
Bond between brain docs led to crucial breakthroughs
One vignette, about Dr. Wilder Penfield, dramatically shows his discovery of the area in a patient's brain which triggers the smell of burnt toast and signals her seizures. Dr. Penfield is credited with this game-changing advance in neurological surgery and treatment.
Quebec Globe and Mail correspondent Eric Andrew-Gee begins his excellent first book with this moment, determining to expand the record, telling the detailed story of the Montreal Neurological Institute — The Neuro — and the close relationship between 'the Chief,' Penfield, and his colleague and friend 'the Boss,' William Cone.
Mackenzie Lad photo
Eric Andrew-Gee
Andrew-Gee's intricately researched and plotted paean to these surgical pioneers reads like a novel. It traces Cone and Penfield's decades of investigation, exploration and treatment of problems with humanity's most complicated and mysterious organ.
The two met at Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia, finding 'a remarkable amount in common: they were both fatherless Midwesterners from medical families with dreams of transforming neurosurgery.'
Collaborating in learning various aspects of the art — not yet a science — from practitioners around the world, Penfield and Cone eventually gain international fame. Penfield is hired by Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital, on the condition they hire Cone as well.
The development of their differing styles and areas of study, and the inevitable conflicts which their friendship covers, make for fascinating reading. Information about hospital conditions, and specific advances and inventions, as well as insight into the politics and culture of 20th-century Quebec intersperse the narrative.
Andrew-Gee likens the pair to the 'two solitudes' of Hugh MacLennan's novel of the same name about language and relationships in Quebec and to the two halves of the brain.
Penfield, known for intricate study of what different parts of the brain do, was the head of the Institute, focusing on memory and the effects and relief of epilepsy. More generally, he searched for the human mind residing in the physical brain.
Cone was intent on patient care, from prepping to surgery to follow-up. He was obsessed with sterility (his father had died of typhoid fever caught from tainted water) and kept unhealthy hours on the job, all to the benefit of others.
As in the 'Historical Minute,' Penfield was the face of the operation, publishing and receiving accolades for the work which they shared. 'Fortunately for the harmony of the institute,' notes Andrew-Gee, 'Cone didn't care about credit.'
Cone was happiest when busy, and thrived when he served with the Canadian military medical corps at Hackwood, an English estate vacated by its baronial owner for the war effort. Cone, 'no longer Penfield's subordinate,' now led 'a hospital twice as big as The Neuro in the thick of history's most decisive conflict — and he was excelling.'
Reunited in Montreal later in the war, the two continued to new heights in the treatment of brain injuries and illnesses, to international acclaim for Penfield.
The Mind Mappers
Andrew-Gee describes Cone's increasing symptoms of alienation, while still maintaining a breakneck schedule and his closeness to Penfield.
Weekly
A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene.
Readers today will recognize clear signs of clinical depression, noticed but ignored at the time — ironically, in that centre of near-miraculous neurological discovery and development.
After the much-foreshadowed tragic end of the collaboration, Andrew-Gee includes multiple tributes to Cone which demonstrate that 'he had shown… what it means to be a good doctor.'
This chronicle of the friendship between Penfield and Cone demonstrates how relationships should work, acknowledging issues and weaknesses, while celebrating the positive and productive results of altruism and decency.
Bill Rambo is a mostly retired teacher who lives in Landmark.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Navigating the unknown
Among the many technical terms from fields such as neuroscience, artificial intelligence, applied mathematics and genetics found in this fascinating new book by bestselling Canadian science writer/distance runner/physicist Alex Hutchinson, the reader discovers 'prediction error.' It's a term that comes from studies of how the brain makes sense of the impressions presented to it by the senses. The brain doesn't simply receive sensory data; rather, it continually makes predictions based on partial sense data and feeds these back to the senses. When we get lost, the predictions we make tend to be errors. We also carry a variant of the gene DRD4 that gives us a happy endorphin boost when our rate of prediction error declines. That genetic variant, Hutchinson writes, emerged 40-50,000 years ago, 'right around the time when our ancestors began their long, multi-pronged march to the farthest corners of the globe. It was a march, the findings hinted, spurred in part by dopamine.' Associated Press files Despite the book's title, Alex Hutchinson's latest is about much more than investigating far-flung and remote corners of our planet. Appropriately enough, The Explorer's Gene will be picked up by many readers as a result of a prediction error. Judging by the title and the historic mountaineering photo on the cover, readers may assume the book is a story of outdoor adventure. So it may come as a surprise that it's packed with discussions of experiments involving social-science questionnaires, rats in cages or brain imaging. Exploration, in Hutchinson's context, can mean striding off into the unknown, conducting scientific research or even varying your restaurant selections. Should you always order from the pizza parlour you like, knowing from experience that you'll enjoy it? Or should you 'explore' the restaurant scene in case a new, better place has opened up? According to Hutchinson, the science says 'try that new joint now and then.' Hutchinson, who has a master's degree in journalism from Cornell University and a PhD in physics from the University of Cambridge, drew on his experience with Canada's national distance running team to write the bestseller Endure, on the science of endurance. Hutchinson cites Swedish speedskater Nils van der Poel as an example of the benefits of experimentation. The skater had done reasonably well with the standard approach to training, but after the 2018 Olympics tried an unheard-of training regimen that led to Olympic gold in Beijing in 2022 and world records. Supplied photo Hutchinson is a science writer, long-distance runner and physicist. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Each chapter begins with a capsule illustration of an aspect of exploration, exemplified in incidents such as Alexander Mackenzie's journey to the Arctic Ocean in the 18th century or the Polynesian voyages that settled the Pacific Ocean. One story, about a six-year-old boy who got lost in the mountains of Oregon and found his way home on his own, introduces a discussion of free childhood play as a form of exploration and the worrisome consequences of a decline in such exploration in a wired, media-fed culture. Another topic may be of special interest to readers with a lot of mileage on their traveling shoes. It's called the 'explore-exploit' dilemma. Generally speaking, we explore when we're young and have time to make mistakes and try again. When we're older we 'exploit' our existing knowledge, living off skills acquired earlier. But that doesn't mean we should give up exploring altogether. In fact, Hutchinson argues that continuing to explore helps keep people physically and mentally healthy as they age. So even if you feel too old to learn about algorithms and game theory, and even if your explorations are mostly carried out through a screen, adding The Explorer's Gene to your bookcase may help you navigate the seas of advancing age as you sail toward the final discovery. Bob Armstrong is a Winnipeg novelist who writes about his explorations on Substack @wanderingwriterbobarmstrong. The Explorer's Gene


Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Bond between brain docs led to crucial breakthroughs
Since the early 1990s, the charitable organization Historica Canada has produced over 100 'Historical Minutes,' video tributes to important Canadians across many fields and specialties. One vignette, about Dr. Wilder Penfield, dramatically shows his discovery of the area in a patient's brain which triggers the smell of burnt toast and signals her seizures. Dr. Penfield is credited with this game-changing advance in neurological surgery and treatment. Quebec Globe and Mail correspondent Eric Andrew-Gee begins his excellent first book with this moment, determining to expand the record, telling the detailed story of the Montreal Neurological Institute — The Neuro — and the close relationship between 'the Chief,' Penfield, and his colleague and friend 'the Boss,' William Cone. Mackenzie Lad photo Eric Andrew-Gee Andrew-Gee's intricately researched and plotted paean to these surgical pioneers reads like a novel. It traces Cone and Penfield's decades of investigation, exploration and treatment of problems with humanity's most complicated and mysterious organ. The two met at Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia, finding 'a remarkable amount in common: they were both fatherless Midwesterners from medical families with dreams of transforming neurosurgery.' Collaborating in learning various aspects of the art — not yet a science — from practitioners around the world, Penfield and Cone eventually gain international fame. Penfield is hired by Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital, on the condition they hire Cone as well. The development of their differing styles and areas of study, and the inevitable conflicts which their friendship covers, make for fascinating reading. Information about hospital conditions, and specific advances and inventions, as well as insight into the politics and culture of 20th-century Quebec intersperse the narrative. Andrew-Gee likens the pair to the 'two solitudes' of Hugh MacLennan's novel of the same name about language and relationships in Quebec and to the two halves of the brain. Penfield, known for intricate study of what different parts of the brain do, was the head of the Institute, focusing on memory and the effects and relief of epilepsy. More generally, he searched for the human mind residing in the physical brain. Cone was intent on patient care, from prepping to surgery to follow-up. He was obsessed with sterility (his father had died of typhoid fever caught from tainted water) and kept unhealthy hours on the job, all to the benefit of others. As in the 'Historical Minute,' Penfield was the face of the operation, publishing and receiving accolades for the work which they shared. 'Fortunately for the harmony of the institute,' notes Andrew-Gee, 'Cone didn't care about credit.' Cone was happiest when busy, and thrived when he served with the Canadian military medical corps at Hackwood, an English estate vacated by its baronial owner for the war effort. Cone, 'no longer Penfield's subordinate,' now led 'a hospital twice as big as The Neuro in the thick of history's most decisive conflict — and he was excelling.' Reunited in Montreal later in the war, the two continued to new heights in the treatment of brain injuries and illnesses, to international acclaim for Penfield. The Mind Mappers Andrew-Gee describes Cone's increasing symptoms of alienation, while still maintaining a breakneck schedule and his closeness to Penfield. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Readers today will recognize clear signs of clinical depression, noticed but ignored at the time — ironically, in that centre of near-miraculous neurological discovery and development. After the much-foreshadowed tragic end of the collaboration, Andrew-Gee includes multiple tributes to Cone which demonstrate that 'he had shown… what it means to be a good doctor.' This chronicle of the friendship between Penfield and Cone demonstrates how relationships should work, acknowledging issues and weaknesses, while celebrating the positive and productive results of altruism and decency. Bill Rambo is a mostly retired teacher who lives in Landmark.


CTV News
8 hours ago
- CTV News
Product Testing: 5 Canadian Skincare Products I've Been Loving This Month
From body oil to hand wash, I've got you covered with these homegrown finds. Skincare is one of my favourite things to shop for, and I'm always on the lookout for new heroes to add to my routine. While I regularly rotate products (it is my job to test them for you), I'm extremely selective. To help you discover new formulas for your own routine, I've been sampling skincare must-haves from Canadian brands. Here are a few of my go-tos for June. Here are five Canadian skincare products I am loving right now: If You Want Your Dark Circles To Disappear, Add At Least One Of These Eye Creams To Your Cart The Absolute Best Vitamin C Serums You Can Get In Canada Right Now This Canadian-Made Hypochlorous Acid Spray Will Be The New MVP Of Your Skincare Lineup Disclaimer: The prices displayed are accurate at the time of publication. We'll do our best to keep them as up-to-date as possible, but you may see slight changes.