Penfield mood organ

The Penfield mood organ is a fictional device in Philip K. Dick's 1968 science fiction novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? that is used to modify emotional states, controlled by the user entering a number on its keyboard.[1][2] The device is described in the novel as using "Penfield artificial brain stimulation". A "Penfield wave transmitter" is also described in the book, as a weapon for inducing cataplexy.[3]

The name of the device is a reference to the neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield.[4][3] Dick also references other similar devices in his novel We Can Build You, including the Hammerstein Mood Organ and Waldteufel Euphoria, explicitly referencing the work of Wilder Penfield.

Modern developments toward emotion-modifying devices have been compared to the Penfield mood organ.[5][6]

See also

References
  1. Beckett, Chris (2015-05-21). "The Penfield Mood Organ in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?". Tor.com. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  2. School, Stanford Law. "BioSci-Fi: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick, 1968". Stanford Law School. Retrieved 2022-10-17.
  3. "Penfield Wave Transmitter by Philip K. Dick from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?". www.technovelgy.com. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  4. Resnick, Brian (2018-01-26). "Wilder Penfield redrew the map of the brain — by opening the heads of living patients". Vox. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  5. "Researchers identify brain region that generates optimism bias". Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  6. Wille, Matt. "Why make better controllers when we can game with our brains instead?". Input. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
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