Democratic Sentinel, Volume 3, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 November 1879 — Brain-Work and Skull-Growth. [ARTICLE]

Brain-Work and Skull-Growth.

The London Medical Record sums up as follows the results of some very interesting measurements of heads by two French physicians, Messrs. Lacassagne and OJiquet: Having the patients, doctors, attendants and officers of the Yal de Grace at their disposal they measured the heads of 180 doctors of medicine, 133 soldiers who had received an elementary instruction, 90 soldiers who could neither read nor write, and 91 soldiers who were prisoners. The instrument used was the same which hatters, employ in measuring the heads of their customers. It is called the conformator, and gives a very correct idea of the proportions of the heads in question. The results were in favor of the doctors, the frontal diameter was also much greater than that of the soldiers, etc. Nor are • both halves of the head symmetrically developed. In students the left frontal region is more developed than the right; in illiterate individuals the right occipital region is larger than the left. The authors have derived the following conclusions from their experiments : First, the heads of students who have worked much with their brains are much more developed than those of illiterate -individuals, or such as have allowed their brains to remain inactive. Second, in students the frontal region is more developed than the occipital region, or, if there should be any difference in favor of the latter, it is very small, while in illiterate people the latter region is the largest.