Philosophy's loss, neurology's gain: the endeavor of John Hughlings-Jackson.
The year 2011 marked the centenary of the death of one of the founders of British neurology, John Hughlings-Jackson (1835-1911). By common consent he was a great clinician. But he was more. He endeavored to use clinical observations to throw light on one of the great problems of the modern world, the problem of mind. Hughlings-Jackson's daily contact with mentalities warped by neurological disease caused him to ponder deeply the nature of the mind-brain relationship, nowadays often known simply as the "hard problem." In particular, he saw the danger of conflating mind and brain, a danger that has grown greater with the spectacular growth of neuroscientific knowledge during the last century. Although Hughlings-Jackson's neuroscientific thought is long outdated, his philosophic endeavors remain highly instructive.
Vision Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, United Kingdom. c.u.m.smith@aston.ac.uk
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D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D008131:London; D009420:Nervous System / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D009482:Neurophysiology / Q000266:history; D010686:Philosophy, Medical