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"Wisdom: From Philosophy to Neuroscience" (Encore presentation)

By Rich Fisher

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kwgs/local-kwgs-936244.mp3

Tulsa, Oklahoma – (Please note: This show originally aired in July of this year.) Given all the new information we've been gathering about the human brain over the last ten or twenty years --- given, indeed, all the findings in neuroscience that continue to occur in this day and age --- have we learned anything new (or important, or profound) about wisdom? Can today's astounding brain research, in any of its facets, actually help us understand what makes a person wise? On today's StudioTulsa, we speak with the author and scholar Stephen S. Hall, whose latest book is called "Wisdom: From Philosophy to Neuroscience." As one reviewer of this book has noted, writing in Kirkus Reviews: "[This is] an illuminating combination of philosophical ideas and hard research. Laboratories study intellect, emotion and ethics, writes Hall, but only recently have scientists turned their attention to wisdom, which may be defined as using all three to make a sensible decision. The author begins by sketching the teachings of history's first great wise men (Socrates, Buddha and Jesus) not forgetting Confucius's admonition that paths to wisdom include reflection (the noblest), imitation (the easiest) and experience (the bitterest). In the pre-CT scan era of the 1970s, a graduate student, Vivian Clayton, published pioneering research. Her first study, aimed at lawyers, attempted to determine if wisdom increases with age. The results were inconclusive; later studies suggested that it's important but not essential. This and her later papers produced a considerable buzz at psychological meetings, but she failed to receive research grants and left academia in 1982. By this time the ball was rolling, aided by swelling scientific fascination with the brain and dazzling high-tech instruments to examine it. It turns out that patterns of knowledge and judgment typical of wisdom appear in adolescence and don't measurably increase over time. Exposure to adversity such as war or personal loss helps, although it's not a good idea to have too much. Those searching for easy tips on achieving wisdom will not find them here, but diligent readers will be rewarded. [This book offers] a steady stream of insights into the psychology and neurological mechanisms of wise decision-making --- and the researchers uncovering them."