Brain Structures and Memory Loss: The Case Study of H.M.

In 1953, Henry Gustav Molasion , More commonly know as H.M underwent a experimental surgery to cease his epilepsy. The doctors performed brain surgery and removed a portion of his temporal lobes - the hippocampus. Little did they know that that was going to damage his memory. they noticed that after the surgery he had profound Amnesia. He could remember his past,but anything new, he couldn't transfer it to his long-term memory.


H.M is still considered one of the most interesting and helpful case studies for psychology until today. He died about 3 years ago, He was 82. Tests and experiments were run on H.M . They tried to figure out how a human learns and deals with new experiences. Scientists saw that there were at least two systems in the brain for creating new memories. One, known as declarative memory, records names, faces and new experiences and stores them until they are consciously retrieved. Another system, commonly known as motor learning, is subconscious and depends on other brain systems. Another system, commonly known as motor learning, is subconscious and depends on other brain systems.

I think that Brain surgery is a very risky thing and that no doctor should have operated until he was fully informed about the case of how the brain works. However, I can not  deny that This surgery and what happened to H.M was of vital importance to psychology and the technology and advances we have made today.


http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/05/us/05hm.html?pagewanted=all