Demonstration of dog Louisa who reacts to acoustic stimuli after extirpation of both temporal lobes / by Walter B. Swift, A.B., S.B., M.D., assistant in neurology, Tufts Medical School; assistant to physcians for nervous diseases, Boston City Hospital.

  • Swift, Walter Babcock, 1868-
Date:
1912
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Licence: In copyright

Credit: Demonstration of dog Louisa who reacts to acoustic stimuli after extirpation of both temporal lobes / by Walter B. Swift, A.B., S.B., M.D., assistant in neurology, Tufts Medical School; assistant to physcians for nervous diseases, Boston City Hospital. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    DISCUSSION. Dr. E. W. Taylor asked what part of the temporal lobe had been extirpated, and what was said in Berlin about the pathway stimulus. Dr. J. J. Thomas remarked that it was easy to train dogs to react to small stimuli, as, for example, slight movements, as horses have been known to do, all of which should be taken into consideration in judging the acts of this dog. Dr. Swift (closing) : The question of Dr. Taylor about the pathway of the stimuli is one which has not been investigated. I don’t know what it is. Little was said about it at the Ber¬ lin demonstration other than theoretical. The suspicion of Dr. Thomas is quite in order. As the training proceeded I noticed that the dog would react to slight movements of my hand, as a motion stimulus is always easier to react to than a sound stimulus. Therefore the box was used to shield the operator’s movements from her observation. Since the operations she has been blind, thus making that precaution now unnecessary. The interpretation of these results as pre¬ sented in Berlin are of interest, (a) Kalischer concluded the reaction to tone after removal of the temporal lobes to be a pure reflex—a sub¬ cortical action. (b) Rothmann, finding no re¬ action after his double extirpation, concluded it an act of the temporal cortex, (c) Professor Jacobsohn and myself concluded it was an ex¬ temporal cortical act. My reasons for this con¬ clusion are based upon the observations that action has inhibition, purpose and slowness in too marked a degree to class it as a'simple re¬ flex ; and, therefore, it must be a cortical act, extemporal.