Geoff Coupe's Blog

Reflections on life at “De Witte Wand”…

The Case of the Phantom Penis

As a result of listening to the interview with Patricia Churchland that I mentioned here, I discovered another podcast. This time it was the wonderful VS Ramachandran talking about transsexuals and the phantom penis. Absolutely fascinating stuff, and proof, if any was needed, that the wrinkles of consciousness, and the interplay with genes, are endlessly interesting. 
 
BTW, that link will get you to a download of the whole show. The rest of the show is also worthwhile. Listen to Steve Chu in particular on replacing oil.

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2 responses to “The Case of the Phantom Penis”

  1. Gelert Avatar
    Gelert

    This is really interesting Geoff. I know a couple of people who feel they are in the wrong bodies – not going so far as to want surgery, but just to the extent that they always felt vaguely uncomfortable, and that they had more ‘male’ or ‘female’ brains than their bodies intended. I’ve heard every explanation from the fact that the brain is indeed out of step, to a hang over from a previous incarnation.
     
    You’re totaly science based I know – what do you make of it?
     
    btw. I always knew you were my kind of guy – anyone who appreciates Molesworth has got to be worth a bacon sandwich.

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  2. Geoff Avatar
    Geoff

    Gelert – well, you know me; I certainly don’t give any credence to the explanation being a result of reincarnation. But I find it interesting that you say that one possibility is that "the brain is out of step". Why should it be the brain that is out of step? Why not the body? Or alternatively, neither are "out of step", they just don’t match. Then the interesting point is which do you "correct" to match the other? Today, our only option is to do physical surgery – i.e. correct the body. But what if we could administer some chemical/hormonal corrective to change the brain? Which would be better? I don’t know if you listened to the Patricia Churchfield interview, but she touches on some of these issues. What I find absolutely fascinating is that so many (and possibly all) of our deepest feelings and reactions can be reduced to chemical reactions in the brain. Listen to Churchfield talking about the Voles, for example. The implications of what she says are truly astounding. I honestly think that if our species lives through the next few centuries, we are going to see such changes in ourselves that what it means to be human will be very different to what it is today.
     
    Oh – re Molesworth – did you catch the end of the Phantom Penis podcast? Then you would have heard Peter Sellars in one of his finest speeches! 

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