06-06


! petinite knowledge has rccently been
acquired regarding the anatomy Of the hui
| man mind Ii Is now understood, with
fair degree Of accuracy, where and how
ideas of various kinds originate In differ
ent parts Of the 81 called gray matter,
Tho organ of thought has been divided
up into sections, as II werc, which are SOW
orally responsible for the cnatlon of ideas
and images of many classes, Certain arV,s
| VI brain surface aro rC>cogniEcd rs control,
ling vision, hearing, taste, smell and yo.
cal Speech while others govern the muscu.
| lar mechanism " the body, IL you move
! your big too you dtr>ct Its motion by or.
ders conveyed from point ot tho cerebral
cortex directly beneath the very middle OF
tho top Of the skull
At tho University Of PENNSYLVANIA I'm.
portant work In this limo " scientific re-
search Is hntng carried ON undor tho dirco.
tion ot Dr, lightner Witmcr, Hc has
laboratory fitted up With all sorts Of queer
| looking machinery far finding out how
long II takes people to think, to see, ~
hear TO feel, TO distinguish rolors and
other such things, There arr models of
! brains, which ono may take apart and put
, together again rs IL they were Chinese pug-
! zleS.
/ Most OF tho knowledge thus obtained
/ has been got by studying tho brains Of low
! or animals, chiefly dogs and monkeys II
does not always follow that Whit Is true of
! u monkey IL true = man, and scientists
| have been led into good many errors by
assumptions of that Kind, Unfortunately
! II Is not practicable to mako experiments
upon living human brains, save in oxcep-
| tional eases whoro surgical operations have
! To I've performed ON them. But IL Is very
easy to remove u portion of the skull of n
monkey and to observe how the hos,sts, acts
! when MISUNDERSTANDING Is usually
employed for the purposois applied to ono
! portion or another Of tho surface,
Acquaintance with tho 50 called motor
areas has become so accurate that disease
! OF II part Of the brain can usually ho Ia,
! Gated with eNaCtneSs hy observation of tho
muscles Of tho body. An abnormal wlgglo
! of tho big toe would lead the physician Ia
look for trouble IN the middle of tho top
! of tho head Maybe thcre would hn no
euro for IL, and then again perhaps some
! thing might bo done II II were asoor-
tanned that tho patient had received u blow
! there. 1t might hc Imagined that frac-
/ turo previously unsupported had occurred,
causing pressure on tho brain, In that
case relief would probably ho obtained by
! trOphning.
An interesting instance on record IL
that of girl who was suddenly seized
with paralysis of ono side OF tho face, ne
compuniod by loss OF power of speech
Within three or four days the paralysis
passed downward from tho arm to the
body and finally to the log ON tho Same
side, II was decided by the doctors that
tho symptoms Indicated u brain hemor
I rhage up tho ilssure Of Rolando and inroly
/ Ing tho areas corresponding to tho arm
and leg. Tho girl died, aud II post NOR
tom examination disclosed tho fact that
| this was exactly what had occurred
Tho fssure of Rolando runs across the
! top Of tho head from side to sldo and nj,
most from car to ear In and about II are
located tho most important motor arons
which govern tho muscular movements of
tho body. Tho highest point corresponds
To tho too, Following tho ilssuro down tho
side Of tho head toward tho ear comes tho
leg, next tho arm and finally tho face.
That portion which represents the faoo IL
much moro highly Authenticated, q,
split up into great many smaller areas.
| Thanks 10 this arrangement, ono Is able
/ to wary ouo's countennnoc with mn almost
infinite play of expression, every little
muscle being under rondy control
Close by and associated with tho area
representing tho face Is that of vocal
| speech. This lnttor nroa Ia SO highly differ.
cntiatcd TINT oaGh letter and numernl
seems to possess its own special tract.
! There IL u case on record Of man who
! forgot the letters b, l., q, Hand and tho
numerals, &, 7 and \. In other respects ho
was all right. But no could not rend be-
) cause tho lpttors mentioned were unknown
to him. OF course no could not write
either. llo was unable To add 3 and he.
cause g was unknown TO him. When no
I tried to write out tho word "slx, ho
could only get as far AZ tho first two lot
! tors innsmuch as *" was forgotten,
People remember things In different
ways, according To tho habit of tho indi.
vidual For example, you nsk ono man
when Columbus discovered America, and
no will reply li02 promptly, having vla-
ual picture Of the figures forming that
date In his mind. But another person will
| recall tho date not In that manner Mt all,
] but by sound. In tho lattcr case IL may
| DO tho ccntcrs Of hearing TINT furnish tho
memory, but it Is moro likely To be those
| Of vocal speech Tho best spoilers arc Wis
ualists. They sec mental pictures Of
words, spelling them by reading them Off
as II from blackboard Lots Of folks
hayo no such pictures at NIL Most Of thcm
seem 20 depend chiefly II not wholly, upon
| tho habit Of using tho letters and syllnbles
4 In certain forms Of speaking
Tho part or the brain belonging TO and
representing oach sense--seeing, hearing
/ or what not---socms 10 be n complete little
! brain In itself A banker Of frankfort
lost tho use Of his yislinl brain for pur'
poses ~ memory and was Obliged TO begin
! like child and train his auditory brain.
! The orator whose words pour out In IN
eloquent food, ~ IL self inspired, possesses
centers Of vocal speech which are highly
/ developed, constituting In themselves u
/ brain capable Of doing It's own thinking,
/ as IL were New York World