PSYC 314T(S) Left Brain, Right Brain-The Great Divide?+
The theory of cerebral lateralization has entered our collective cultural consciousness in art, religion, music and literature, while scientists continue to question the functional significance of brain asymmetries. Some of the controversies critically examined in this course include the evolutionary evidence for lateralization, its existence in subhuman species, the neural bases for hemispheric communication, the equipotentiality of the hemispheres at birth, sex differences in the development of lateralization, the lateralization of emotions, and whether the existence of two hemispheres implies a dual consciousness. The tutorial integrates theoretical and empirical issues, using original sources. Evaluation based on 5 papers and weekly tutorial discussions. The class meets as a group in the first and last weeks of the semester. During the other weeks, students meet in pairs for 50 minutes and are responsible for either presenting or responding to a position paper. Prerequisites: Psychology 101 and permission of instructor. Enrollment limited to 10. Satisfies one semester of the Division III requirement. Empirical Project