Loquacious Man and His Mind [1950]

John Zachary Young was best known for his experimental investigation of brain functions and the nervous system, so the philosophical bent of his Reith Lectures represented something of a departure. While clearly impressed with Young’s abilities, and stimulated by his “general speculative outlook”, Russell discerned something sinister in the scientist’s observations about the brain. Professor Young is the only man known who has kept a pet octopus. Professor Young’s distinctive thesis is that the chief use of the brain is as an organ of communication. It is by means of communication that newly discovered skills become the property of the community, and it is by the same means that collective enterprises, such as tribal religions, governments, and scientific researches are rendered possible.