The Passion of Phineas Gage

On this day in 1848 Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman was severely wounded in an accident. He survived a large iron rod thrust entirely through his head, although he suffered severe damage to his brain.

The dramatic changes in his personality forced a reassessment of what could be considered the mind and its relationship to the brain.

A process of evaluation that continues to this day.

Here’s a great little video on Mr Gage. It doesn’t go into the scientific consequences, but it sets the stage of weirdness and hints and what would follow…