Monthly Archives: May 2012

Come into my parlour…

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Quentin

You may be surprised to know that the psychological significance to a woman of baking a cake is that of bringing a gift of a new baby to the family. Thus sellers of cake mixes, which originally only required the … Continue reading →

Posted in Catholic Herald columns, Neuroscience, Philosophy | 58 Comments

Idea and Ideology

Posted on May 24, 2012 by Quentin

What turns an idea into an ideology? If we take a broad sweep of history we get the impression that religion is more likely to be the cause of war and bloodshed than to bring harmony amongst peoples. For many … Continue reading →

Posted in Church and Society, Moral judgment, Quentin queries | Tagged , , | 86 Comments

Explain the brain

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Quentin

If we were awarding the Almighty with a prize for the marvels of material creation we would surely pick the human brain. It is the highest instrument of rational thought and, through its marvellous operations, we can – with grace … Continue reading →

Posted in Catholic Herald columns, Neuroscience, Quentin queries | Tagged , | 51 Comments

Swaying with the wind

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Quentin

We are all very conscious of the ways in which the mores or the values in our society have changed over our lifetimes.  To take an obvious example: the matter of abortion. Go back to the 1940s and abortion was … Continue reading →

Posted in Bio-ethics, Moral judgment, Philosophy, Quentin queries | 47 Comments

Neuroscience – the second in a series

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Quentin

How hot is a bowl of water? Take three bowls: one of cold water, one of hot water, one of lukewarm water. Soak your left and right hands in the hot and cold water respectively, then plunge them both into … Continue reading →

Posted in Catholic Herald columns, Moral judgment, Neuroscience | 37 Comments