Just one more post, because readings for both classes so interesting

OK, starting with "Face Blind" because it was first in the book...

What a fascinating look at the way we process visual information. I had read before about how the brain works, how we process what is part of ourselves (like our hand) and what is not (like jewelry) but then how the brain can make something we're wearing or holding into part of our bodies as well (I distinctly remember this story of a rake becoming an extension of the hand of a subject). I love the opening gambit in this piece -- full of an appeal to our emotions on a very personal level. We all bear burdens in life, and this is the one that Choisser bears. It is comparable to our own burdens, and we can see ourselves in his situation. Davis does a great job evoking the problem of face blindness using both descriptions of individual cases and expert testimony on the subject. Well done!

Now, on to "The Man on the Table" -- again, I am really pleased with this essay on a number of levels. One, it deals with a very interesting person, Dr. DeBakey, who is a character of interest in his own right (without considering his remarkable recovery). And two, it deals with a number of controversial issues that are hot topics, like:

How much medical care for the old old is too much?
Who's will should take precedence in these situations, the patient's or their family's?
and
It is obvious that the staff at this hospital went out of their way to care for Dr. DeBakey, including moving him to a private room that they specially outfitted just for him and his condition. Though some people quoted in the article say they would've done the same for anyone, do any of us believe that this is actually true?