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Steven Pinker on Why We Curse the Harvard braIn What the F***? Steven Pinker on Why We Curse Parasites that Hijack the Brain The Future of Lie Detection Under the Skull of Gregory House, MD Carbs and the Food-Mood Connection Musings on Mind from Cambridge, MA 2008 The Harvard Brain from the editors 2008 As editors, we’re often asked to describe our publication. And as people, EDITORS we’re expected to be able to explain how we’ve been spending all our time. This is where things get tricky. Though it may be pretentious, it seems the title The Christine Eckhardt ‘09 Harvard Brain doesn’t readily convey our magazine’s contents. When we explain Scott McKinney ‘09 that it’s about neuroscience, we meet something resembling relief. No, it’s not a vehicle to exalt the intelligence of our undergraduates, nor something more FEATURES Editors obscene. Elizabeth Ryznar ‘10 But any amusement is transient as our audience conjures images of bubbling Lisa Roth ‘08 test tubes, electrodes, and open-skull surgery. Now we’re left to dispel something else. Sure, The Brain is about test tubes and surgery—but it also connects to an- AcADEMIC Editors thropology (p. 16), medicine (p. 29), history of science (p. 26), economics (p. 33), Roland Nadler ‘09 and philosophy (p. 18). But by then our spiel has already grown longer than the Chiamaka Nwakeze ‘08 patience of our listener and our tolerance for alienation permit. Fortunately, the same quality that frustrates a succinct description of The Brain makes the rest of our job easy. As evidenced by newspaper headlines and best- DESIGN seller lists, the study of mind seizes our attention with peculiar intensity. Indeed, Erin McCormick ‘10 no inquiry offers a glimpse into who we are and how we think quite like neuro- Allyson Taylor ‘09 science. It is, in many ways, an extension of the humanities, providing perhaps an even sharper scalpel for introspection than the armchair ever could. BUSINESS ASSOCIATE Our efforts are also in line with a burgeoning program on campus to pro- Mimmie Kwong ‘10 mote broader science literacy. Science may be sexy, as T-shirts urged this year, but without question the brain is sexier. Here we stir in some swearing (p. 20), STAFF WRITERS drugs (p. 2), crime (p. 9), and chocolate (p. 2) to cultivate this allure and hopefully Meghan Galligan ‘10 expose the grittier side of cognitive science. Karolina Lempert ‘09 Those familiar with previous volumes of The Brain will note some key changes John S. Liu ‘11 in the publication’s structure—in particular, a division between features and academics. While the academic section showcases undergraduate coursework, Andrew P. Oakland ‘09 we’ve tried to make the features section appeal to the English major and post- Jay S. Reidler ‘09 doctoral scientist alike. In an attempt to provoke a sort of metamorphosis in the Brady Weissbourd ‘09 way material is presented, we’ve arrived at an entirely new creature, which we’re eager to introduce to you. So grab a cup of coffee as 41% of your peers do (p. 2), and enjoy. In the spirit Volume 15 The Harvard Brain is an annual, non-profit publication of our cover’s inspiration, we hope something shocks you, or at least grants you a funded by the Mind, Brain, and Behavior Initiative few tidbits to enliven conversations and deter attractive people at parties. At the (MBB), very least, you’ll spare us an awkward attempt at describing our magazine. 14 Story Street, 4th floor Cambridge, MA 02138. Copyright 2008 by The Harvard Brain. The journal is distributed free of charge on the Harvard campus. To request a copy, e-mail [email protected]. Disclaimer: The statements, views, and opinions presented in The Harvard Brain Christine Eckhardt Scott McKinney are those of the authors and are not endorsed by, nor do they necessarily reflect the opinions of individual editors, The Harvard Brain, or HSMBB. Publisher | Harvard Media Ventures Cover, graphics, and academic design | Christine Eckhardt The Harvard Brain | 2008 FEATURES Gulp! 2 Tracing Taste The neurobiology of flavor 25 Molecular Voodoo Parasites that hijack the brain Buzzed Staying awake at Harvard 26 Symmetry Broken Of Hunger and Happiness Carbs’ role in the food-mood connection The dual brain narrative 1820 to present 29 Mind, Medicine, and Judaism 4 The Head’s Kaleidoscope Exciting advances in brain imaging A letter from Israel 6 Cortex of Steel Bulking up your brain 7 A Conversation with Hugh Laurie Winner of the Cranium Cup Criminal Justice 9 ACADEMIC Sifting Patient from Prisoner 33 BehAviorAL EconoMics | BY DANIEL DEMETRI The defensibility of the insanity defense How Homo sapiens Falls Short of Homo economicus Reading Minds A survey of availability bias fMRI and the future of lie detection 37 HISTORY OF SCIENCE | BY CHARLOTTE SEI D Criminal Cravings The Evolution of Schizophrenia as a Creative Journey Drug addiction and responsibility From R.D. Laing to evolutionary synthesis 41 NEUROBIOLOGY | BY CAROL GREEN 16 Temper Tantrum Against the Odds The complexity of parent-child relationships Gambling as pathological addiction 18 Debugging Humanity 2.0 43 HISTORY OF SCIENCE | BY MOLLY BALE S The ethics of human enhancement Marketing and Minds in the Early 20th Century How psychology enhanced advertising What the F***? 20 46 PSYCHOLOGY | BY CARINA MARTIN Why we curse BY STEVEN PINKER Paradoxical Liveliness The basis of hypermotility in anorexia nervosa TRACING TASTE Taste receptor cell Epithelium The neurobiology of flavor by John S. Liu hunk of chocolate mousse cake, neath the surface of your tongue, taste cells topped with smooth ganache and form an onion shape, sending finger-like a dollop of whipped cream, stares protrusions up through a small pore to access up from the table, beckoning you your meal, which they sense via the countless Nerve fiber Ato take a bite. You whiff the scent of cocoa, chemicals suspended in your saliva. These lift your fork to your mouth, and the flavor specialized epithelial cells rouse as they in- Contrary to grade school curricula, cells sen- blooms on your tongue. teract with the compounds harbored by your sitive to each taste are not clustered in par- It tastes good—ridiculously good. But food, discharging to relay the information to ticular areas of the tongue, as each receptor how exactly do you know that this morsel of the rest of your nervous system. cell can actually detect multiple tastes. chocolate, so-called fruit of the gods, tastes The population of receptor cells encodes In your particular dessert, the dash of so- so heavenly? How do you know that this the five building-block tastes from which dium chloride triggers the sensation of salti- forkful doesn’t instead contain some cleverly more complex ones are constructed: sweet, ness, the cocoa solids strike bitterness, and disguised broccoli? sour, bitter, salty, and umami. The Japa- the profusion of glucose stimulates sweet- The crucial discrimination begins with nese word for savoriness, umami creates the ness. Glutamic acid from the whipped cream the 2000-5000 taste buds that carpet your “mouth-feel” experienced in protein-laden binds to receptors, supplying undertones of tongue and oral environs, each one a bouquet foods like meat and cheese, and is the reason umami. If the whipped cream happened to of roughly a hundred taste receptor cells. Be- MSG is used as an additive in some cuisines. Tracing Taste, continued on p.32 Staying Awake at Harvard Faced with an all-nighter or an early morning class, s someone once said, sleep is a symptom of caffeine depriva- what is your stimulant of choice? tion. Judging by the widespread lack of Zs on campus (or at least the ubiquity of conversation on the subject), Harvard Prescription Other students scrupulously attend to their caffeine intake. Out of Drugs 8.1% 4.5% Acuriosity, we polled stimulant use on campus to see exactly how under- Caeine Pills graduates avoid that annoying symptom called sleep, especially in the 2.8% name of academics. Coee 41.5% Energy Drink Of students without a prescription for ADHD 16.2% medication, 5.7% have used Ritalin, Adderall, or a similar prescription drug to do schoolwork. Tea 27.0% Tea Need a perk, but bored with the old Daily Caffeine27.0% Consumption 40.0 Pocket Coffee, Cardullo’s $3.99: Each of these candies con- 35.0 34.6 tains a shot of espresso enveloped in milk chocolate, though we’re slightly skeptical given their size, about that of a quar- 30.0 25.9 ter. Nevertheless, they should keep you awake (and save you 25.0 some trips to Starbucks). With five chocolates in a pack, 20.0 they’re also cheaper than ordering fresh espresso. 16.3 15.0 Showershock, Caffeine infused soap, Percentage of Respondents 10.5 10.0 $6.99: Allergic to the taste of coffee and tea? 6.7 Try Showershock and get your caffeine fix 5.0 Percentage of Respondents Percentage 2.9 1.5 0.9 through your skin. With 200 mg of caf- 0.0 0123456 ≥7 feine per shower, Showershock delivers CupsDaily Caeine of Coffee Consumption or (Cups Equivalent, of Coee or Equivalent, 125 125mg mg CaeineCaffeine) 2008 2 The Harvard Brain Of Hunger & Happiness Carbs’ Role in the Food-Mood Connection by Karolina Lempert on’t worry. Come exam time, experience frequent carbohydrate cravings pect a Diet Coke to quell your longing, be- you’re not the only one eating while depressed.2 Similarly, women experienc- cause sugar substitutes don’t elevate serotonin more pizza, chips, and choco- ing PMS and people with major depression levels. Instead, reach for some fruit or whole late than your body could pos- (both conditions associated with low levels of grain cereal because the unrefined carbs will Dsibly need.
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