Mirror Neurons

from newscientist.com:

Brain scans reveal men's pleasure in revenge
by Will Knight
18:47 18 January 2006
NewScientist.com news service

The scans showed that both sexes experienced increased brain activity in the fronto-singular and anterior cingulate cortices – areas that the associated with the direct experience of pain – when watching other players receive a jolt of electricity. Researchers have previously shown that so-called mirror neurons will sometimes fire in empathy with another person's experience.

Both men and women also experienced slightly less activity in these areas when cheaters were given a shock, which suggests the feeling of empathy was dependent on social behaviour.

But tellingly, activity dropped much more in men when watching cheaters being buzzed. In addition, several other regions of male participants' brains "lit up" instead – areas linked to the experience of reward known as the ventral striatum/nucleus accumbens and orbito-frontal cortex.

The results suggest that men not only feel less empathy for cheaters but experience pleasure when they are punished.

Please read the whole article by Will Knight

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Mirror Neurons are an interesting case.

pbs.org for more on mirror neurons.

interdisciplines.org: "What do Mirror Neurons Mean?"--

Today, mirror neurons play a major explanatory role in the understanding of a number of human features, from imitation to empathy, mindreading and language learning. It has also been claimed that damages in these cerebral structures can be responsible for mental deficits such as autism.

and for your consideration:
from pittsburghlive.com
Man's heart stops after Bettis fumble
By Tony LaRussa
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, January 16, 2006

For die-hard Steelers fans, Jerome Bettis' fumble as he tried to score from the 2-yard line was a heart-pounding moment in Sunday's game against the Indianapolis Colts. For Terry O'Neill, of Rinne Street in Arlington, it was a heart-stopping moment -- literally. O'Neill's heart stopped seconds after the crucial play in the final moments of Sunday's divisional playoff game. "Jerome is my hero," O'Neill, 50, said Monday from his bed at UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Oakland, where he was in stable condition. "I wasn't upset that the Steelers might lose," he said. "I was upset because I didn't want to see him end his career like that. A guy like that deserves better. I guess it was a little too much for me to handle."

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More on "mirror neurons" later.