
H. M., an Unforgettable Amnesiac, Dies at 82 - kalvin
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/05/us/05hm.html
======
kalvin
This is kind of like finding out who Deep Throat is-- H.M. is in every psych
textbook but has never been named publicly.

There are no (as far as I can tell) Google results for his name that predate
his death. (! I would have said this was impossible...)

[http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=safari&rls...](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=safari&rls=en-
us&q=%22Henry+Molaison%22&btnG=Search)

~~~
tlrobinson
Indeed, the Wikipedia page was updated to include his real name yesterday
following the news of his death:

<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=HM_>(patient)&diff=255717057&oldid=255710373

(I'm not saying Wikipedia is an authoritative source, but it's a pretty good
indicator)

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brandnewlow
Reading this, I acknowledge that there's some measure of good that comes out
of being able to advance our understanding of how the brain works.

At the same time, the whole enterprise, a failed surgery leading to a life
spent as a guinea pig, strikes me as very sad. How many of these scientists
secretly thanked the heavens that this guy lost out on a normal life so they
could further their own work?

How was he able to give consent to all this research without the ability to
form new memories?

I think we need to keep studying the world and pushing along our understanding
of it, I just hope we never stop asking these sorts of questions along the way
to keep ourselves human.

~~~
mechanical_fish
_How was he able to give consent to all this research without the ability to
form new memories?_

The same way any mentally-incapacitated patient consents to treatment: They or
the courts appoint a relative or a guardian to hold medical power-of-attorney,
and that person as well as the patient must consent to treatment.

Meanwhile, I'm not about to defend the ethical standards of mid-20th-century
brain surgeons, but I will point out that H.M.'s surgeon was hardly operating
outside the norms of his time: H.M. had epilepsy, which is a pretty scary
disease; understanding of the brain was really poor, and psychosurgery was all
the rage. Far more awful things were done in the 1950s and earlier. If you
ever want to experience the real-history equivalent of a vampire film, google
up the wikipedia entry on _Rosemary Kennedy_ (or, related: _Walter Freeman_
and/or _transorbital lobotomy_ ). Warning: I had nightmares for a couple of
weeks. Seriously.

~~~
brandnewlow
I don't know that I've got the fortitude to look into it just now. I once
almost feinted at the wheel while listening to a truly horrifying NPR piece
called "my lobotomy."
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5014080>

And yes, by all accounts this was a case of people making the best of a
bizarre situation. And I truly do hope that tangible good comes out this
research if it has not already, beyond simply "we got a little smarter" which
I find unsatisfying personally.

~~~
mechanical_fish
_I truly do hope that tangible good comes out this research_

No need to hope. I'm sure the H.M. case, once it became widely publicized
among a new generation of doctors, did a lot to help discredit psychosurgery.
Even without listening to your NPR piece (which I will _not_ do :) I'm pretty
sure that that's a good thing.

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randomwalker
This was a bit of an emotional moment for me. I'm not an amnesiac, but my
memory is unusual, so I have a great interest in the research on the subject.

I just registered <http://henrymolaison.com> . I'm using it to post links to
new info. about the guy. Anyone want to help out? It's wordpress, so I can
easily give you an account.

~~~
tlrobinson
I'm curious how your memory is "ususual", if you want to share. Or not, that
would be understandable.

~~~
randomwalker
Be happy to if you send me a private email.

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jeroen
If the title doesn't ring any bells (it didn't for me): _... He developed a
syndrome neurologists call profound amnesia. ... As a participant in hundreds
of studies, he helped scientists understand the biology of learning, memory
and physical dexterity, as well as the fragile nature of human identity._

~~~
robg
Also, H.M. is the main scientific basis for the movie Memento.

~~~
lacker
In fact Memento is pretty much the only movie that treats amnesia
scientifically. In movies, when you get amnesia you forget who you are, but
after that you are able to function normally. This almost _never_ happens in
the real world, and when it does it is usually psychological rather than a
blow to the head. Even less realistic is getting all your memories restored
after a second blow to the head.

For more:
[http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=53...](http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=535990)

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jgrahamc
One of those great stories about patients who had a profound effect on an area
of medical science. See also: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks>

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tsally
Cases like these make me wonder where Psychology is going to get a new round
of groundbreaking case studies. All the major ones were done decades ago when
ethical guidelines were far looser.

~~~
mechanical_fish
Alas, so long as there are strokes, falling objects, cyclists (particularly
the helmetless ones), football players, chronic drunkards, Alzheimer's
patients, and wars -- i.e. most likely forever -- there will be brain damage.
Many of the world's accident victims do not make such convenient test subjects
as H.M., but there are more than enough of them for psychologists to get by.

The situation is much improved by the existence of modern brain imaging. It's
no longer necessary to cut out a hippocampus to demonstrate that it's required
for long-term memory formation.

Then there are other amazing tricks enabled by superior real-time imaging
technology. I recall a study in which catheters were used to deliver
anesthetics directly to individual hemispheres of people's brains.

~~~
tsally
Excellent point about the brain damage.

What I was mostly thinking about was studies like the Stanford prison
experiment. Studies that require volunteers to be put in unethical situations.

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robg
Thanks, Henry. We wouldn't be where we are today without you. You were an
anonymous legend if there ever was one.

------
Eliezer
A life of great importance to science. It wasn't just the idea of specialized
memory, it was the idea of a specialized brain.

