In certain cases of intractable epileptic seizures, part or all of the corpus callosum is cut to prevent a seizure that originates in one hemisphere from spreading into the other and causing generalized convulsions. This operation, first performed in the early 1940s, alleviates seizures. Remarkably, split-brain patients, once they’ve recovered from the surgery, are inconspicuous in everyday life. They see, hear, and smell as before, they move about, talk, and interact appropriately with other people, and their IQ is unchanged. They have their usual sense of self and report no obvious
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