Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-15
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

The face is the mirror of the mind
fact well known to artists, actors
lovers and poker players.
1t speaks wordleSs language, but a
language which is almost infinitely
varied and expressive in man. And
like the gestures of the tongue which
result in spoken words, the finely diff
ferentiated gestures of the facial
muscles which express varying degrees
of love. hate, fear and contentment
are distinctive physiological accomplish
mentS of humanity.
The extremely complicated mechanics
OF facial expression is being studied at
the embryological laboratory of the
Carnegie Institution of Washington at
Johns Hopkins University by DR.. E.
Huber. The specific problem of the
origin and evolution of mimetic mus
culature involves not only the facial
supply and the control center in the
frontal lobe of the brain cortex.
Study Made With Monkeys.
DR.. Huber's studies have been made
largely with monkeys, both by observa-
tons of the facial expressions, of the
living animals and disSections. In the
lower forms, he finds, the primitive face
muscles are practically restricted to
those required for the movement of
the mouth, ears and eyes. But IS
the observer goes up the monkey scale
he finds differentiation of these muscles
1or inner movements progressing until
IN the higher forms there are definite
expression muscles.
Among the higher monkeys which
have hairless faces considerable mimic
ing ability is found and among the
anthropoid apes the range of express
sion Is quite broad But the anthro-
poid's facial expressions are still crude
grimaces compared to those of man.
They do not express finer differentia-
tions.
There is a definite correlation, DR..
Huber found, between the evolution of
these facial muscles and the trigem-
inal nerve which carries impulses to
them from the motor cortex of the
brain, thus impelling them to action.
Mans facial muscles are controlled by
MS brain and, DR.. Huber found from
his disSections, it is the brain control
areas which are differentiated first. fol-
lowed by the differentiation of the
muscles and nerve f1bers. individuals
differ decidedly in their power of VOL
untary control of the facial muscles
from the brain. he finds, probably ac-
counting for the difference between
good and poor actors.
Expression Differs in Races.
Some races have general differences
in facial expression. from the Supposed
ly highly minetic face Of the negro to
the poker" face of the Asiastic. This
DR.. Huber attributes only in part to
racial differences in masculature and
character OF the skin. It depends pri-
marlly, he holds, on voluntary muscle
control from the motor cortex.
The grimace, characteristic of the
lower animals in expression of emotions,
still occurs in man, and DR.. Huber
considers it a return to the behavior of
a lower order in the evolutionary scale
is crude, group action of the mimetic
muscles, he holds, in distinction to
finely differentiated action of specific
muscles.
In the same laboratory other scien-
lists, using baby oppoSumS as subjects,
theoretically are able to study the
mechanics of an animals behavior be-
fore it is born.
All behavior presumably is due to
the passage of nerve impulses from the
various sensory organs over nerve fiberS
10 the central nervous system where
they are switched to other nerve fibers
which activate muscles or glands Now
before nerve fiber can function, 1t has
been generally supposed, it must be COW
cred with white sheath, or medulated,
and much of this meditation takes
place after birth. AS it proceeds more
and more nerve pathways are able to
junction and the behavior becomes in
creasingly complex.
Educated" Before Birth.
But nearly all higher animals incIud .
ing human infants, come into the world
with many medulated nerve fiberS
which make possible to reflex be
haVior" necessary for living, such as
breathing and sucking. They have been
educated" before they are born.
With the opoSsum it is different.
This newly-born creature is simply an
alr-breathing embryo compared with
other mammals. None of its nerve
hbers are medulated. Yet, DR.. o. R.
Langworthy, who conducted the re-
search, found that this prematurely-
born creature is capable of many COM
pllcated acts, such as making its way
into its mothers pouch, sucking, con-
tracing its forelegs and making side
to-side movements with its head. II
does these things three or four weeks
before the white sheath appears on the
nerve tracts over which the nervous
impulses must travel.
After 1t outgrows the state of an
''air-breathing embryo" however, the