One of Darwin’s lesser known obsessions was with faces–how we make different faces, and what they say about us. Today, psychologists and neuroscientists are discovering the hidden conversation between brain and face, with a lot of tools Darwin never had–MRI scanners, subcutaneous electrodes, and Botox.
Botox?
Indeed. In fact, some recent studies with Botox raise the weird possibility that our national love affair with that face-freezing drug may be subtly altering the emotions of millions of people.
For more, check out my new column on the brain in the November issue of Discover.
[Illustration from Darwin’s The Expression of Emotions via Darwin Online]
Originally published October 16, 2008. Copyright 2008 Carl Zimmer.