What Did Earlier Generations Know About the Brain? Part 2
The first part of What Did Earlier Generations Know About the Brain? was about the Old Kingdom of ancient Egypt. In this part, we get a brief insight into what two thinkers, namely Aristotle and Galen, believed they knew about the brain.
Aristotle (384 – 322 BC)
Aristotle, considered by many to be one of the greatest thinkers in world history, assumed that the brain functioned as a kind of advanced cooling unit. He believed that the brain’s main task was to cool down excess heat emanating from the part of the body where mental and intellectual activities take place (the heart). It would be a long time before this theory could finally be refuted.
Further reading: Hot heads and cold brains. Aristotle, Galen and the "radiator theory" (National Library of Medicine)Aristotle Thought the Brain Was a Radiator (Scientific American)
Galen (129 – 199)
Who first proved that Aristotle was wrong about the brain is disputed, but much suggests that it was the Greek physician Claudius Galen. Thanks to extensive dissection of apes and other animals, Galen was able to develop a new physiological system that was used well into the Middle Ages. Galen also performed advanced brain surgery, which led him to the conclusion that the psyche – or the “rational soul” – is responsible for cognitive functions such as memory and imagination, which can be traced to activities in the brain.
Further reading:
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