Henry Molaison: How Patient HM Changed What We Know About Memory

In 1953, Henry Molaison (known in the academic literature simply as "Patient HM") agreed to undergo an experimental procedure where a part of his brain located in the medial temporal lobe was removed.
He woke up from the lobotomy unable to form any new memories. Scientists were puzzled as they realised that any new memories Molaison had acquired before the surgery remained largely intact.
Eventually, Henry Molaison became the most studied patient in the history of psychology, becoming the subject of endless research papers and books.
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[@Tygrochka]

Thank you for this video!!! Keep working on more interesting stories.

[@NeuroEverything]

This made my day! Thank you SO MUCH 😊

[@colinray4186]

Good on you for preserving Henry's dignity and humanity

[@NeuroEverything]

Thank you. I’m really glad you enjoyed the video and appreciated it :)

[@HanaAnah68]

I love how you treated him with the dignity he deserves.

[@trestiacugetatoare]

I learned about this in an introduction to psychology class and this was very informative. I love your humanistic approach to this. Scientists should treat people as people, not just subjects. Thanks for pointing that out.

[@NeuroEverything]

Hey! Thank you and I’m really glad you enjoyed the video and Henry Molaison’s life story. If you want to see more videos like this then please consider subscribing to the channel and joining me on this journey :)

[@shafiasyed6151]

I cried at the last part.... Psychology hw making me cry

[@NeuroEverything]

Yess that’s definitely true! Psychology is full of too many sad stories like Henry’s, unfortunately 😕

[@nextgen3277]

Your overview of both Henry's story and its scientific significance is fantastic. I've been teaching this for nearly two decades and did not know aspects of his personal story. Very important.

[@NeuroEverything]

Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it and found it informative :) if you’d like to see more content like this then check out some of my other videos and consider subscribing to the channel

[@SteampunkFiend]

Thank you for telling this story in a clear and humanizing way. It made the subject and life of Henry far more accessible than other videos.

[@NeuroEverything]

No! Thank you for watching the video and I’m glad you enjoyed it :)

[@sabrenacochran777]

Very well done! Thanks for being so respectful of Henry

[@itzhurtz1083]

Somehow it’s the other way round.... Henry’s great sacrifices comes with great achievements...

[@NeuroEverything]

I think the issue is that he *did not* choose to make those sacrifices

[@sarahmurphy6716]

wow!!! i have learned about HM in many classes but this is an amazing, comprehensive, and humanizing explanation. Thank you!!!!

[@FeistyJackball]

We owe both Henry and the Scientists who worked with him a debt of gratitude

[@NeuroEverything]

I’m glad you think so! Do you have any topics in mind you would like me to cover, by any chance?

[@DashShumilova]

Thank you for this insightful video! I am reading "Remember" by Lisa Genova and she mentions the story of Henry Molaison in her first chapter. Lost for words that one can claim ownership over another person's brain ( especially of a very vulnerable individual). Look forward to more content!

[@Nikita-cb7pf]

Thank you so much..

[@NeuroEverything]

Heyyyy! What are you thanking me for? I’m just glad you enjoyed the video so THANK YOU ☺️

[@morganolivia3841]

This was a great presentation. Poor Henry, that Suzanne Corkins sounds like a quack.

[@NeuroEverything]

Thank you! Super glad you enjoyed the video ♥️

[@NightSkyStar2005]

I Feel Sad For Henry 😭

[@NeuroEverything]

Same! I think that was the reason why I made this video… Henry deserved so much more :/

[@nancygould9478]

Well done, thank you, so much to think about.

[@ConsciousConversations]

5:44 I adore you for this💙💙💙 Thank you

[@aniismyname2448]

Thank you very much for this video and your humanistic approach! While watching this video I have a question and i would be happy, if someone could answer it: so, he still had his memories from the past (LTM), does it mean, that he was able to understand, that he had surgery?

[@NeuroEverything]

I’m glad you enjoyed the video! To answer your question: Yes, Henry’s long term memory was largely intact. However, he was unable to acquire any new memories… THAT SAID Henry’s memories were also very weak from the days right before his surgery. This is likely because these memories from before the surgery were still stored in the short term and intermediate memory systems in the brain and had not had the chance to be processed into long term memories. So, he likely would not have remembered having had the surgery.

[@iriswhite3184]

Strange question, but what is the background music at around 1:33?

[@NeuroEverything]

Realisation by Hanu Dixit followed by Turning Slowly by Ugonna Onyekwe and finally A Fallen Cowboy by Sir Cubworth

[@subhadramahanta452]

Since we say, 'experience make a person'. Was there any change in behavior of Henry Molaison after the surgery?

[@NeuroEverything]

I think that’s a particularly difficult question to answer, as before the surgery Henry was experiencing severe daily seizures which left him unable to work and had to be receive large doses of anti-epileptic medications - this can really change a person’s behaviour (and therefore, the baseline we would be comparing to).. However, what we do know is that after the surgery he was described as being cooperative, nice and very pleasant by everyone who spoke to him..

[@nguyennguyenvu59]

You try to give the video more brightness it will be great if you do

[@AnnicaKlinke-wj7sh]

Hey, can you maybe share the sources you used in this video cause I am planing on writing an academic assignment on Henry Molaison and your information was super important I believe especially the part where you explain what happened with his brain after death and the diary entry.

[@Rose-SingingWolf]

He was butchered and people like you are still using this man as a test or subject to write papers about. You should have to pay his living family members. You are exploiting him just like everyone else.

[@adalllah]

Amazing story ❤️

[@NeuroEverything]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Malikin]

I feel bad for henry

[@NeuroEverything]

I completely agree! No one should be treated the way Henry was..

[@ruaaissa1245]

thank you!!

[@NeuroEverything]

Glad you enjoyed the video :) Thank you for watching!

[@hughlyons4496]

Excellent video. Very useful for a psychology student. Thank you. May I please ask the name of the song at 1:45? thanks!

[@NeuroEverything]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@biancanel7180]

great video!

[@NeuroEverything]

Thank you! Super glad you enjoyed it!

[@Sivakumar-lh8xr]

He sacrificed his life for us 🙏

[@kevinbrockwell5055]

This video does a great job capturing the contributions of HM to neuroscience, and describing the implications of the research by Milner, Corkin and their colleagues. The last segment is just kind of slander without sources though, right?

[@NeuroEverything]

Hello! Thank you for the comments. I understand your concerns. Here are some references about the ethical concerns re Corkin: ahrp.org/patient-h-m-dark-roots-and-dubious-ethics-of-neuroscience-research-methods/ www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/trouble-in-mind/201608/tale-science-ethics-intrigue-and-human-flaws ahp.apps01.yorku.ca/2016/08/controversy-brewing-over-suzanne-corkin-and-patient-h-m/ www.businessinsider.com/how-doctors-experiment-on-the-brains-of-people-too-sick-to-consent-2016-11?&jwsource=cl

[@balamuruganv31]

Sir add subtitles

[@NeuroEverything]

Hey! Thank you for your comments. This video does indeed have subtitles in English. You should be able to switch them on through the "settings" button on the right hand side. Do you need subtitles in a different language?

[@balamuruganv31]

@@NeuroEverything Tks Sir I Got It English Subtitle and I Need Tamil Subtitle

[@ptonpc]

I imagine that since he was her career in life, she decided he might as well be her meal ticket after death.

[@ryanwessell4279]

Some of the images are a strange way to tell the story. What does a compass have to do with his story? Or what every the spinning things are pictured right before the compass?

[@fred2633]

I agree I thought it was horrible how they always referred to him as HM

[@NeuroEverything]

Coincidentally, Henry has the same initials as me!

[@fred2633]

@@NeuroEverything oh cool!

[@NeuroEverything]

Haha it’s just something I find mildly interesting

[@apintrix]

They did this to protect his privacy while he was alive. After his death his real name was released.

[@kimbaker3232]

Was he was able to feel love??😢

[@NeuroEverything]

I should hope so? Patient HM was almost definitely capable of love, though it’s likely he would’ve not been able to remember the people he had these feelings for… There is evidence that (over the years) he grew “familiar” to Suzanne Corkins (the scientist who met with him weekly), which might indicate that there he still had some “emotional memory…”

[@deuelapaul3262]

hi:)

[@NeuroEverything]

Hello!

[@mourningwarbler]

Was he able to have a career in which he could function, besides being a lab rat? Thank God for Dr. Peter Breggin.

[@NeuroEverything]

Unfortunately he didn’t :/