Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Blackmore Susan

Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Blackmore Susan

Author:Blackmore, Susan [Blackmore, Susan]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2005-03-23T16:00:00+00:00


16. Cross-wiring of the human brain. Split-brain patient P. S. was shown a snow scene to the left and a chicken claw to the right. So the speaking left hemisphere could see only the chicken claw.

In a typical experiment the patient sat in front of a screen that was divided into two, and looked steadily at the centre. Words or pictures were then flashed to one side or the other, thus sending information to only one hemisphere. The patient could respond verbally, or by using either hand.

Suppose that a picture was flashed to the right visual field. Since speech in most people is restricted to the left hemisphere, the patient could then describe it, quite normally, but if it was flashed on the left side, he could not. This showed that the left hemisphere, with its ability to speak, could only see what was shown on the right. Meanwhile, the right hemisphere could see what was on the left. This was revealed by asking patients to respond without words. For example, they could be given a pile of objects hidden in a bag and asked to select which had been seen using the left hand. In this way, the two hemispheres could simultaneously give different answers to the question ‘what can you see?’. And neither seemed to know what the other was doing. Does this make them two conscious people?



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