Neuro-Reform: Could Brain Enhancement Build Character? | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Health and Wellness

Neuro-Reform: Could Brain Enhancement Build Character?

Part 1 of 3.

152
Neuro-Reform: Could Brain Enhancement Build Character?
Games Radar

What do psychopaths, people with ADHD, schizophrenics, people with borderline personality disorder, alcoholics, and people addicted to cocaine, opiates, or heroin have in common?

1. An unfortunate lack of self-control or empathy, often costly to themselves and to society.

2. An unfortunate lack of gray matter in their brain's "control center," the prefrontal cortex.

Behind your forehead sits a part of the brain called the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which makes you an empathetic and rational person. It is nicknamed the "CEO of the brain," because it is responsible for planning, decision-making, organization, regulating emotions and impulse control. For instance, if you have problems with procrastination, you can blame a failure of your PFC to overcome your brain's emotional reward system.

The PFC's claim to fame is being the part that teenage brains have not developed yet, even though 95 percent of the teenage brain has been fully grown since age six. Incomplete PFC development is why teenagers have such a bad reputation, making them struggle more than other people do with narcissism and impulsiveness.

More importantly, the PFC is responsible for keeping aggressive impulses in check, which is why some have called in the brain's "guardian angel." So when people have poor PFC functioning, it can cause much much more serious problems:

"[M]urderers showed significantly poorer functioning of the prefrontal cortex ... Reduced prefrontal functioning can result in a loss of the ability of this part of the brain to control … aggressive feelings. Prefrontal damage also encourages risk-taking, irresponsibility, rule breaking, emotional and aggressive outbursts, and argumentative behavior that can also predispose to violent criminal acts. Loss of self-control, immaturity, lack of tact, inability to modify and inhibit behavior appropriately, and poor social judgment could predispose to violence as well. This loss of intellectual flexibility and problem-solving skills, and reduced ability to use information provided by verbal cues can impair social skills essential for formulating nonaggressive solutions to fractious encounters. Poor reasoning ability and divergent thinking that results from prefrontal damage can lead to school failure, unemployment, and economic deprivation, thereby predisposing to a criminal and violent way of life."

People with denser PFCs are better at understanding others' feelings and perspectives, a trait known as "cognitive empathy." As I described last August, a small brain is the reason you can't love everyone. Perhaps I should have been more specific back then: a small PFCis the main reason you can't love everyone, since those with small PFCs cannot maintain large social networks. People with bigger PFCs are more socially competent — they are better at understanding and predicting others' behavior.

Damage to the PFC impairs social, moral and harm judgment, as shown by the story of railroad worker Phineas Gage. In 1848, a tamping iron flew up through his jaw and out the top of his head. He survived, but the tamping iron changed his personality by damaging his PFC. After the incident he "uttered 'the grossest profanity' and showed 'little deference for his fellows.'"

The link from PFC function to self-control has been experimentally confirmed in modern times. Using magnetic stimulation to enhance the PFC can reduce cravings for nicotine and cocaine, while using magnetic stimulation to disrupt the PFC can cause risk-taking behavior and prevent good reputation-building abilities. Scientists are currently looking into magnetic PFC stimulation as a way to treat drug addiction.

Having a big, dense, healthy PFC generally makes you better at life — better at doing any given task, resisting temptation and being understanding to others. The reverse is also true: those who are generally poor at life have smaller, less dense, unhealthy PFCs.

The potential for any medical treatment or device that can enhance this part of the brain cannot be overstated. It could be used to help rehabilitate criminals, addicts and the mentally ill. It could be used to enhance the performance of people in almost any kind of work, from nurses and salespeople to researchers and politicians. It could be used for personal character improvement. Arguably, it could be taken even further, since most societal problems can be attributed to people either acting impulsively or not caring enough about others.

Some people might be unwilling to alter or improve their bodies using technology, with objections along the lines of "It wouldn't be natural" or "Trying to 'fix' people would take away their free will." But the brain always tries to alter and improve itself by adapting to new situations. There is no such thing as an unaltered brain. The "unnatural" objection can be dismissed because "natural" does not mean "good" in any sense of the word. Finally, the "free will" objection backfires completely: because your PFC is responsible for self-control, increasing its capabilities would give you more free will.

While all of this lofty description would be useless if enhancing the PFC is unethical, impossible, dangerous or even simply impractical, there are plenty of feasible methods to enhance the PFC. They could become widely available with enough demand to motivate development of the technology.

Increasing the neural activity and gray matter volume of the prefrontal cortex — by using vitamin supplements, prescription medicine, electrical or magnetic stimulation, gene therapy, genetic modification or anything else that would work — would improve people by increasing their self-control and cognitive empathy.


The next articles in this series will explore a few of the different ways to practically implement this idea.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Adulting

18 Things I Want To Do Now That I'm 18

I'm technically an adult, so I'm legally required to live a little, right?

955
Happy Birthday Cake

For the entirety of my high school career, I was always seen as the goody-two-shoes. I never got in trouble with a teacher, I kept stellar grades, and when I wasn't doing extracurricular activities, I was at home studying. Even when I did go out, it was usually with a bunch of fellow band geeks. The night would end before 11:00 PM and the only controversial activity would be a fight based on who unfairly won a round of Apples-to-Apples when someone else clearly had a better card (I promise I'm not still holding a grudge).

Now that I'm officially an adult, I want to pursue some new things. I want to experience life in a way that I never allowed myself to do prior to entering college. These are the years that I'm supposed to embark on a journey of self-discovery, so what better way to do that than to create a bucket list?

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

10 Life Lessons from Christmas Classics

The holiday classics that shaped my life

574
10 Life Lessons from Christmas Classics
Flickr

The holiday season is full of stress, debt, and forced conversation. While we rush through the month of December, it's important to take a step back and enjoy the moments before they're gone. Most families love to watch Christmas movies, but these beloved films provide more than entertainment. Here are 10 life lessons that I've learned from the holiday classics we watch every year.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

15 Mind-Bending Riddles

Hopefully they will make you laugh.

199665
 Ilistrated image of the planet and images of questions
StableDiffusion

I've been super busy lately with school work, studying, etc. Besides the fact that I do nothing but AP chemistry and AP economics, I constantly think of stupid questions that are almost impossible to answer. So, maybe you could answer them for me, and if not then we can both wonder what the answers to these 15 questions could be.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

Most Epic Aurora Borealis Photos: October 2024

As if May wasn't enough, a truly spectacular Northern Lights show lit up the sky on Oct. 10, 2024

20561
stunning aurora borealis display over a forest of trees and lake
StableDiffusion

From sea to shining sea, the United States was uniquely positioned for an incredible Aurora Borealis display on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, going into Friday, Oct. 11.

It was the second time this year after an historic geomagnetic storm in May 2024. Those Northern Lights were visible in Europe and North America, just like this latest rendition.

Keep Reading...Show less
 silhouette of a woman on the beach at sunrise
StableDiffusion

Content warning: This article contains descriptions of suicide/suicidal thoughts.

When you are feeling down, please know that there are many reasons to keep living.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments