This week’s edition of the Journal of Neuroscience featured an article about interracial empathy for another’s pain . The psychological experience of pain and empathy for another’s pain is mediated in the anterior cingulate cortex, which also regulates attention span.
Scientists in China discovered that while empathy to another’s pain is expressed in most individuals, empathy is greater within vs. between racial groups. My next question is whether political affiliation in America influences these results. Liberals are usually more accepting of other social and ethnic groups, while conservatives are well, just conservative. The study might reveal otherwise……
On a happier note, the front cover of the issue had a beautiful color photomicrograph of the different layers of the cortex (6 in all, plus a few sub layers).
