By 1868, two decades after the accident, Dr. Harlow was ready to accept the surprising message inherent in Gage’s altered personality, that the frontal lobe is linked with the personality. The incident and its aftermath began the search for a “self ” in the brain that has to do with how we personally regulate our behavior, control our impulses, make complicated choices, and plan our future. All these attributes go well beyond the basic functions of memory, motor and speech processing, and animal reflexes.
