GBH Openvault
Psychology One; What The Brain Does
Part of From the Vault. Part of The Edwin G. Boring and Hanns Sachs Collection.
11/14/1956
This series (of 38 programs) presents Dr. Edwin Boring's famous psychology course which he teaches at Harvard. He gives the basic facts and principles necessary to uncover man's awareness, thought and behavior. Stress will be placed on the biological development of these phenomena and the role of heredity and learning in determining human abilities and human efficiency. Courtesy of Thirteen/WNET New York and WGBH Boston Dr. Boring reminds his audience that Psychology One is a course, which looks ahead on other things. He shows a model of the brain and explains the levels of the brain: cortical, thalamic, medullar, and spinal. Then he talks about the centers of the brain and their projections: motor, touch, vision, hearing, and frontal. Three more diagrams are shown, including a topological projection of the areas of brain responsible for face, tongue, hand, arm, trunk. Dr. Boring explains the visual cortex, right/left side of the brain. Then he shows linear projection of the front and back of the brain, and explains equipotentiality and mass action, when different parts of brain can learn to compensate for injured parts and more brain produces better functioning. He focuses on the frontal lobe and tells a story of Phineas P. Gage, who had injured his frontal lobe in a quarry incident, but did not lose functions of the brain. Lobotomy - cutting through the lobe. Experiments with animals showed that without parts of the front lobe, they lose the ability to plan ahead. He concludes his lecture with the explanation of the encephalization, corticalization, specific projections, and unilateral dominance. Summary and select metadata for this record was submitted by The Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute.
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- Series
- Psychology One
- Program
- What The Brain Does
- Series Description
This series (of 38 programs) presents Dr. Edwin Boring's (Harvard University) famous psychology course which he teaches at Harvard. He gives the basic facts and principles necessary to uncover man's awareness, thought and behavior. Stress will be placed on the biological development of these phenomena and the role of heredity and learning in determining human abilities and human efficiency. Series release date: 10/3/1956
- Program Description
This series (of 38 programs) presents Dr. Edwin Boring's famous psychology course which he teaches at Harvard. He gives the basic facts and principles necessary to uncover man's awareness, thought and behavior. Stress will be placed on the biological development of these phenomena and the role of heredity and learning in determining human abilities and human efficiency.
- Duration
00:28:51
- Asset Type
Broadcast program
- Media Type
Video
- Subjects
- Equipotentiality
- Boring, Edwin G.
- Gage, Phineas P.
- Human Brain
- Lobotomy
- Visual Cortex
- Psychology
- Mass Action
- Genres
- Educational
- Topics
- Psychology
- Contributors
- Stevens, Joseph C. (Other (see note))
- Pray, Leonard C. (Other (see note))
- Harvey, Frank (Engineer)
- Richardson, Arthur (Engineer)
- Rice, Roger W. (Other (see note))
- Hollander, Lilly (Other (see note))
- Sisson, Thomas K. (Producer)
- Gardner, Elizabeth (Other (see note))
- Messenger, Lawrence J. (Other (see note))
- Davis, David M. (Director)
- Lovell, Edgar (Other (see note))
- Boring, Edwin (Host)
- Pierce, William W., III (Narrator)
- Busiek, William S. (Sound)
- Prodan, Peter (Other (see note))
- Publication Information
- Courtesy of Thirteen/WNET New York and WGBH Boston
- Citation
- Chicago: “Psychology One; What The Brain Does,” 11/14/1956, GBH Archives, accessed April 24, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_615DF936D24544D8B22261D0C4AD06DD.
- MLA: “Psychology One; What The Brain Does.” 11/14/1956. GBH Archives. Web. April 24, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_615DF936D24544D8B22261D0C4AD06DD>.
- APA: Psychology One; What The Brain Does. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_615DF936D24544D8B22261D0C4AD06DD