GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

River's silly Amygdala

POSTED BY: RONALDRAYGUN
UPDATED: Tuesday, January 13, 2004 03:35
SHORT URL:
VIEWED: 1480
PAGE 1 of 1

Monday, January 12, 2004 11:15 PM

RONALDRAYGUN


I work in the neuroscience field and was interested that a brain structure was brought up as a plot point in the Ariel episode. It had been a while since I last studied up on the anatomy and physiology of the brain so I ended up getting out my neuroanatomy text book to see how accurate Simon's description was.

His description was fairly close however some interesting facts were left out. First, rather than suppressing emotions the Amygdala allows certain emotions to surface. One of which is fear. People with injury to or resection of the Amygdala lose much of the ability to recognize external cues that would tell a normal person to be fearful. Another example, if Simon began yelling at River in anger she would likely not recognize that Simon is angry. The Amygdala is also a possible culprit in some mental health disorders such as anxiety and compulsive disorders. It's also possible that phobias arise from here.

Not sure where Joss was going with the Amygdala but hopefully we'll find out some day.

You look good in red.

NOTIFY: Y   |  REPLY  |  REPLY WITH QUOTE  |  TOP  |  HOME  

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 3:35 AM

IRISANNE


This is really interesting. I'm thinking about a couple of scenes where River does react with a lack of fear, and how powerful they are. Like that scene (oops, spoiler) where she and Simon are clinging to the outside of the you-know-what and Simon is practically having a panic attack and her face is full of joy.

Also, you put your finger on it when you point out that she wouldn't be able to interpret Simon's anger. Most of the time she does have that flat no-reaction to other people's emotions. It works so well dramatically, and it's interesting to know it's pretty accurate medically, as well.

Does the amygdala have anything to do with autism, I wonder? Sometimes she seems almost autistic.

I'm rambling away here. As you can tell, I'm clueless about this stuff. Thanks for this nice clear info about what that scene in Ariel meant.

NOTIFY: N   |  REPLY  |  REPLY WITH QUOTE  |  TOP  |  HOME  

YOUR OPTIONS

NEW POSTS TODAY

USERPOST DATE

OTHER TOPICS

DISCUSSIONS
The Conspiracy Thread
Sat, August 2, 2025 16:37 - 21 posts
Train Job My Old Kentucky Dinner Train Friday, November 14th, 2025. Game available as a standalone.
Fri, August 1, 2025 12:34 - 1 posts
Everybody loves a good jazz square
Sun, July 27, 2025 16:23 - 5 posts
Joss was right... Mandarin is the language of the future...
Sun, July 27, 2025 06:49 - 61 posts
Pittsburgh CSTS charity Serenity screening 20th annual! July 27th 2025
Sun, July 27, 2025 06:16 - 2 posts
Shows that you have not watched
Fri, July 25, 2025 09:23 - 20 posts
The best, and worst of movie casting
Thu, July 24, 2025 20:36 - 42 posts
Jewel State Interviewed By Katee Sackhoff
Thu, July 24, 2025 20:34 - 2 posts
Alan Tudyk Talks Resident Alien With Katee Sackhoff
Thu, July 24, 2025 13:34 - 4 posts
RIP Ozzy
Wed, July 23, 2025 15:23 - 3 posts
Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner Drowns
Wed, July 23, 2025 09:24 - 3 posts
Best "007" song ever?
Sun, July 20, 2025 19:19 - 20 posts

FFF.NET SOCIAL