China's Controversial Brain Surgery To Cure Drug Addiction

kkleiner writes "A small handful of doctors in China are using a highly controversial procedure to rid people of drug addiction by destroying a part of patients' brains. The procedure involves drilling small holes into the skulls of patients and inserting long electrodes that destroy a part of the brain called the nucleus accumbens. This area, often referred to as the "pleasure center" of the brain, is the major nucleus of the brain's reward circuit. Is it worth being cured of addiction if, losing the addiction, we also lose part of who we are?" The practice has been officially banned, but apparently continues nonetheless.

Comments

Might be worth trying on Republicans...

[rs79]

...if we could find the gun and war center.

Re:I'll auto-Godwin myself

[PopeRatzo]

But isn't China now starting to get into the exact same "horrifying human experiments" thing ol' Adolf was big on?

Yes, I agree that the conditions at the Chinese labor camps known as "factories" are pretty horrible.

By the way, did that story about the "SOS" letter some Chinese labor camp worker stuffed into a product shipped to the US make it to Slashdot this weekend?

I suppose maintaining the supply chain for iPhones trumps the basic human rights of workers, but still, I would imagine the story would at least rate a mention here at Slashdot.