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Einstein's brain was preserved for study after his death from "summary" of Albert Einstein by Walter Isaacson
After Albert Einstein passed away in 1955, the pathologist who performed his autopsy, Dr. Thomas Stoltz Harvey, decided to do something rather unusual. Instead of burying or cremating the brain like most people would do, he chose to preserve it for scientific study. Dr. Harvey believed that by examining Einstein's brain, researchers could potentially uncover clues about the source of his genius. So, without the permission of Einstein's family, he removed and preserved the brain. For the next several decades, Einstein's brain remained in Dr. Harvey's possession, as he sought out various researchers to study it. However, the scientific community was initially hesitant to take on this unique opportunity. It wasn't until the 1980s that a few researchers finally decided to investigate Einstein's brain to see if it held any secrets. One of the first studies conducted on Einstein's brain found that certain regions, such as the parietal lobes, were larger than average. This led to speculation that these areas might be linked to his exceptional mathematical and spatial reasoning abilities. However, other researchers later questioned the significance of these findings, noting that it was difficult to draw definitive conclusions from just one brain. Despite the controversy surrounding the studies on Einstein's brain, they did open up a new area of research into the relationship between brain structure and cognitive abilities. By examining the brains of exceptional individuals like Einstein, scientists hoped to gain a better understanding of how the brain functions and what sets geniuses apart from the rest of us. In the end, the decision to preserve Einstein's brain for study after his death sparked a debate that continues to this day. Some see it as a valuable scientific endeavor that could further our knowledge of the brain, while others view it as a violation of Einstein's privacy and wishes. Regardless of where one stands on the issue, there is no denying that Einstein's brain remains a fascinating and controversial subject of study in the world of neuroscience.
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