BPS Core Textbooks Series

Developed in collaboration with the British Psychological Society

Chapter 35 – The One with Rachel In It: Cognitive Neuropsychology and the Technological Sublime

Chapter Summary

This chapter explores the recent history of cognitive neuropsychology through the lens of the technological sublime, a concept that captures how awe, spectacle, and ideology shape our responses to brain science. The chapter asks why certain scientific discoveries feel emotionally and philosophically powerful. It argues that this power lies not only in what is discovered but in how such discoveries are presented, framed, and understood. Cognitive neuropsychology, with its vivid imaging tools and dramatic claims, generates not just data but meaning. This meaning is often saturated with cultural assumptions about identity, agency, and control. Seven dimensions of the technological sublime are distributed across the chapter’s main sections. Each dimension is anchored to key figures, theories, or controversies in contemporary cognitive neuropsychology. The chapter balances excitement with critique, showing how even the most stunning findings carry assumptions about what it means to be human. Ultimately, students are encouraged to reflect on the emotional and political appeal of brain-based explanations, and to consider what gets illuminated, and what remains obscured, when we gaze into the glowing image of the mind.

Chapter 35 – Quiz

  • Chapter 35 – Flashcards

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  • Chapter 35 – Key Readings

    Beaulieu, A. (2002). Images are not the (only) truth: Brain mapping, visual knowledge, and iconoclasm. Science, Technology, & Human Values, 27(1), 53–86. https://doi.org/10.1177/016224390202700103 

    Beaulieu, A. (2003). Brains, maps and the new territory of psychology. Theory & Psychology, 13(4), 561-568. https://doi.org/10.1177/09593543030134006 

    Choudhury, S., & Slaby, J. (2012). Critical neuroscience: A handbook of the social and cultural contexts of neuroscience. Wiley-Blackwell. 

    De Vos, J., & Pluth, E. Eds. (2016). Neuroscience and critique: Exploring the limits of the neurological turn. Taylor & Francis. 

    Fisher, H. (2003). Categories and embodied objects: The subjective self and the psychologist within natural psychology. Theory & Psychology, 13(2), 239-262. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354303013002004 

    Hayles, N. K., & Pulizzi, J. J. (2010). Narrating consciousness: Language, media and embodiment. History of the Human Sciences, 23(3), 131-148. https://doi.org/10.1177/0952695110363646  

    Hennig, B. (2010). Science, conscience, consciousness. History of the Human Sciences, 23(3), 15-28. https://doi.org/10.1177/0952695110363353  

    Kügler, P. (2012). The ever-shifting problem of consciousness. Theory & Psychology, 23(1), 46-59. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354312457112 

    Liu, J., & Huo, Y. (2020). Recent advances in research on the association between consciousness and unconsciousness in China. Theory & Psychology, 30(1), 99-120. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354319895807 

    Mills J (2019). The myth of the collective unconscious. Journal of the History of the Behavioural Sciences, 55(1) 40–53. https://doi.org/10.1002/jhbs.21945 

    Noë, A. (2010). Out of our heads: Why you are not your brain, and other lessons from the biology of consciousness. Hill & Wang. 

    Nye, D. E. (2007). American technological sublime. MIT Press. 

    Tallis, R. (2016). Aping mankind: neuromania, Darwinitis and the misrepresentation of humanity. Routledge.  Žižek, S. (2023). Hegel in a wired brain. Bloomsbury Academic.

  • Chapter 35 – Reflective Questions

    1. Why did the ‘Jennifer Aniston neuron’ generate such excitement both inside and outside psychology? 
    2. What is meant by the ‘technological sublime’ in the context of cognitive neuropsychology? 
    3. How does the work of Oliver Sacks contrast with the use of fMRI and other forms of brain imaging? 
    4. In what ways can the promise of cognitive enhancement be both empowering and ethically troubling? 
    5. Why is it important to recognise the cultural and ideological dimensions of neuroscientific authority?

  • Chapter 35 – Weblinks

    Resources use Jennifer Aniston to Discover how we form long term memories (Educational Article)

    https://www.fanaticalfuturist.com/2016/11/researchers-use-jennifer-aniston-to-unlock-the-secret-of-human-memory/

    This article discusses how researchers were able to use images of Jennifer Aniston to reveal information on how the brain forms long term memories, and the information is presented in the an extremely accessible way, giving students a clear understanding of this slightly more abstract concept.

    Henry Gustav Molaison: The Curious Case of Patient H. M. (Educational Resource)

    https://www.simplypsychology.org/henry-molaison-patient-hm.html

    This website discusses the early life, and eventual strange case of amnesia experienced by Henry Gustav Molaison, giving students an accessible account of the investigation into this case, letting them engage with an interesting example of memory-research.

    The Science Behind Elon Musk’s Neuralink Brain Chip | WIRED (YouTube Presentation)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv_XB6Hf6gM

    This 8-minute YouTube videos gives an accessible explanation of the scientific basis behind the ‘Neuralink’ brain chips developed by Elon Musk, with the information presented accessibly for students who may not have an extensive knowledge of some of the more complex scientific ideas that went into the development of the chip.

    3 Clues to Understanding Your Brain – TEDTalk by VS Ramachandran (Educational Lecture)

    https://www.ted.com/talks/vs_ramachandran_3_clues_to_understanding_your_brain

    This 24-minute TEDTalk discusses the structure and functions of the human brain in an accessible and charismatic tone, giving students an enjoyable and easy to digest explanation of some of the more abstract concepts mentioned in this chapter, like consciousness.

    Alva Noe on Embodied Consciousness (Educational Resource)

    https://www.ttbook.org/interview/alva-noe-embodied-consciousness

    This 7-minute audio clip contains an excerpt of an interview with Alva Noe discussing perspectives on our understanding of consciousness, giving an engaging presentation of their interpretation of consciousness in the human brain.

    Libet Experiments – The Information Philosopher (Educational Resource)

    https://www.informationphilosopher.com/freedom/libet_experiments.html

    This website provides detailed documentation and explanations of the Libet Experiments, a series of experiments performed in the late 1980’s to demonstrate that human free-will does not exist.

    Oliver Sacks – Oliver Sacks Foundation (Educational Resource)

    https://www.oliversacks.com/about-oliver-sacks/

    This webpage, located on the website of the Oliver Sacks Foundation, gives a detailed description of the life and works of Oliver Sacks M.D., FRCP. This page gives students the opportunity to engage with a key figure when looking at this type of neurological and psychological work, emboldening their understanding of the chapter.