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2000 BCE
Trepanation
There are many trepanized skulls found from this time frame and the exact reason is unknown but it is believed that trepanation was used as a treatment for headaches, mental illness, epilepsy, or other magical or spiritual reasons.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBGTJXLmfOc -
Brain Anatomy and Physiology
Thomas Willis stated that the cerebral hemispheres of the brain determine thought and action and are completely separate from the parts of the brain that control motor functions. Willis also located specific mental functions and introduced the words, 'neurology', 'hemisphere', 'lobe', 'pyramid', 'corpus striatum', and 'peduncle' into our vocabulary. His discoveries were impactful for the future of neuroscience.http://www.millerplace.k12.ny.us/webpages/lmiller/photos/636532/Brain%20Anatomy.bmp -
Cranial nerves traced to specific areas of the brain
A Scottish surgeon, Charles Bell, establishes that the nerves for the senses can be traced to certain parts of the brain. He also stated that sensory and motor functions of these nerves are anatomically separated in the spinal cord.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAFaTaavmO8 -
Phineas Gage
Gage suffered from brain damage after an iron pole pierced his brain. His personality changed but his intellect stayed intact-suggesting that this portion of the brain plays a role in personality.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flRamGBSoP4 -
Aspirin
Aspirin is first marketed by Bayer Drug Company as a pain-reliever but will not be available without a prescription until 1915 -
Ink Blot test
Hermann Rorschach, a Swiss psychiatrist, developed the ink blot test. This involved a subject stating what they see from ambiguous pictures and the test giver evaluating the subject's responses. This test has been used to evaluate a person's personality traits or disorders but is now pretty out of practice for lack of validation of the results. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76UXSdUVuLk -
Lobotomy
Walter Freeman and James W. Watts performed the first lobotomy in the United States. Lobotomies were used to treat mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia. Additionally, they were performed on people who were considered to be extremely emotional or 'out of control' -
PET Scans
M.E. Phelps, E.J. Hoffman, and M.M. Ter Pogossian developed the Positron Emission Topography scanner, this is a machine that provides visual information about brain activity. Doctors use PET scans to monitor things such as blood flow and oxygen utilization in the brain.
