In 1848,a Railroad Worker Named Phineas Gage Was Seriously Injured

question 32

Essay

In 1848,a railroad worker named Phineas Gage was seriously injured during an explosion on the job.A tapered metal rod ranging from 0.25 inches to 1.25 inches in diameter and over 3 feet long entered his skull just under his left cheek bone and exited through the top of his skull.The rod was found over twenty feet away.Amazingly,Gage lived even though he suffered massive damage to the left front of his brain.His personality and intellectual abilities changed,however.Before the accident,he was respected as a smart,capable and even-tempered man.After the accident,he was foul-mouthed and bad-tempered and could not make up his mind.In the years immediately preceding his death,he began to have epileptic seizures.Explain the changes observed in Mr.Gage based on your knowledge of the functional areas of the brain.

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Definitions:

C≡N Stretch

A spectroscopic term referring to the absorption frequency characteristic of the triple bond between carbon and nitrogen atoms in nitriles, observable in infrared or Raman spectra.

IR Band

A specific frequency range within an infrared spectroscopy spectrum that corresponds to the vibration of molecular bonds, used for chemical identification.

IR Absorption

The process where a molecule absorbs infrared radiation, raising its energy level in relation to its vibrational modes.

IR Absorptions

The process where molecules absorb specific frequencies of infrared light, causing vibrations that can be used to identify them.