Rudi Affolter and Gwen Tighe have both experienced strong religious visions. He is an atheist; she a Christian. He thought he had died; she thought she had given birth to Jesus. Both have temporal lobe epilepsy. Like other forms of epilepsy, the condition causes fitting but it is also associated with religious hallucinations. Research into why people like Rudi and Gwen saw what they did has opened up a whole field of brain science: neurotheology. The connection between the temporal lobes of the brain and religious feeling has led one Canadian scientist to try stimulating them. (They are near your ears.) 80% of Dr Michael Persinger's experimental subjects report that an artificial magnetic field focused on those brain areas gives them a feeling of 'not being alone'. Some of them describe it as a religious sensation. His work raises the prospect that we are programmed to believe in god, that faith is a mental ability humans have developed or been given. And temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) could help unlock the mystery.
| Title | Horizon - Season 40 Episode 11 : God On The Brain |
|---|---|
| Alternative Titles | BBC Horizon |
| Subtitle Available |
 ETC.
|
| First Air Date | 1964-02-04 |
| Last Air Date | 2024-07-22 |
| Number of Episodes | 1169 |
| Number of Seasons | 60 |
| Genres | Documentary, |
| Networks | BBC Two, |
| Casts | |
| Plot Keywords | , |
Episodes List
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 1 The Mystery Of Easter Island The Mystery Of Easter Island
2003-01-09Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 2 Living Nightmare Living Nightmare
2003-01-16Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 3 Averting Armageddon Averting Armageddon
2003-01-23Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 4 Dirty Bomb Dirty Bomb
2003-01-30Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 5 Sexual Chemistry (Update) Sexual Chemistry (Update)
2003-02-13Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 6 The Day We Learned To Think The Day We Learned To Think
2003-02-20Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 7 Trial and Error Trial and Error
2003-02-27Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 8 Earthquake Storms Earthquake Storms
2003-03-06Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 9 Life On Mars (Update) Life On Mars (Update)
2003-03-27Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 10 The Secret Life Of Caves The Secret Life Of Caves
2003-04-03Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 11 God On The Brain God On The Brain
2003-04-17Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 12 Flight 587 Flight 587
2003-05-08Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 13 SARS: The True Story SARS: The True Story
2003-05-29Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 14 The Big Chill The Big Chill
2003-11-13Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 15 The Bible Code The Bible Code
2003-11-20Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 16 Last Flight of the Columbia Last Flight of the Columbia
2003-11-27Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 17 The Hunt for an AIDS Vaccine The Hunt for an AIDS Vaccine
2003-12-04Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 18 Percy Pilcher's Flying Machine Percy Pilcher's Flying Machine
2003-12-11Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
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Horizon Season 40 :Episode 19 Time Trip Time Trip
2003-12-18Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.
