Argumentative Essay On Phineas Gage's Injury

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A man named Phineas Gage was making a tunnel in a mountain.  He did this by drilling a hole, putting in a fuse, pouring in some gun powder, putting in some cotton, tapping the cotton down, and lighting the fuse. He was distracted and missed the step with the cotton. So he tapped a four foot metal rod into a hole filled with gun powder. The rod ignited the gun powder and it shot back out of the hole, going through Phineas Gage’s head on the way. He wasn’t killed, but his mind and the person that he was before the accident may have been destroyed. He wasn’t as reliable as he had once been, he took to drinking, and he couldn’t hold a job. His social skills were lost and he had trouble keeping…show more content…
A frontal lobotomy is a form of psychosurgery. It consists of cutting the connections to and from, or simply destroying, the prefrontal cortex. This brain region has been concerned in planning complex cognitive behaviors, personality expression and moderating correct social behavior. These procedures often result in major personality changes. Lobotomies have been used in the past to treat a wide range of mental illnesses including schizophrenia, clinical depression, and various anxiety disorders. Gage’s injury is more or less similar to the procedure in that it completely altered his…show more content…
During this reaction, certain hormones like adrenalin and cortisol are released, speeding the heart rate, slowing digestion, shunting blood flow to major muscle groups, and changing various other autonomic nervous functions, giving the body a burst of energy and strength. Originally named for its ability to enable us to physically fight or run away when faced with danger, it’s now activated in situations where neither response is appropriate, like in traffic or during a stressful day at work. When the apparent threat is gone, systems are designed to return to normal function by means of the relaxation response, but in our times of chronic stress, this often doesn’t happen enough, causing damage to the

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