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> October 29, 1999:
Hour Two: Freud
| 100 years ago next week, on November 4, 1999, Sigmund Freud published a book: "The Interpretation of Dreams." And, love him or hate him, there's no question that his work has had a tremendous effect on the study of the brain and the mind. On this hour of Science Friday, we'll be taking a look at Freud's work and talking about what connections, if any, Freud's theories have to the study of the brain today.
Before developing his theories of psychoanalysis, Freud studied the physical biology of the brain. He wrote papers describing the structure of the medulla oblongata and other pieces of the nervous system. He studied aphasia, a language impairment that usually results from a brain injury. Over time, however, he moved from the study of the physical brain to the study of something more ephemeral - the mind. | 
Portrait of Freud by his
children (c.1890).
Library of Congress image. | 
Sigmund Freud, G. Stanley Hall, C.G.
Jung, A. A. Brill, Ernest Jones, and
Sandor Ferenczi at Clark University
(c. 1889-1919). Library of Congress. | Dreams, Freud said, were a "royal road to the unconscious." Using psychoanalysis, Freud felt, analysts could guide patients along that road to discover the unconscious roots of thoughts, wishes, and actions. Today, there are still thousands of analysts that use Freudian methods, or methods closely related to Freud's ideas, in their therapies. However, some critics have charged that Freud was a fraud - that his methods are often no more effective that a placebo in helping patients deal with problems of the mind.
What's the place of Freud's theories in today's world of CAT scans and Prozac? Some say Freud has no place -- while others feel he should be front and center. Is a dream just a dream? And is sometimes a cigar more than just a cigar? Tune in to this hour of Science Friday to find out more. |
SciFri Special: Images from "Dreams 1900-2000: Science, Art, and the Unconscious Mind"
courtesy of the Equitable Gallery
Guests:
Leon Hoffman, MD
Adult and Child Psychoanalyst
Co-director, Parent-Child Center
New York Psychoanalytic Society
New York, NY
Mark Solms
Lecturer, Neurosurgery
St. Bartholomew's and Royal London School of Medicine
London, England
Robert Stickgold
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Boston, Massachusetts
Books/Articles Discussed:
Related Links:
- The American Psychoanalytic Association
Equitable Gallery: Dreams 1900-2000 Exhibition
Sigmund Freud and the Freud Archives
Sigmund Freud: Conflict & Culture (Library of Congress Exhibition)
Freudian Links - Links to Freud related resources
American Academy of Neurology
The Whole Brain Atlas This segment produced by:
Karin Vergoth
Web producer:
Charles Bergquist
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