Radical Treatment : Wilder Penfield's Life in Neuroscience

McGill University professor and neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield (1891–1976) is famous for his contributions to the understanding of epilepsy and for his discoveries of the relationship between the structure and function of the human brain. In 1934, Penfield co-founded and became the first director of the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital at McGill University. His operations, which involved stimulating the cerebral cortex of awake patients with a fine electrode, assured the complete removal of lesions that caused epilepsy. Less widely known is his use of the same technique to localize the interpretation of language, the recording of memories, and the ability to interpret the present in light of past experience. The author follows the evolution of Penfield’s thinking from his description of brain scars at the beginning of his career to his last thoughts on the human condition.

Montreal and Kingston

McGill-Queen's University Press

2019

viii-278p.

en

978-0-7735-5928-8