Theo Rauch | City of Goodland, Sawyer County
The special discussion, “Everyday Psychology & Neuroscience” set the perfect tone for the first full day of Badger Boys State 2019.
With the guidance of a real medical student, Bradely Pfeifer, citizens were given the chance to examine the brain and its evolution while asking critical questions about human nature.
Instead of a deep-dive into what is undoubtedly a heavy scientific subject, Pfeifer gave citizens an engaging walkthrough of these concepts and how they apply to politics and society.
He went on to describe how evolution shaped the male and female brains in different ways. Pfiefer said the male brain is oriented more toward focus and defense, while female brains have a far stronger “nurture instinct” and predisposition for mental illness.
After sitting through this discussion, I was struck by not only the complexity of the human brain but also by the extraordinary amount of thought, both conscious and unconscious, that occurs everyday. As Pfeifer discussed, the brain has nearly 70,000 thoughts a day traveling through trillions of neurons and synapses.
However, as entertaining as the workshop was, I believe it’s only a bellwether of good things to come. Under the energetic leadership of the BBS staff, I’m looking forward to a continuation of Pfeifer’s excellent start to the week.
