Ablation: Destroying, disabling or removing parts of the brain to observe the effects on behaviour
Flourens experimented mainly on rabbits and pigeons - some of the first animal testing in brain technonolgy.
As well as successful ESB their experiments demonstrated contralateral function of limb movement. This voluntary action by the brain is now known as the motor cortex.
Used ablation to search for the location of learning and memory. He tried to produce amnesia. He failed to produce amnesia and he concluded that memory and learning was located throughout the whole brain.
Under local anesatisa he surgically removed areas of the brain that were causing epileptic seizures. He avoided damaging normally functioning area's of the cortex, then he would stimulate the area with a electrode and then ask the patients to report their experiences.
Computorised tomography (CT), Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Positron emission tomography (PET), Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
This involves cutting the band of the nerve tissue connecting the two hemispheres. Performed to reduce the incidence and severity of epileptic seizures.
