10/31/2025
In 1848, a 25-year-old railway worker named Phineas Gage was blasting rocks to clear the way for a new railroad in Cavendish, Vermont, USA. But one explosion went horribly wrong.
An iron tamping rod, over a meter long, shot through Gage’s skull — entering beneath his left cheekbone and exiting through the top of his head. Incredibly, he survived.
Despite losing an eye and part of his brain, Gage regained consciousness within minutes and could still speak. He recovered physically and even returned to work — but those who knew him soon realized something had changed.
Before the accident, Gage was known as hardworking, polite, and dependable. Afterward, he became impulsive, rude, and irresponsible, prone to bursts of anger and unable to hold steady employment.
His physician, Dr. John Harlow, documented the case in detail, noting that while Gage’s intelligence and memory remained intact, his personality had been profoundly altered.
More than a century later, modern neuroscientists, using Gage’s preserved skull and digital imaging, reconstructed the path of the iron rod. The damage was localized to the prefrontal cortex — the region of the brain involved in decision-making, emotional control, and social behavior.
As neuroscientist Antonio Damasio later wrote,
“Gage’s story marked the historical beginning of the study of the biological basis of behavior.”
Phineas Gage didn’t just survive a devastating accident — he became a living key to one of the brain’s deepest mysteries: how our biology shapes who we are.
