Paul Maclane, neuroscientist and emotional intelligence pioneer died at age 94. I have taught MacLean's concepts of the brain in my emotional intelligence >classes for many years as a useful way of understanding "emotional hijack," A term coined by Daniel Goleman. "Emotional Hijacking" Goleman says, occurs when the amygdala, a part of the emotional brain identified by MacLane, triggers the fight or flight mechanism in response to perceived threat, and emotion overpowers the rational brain. Extract of the obituary from the New York Times follows:
MacLean - Obituary - New York Times: "Paul MacLean, 94, Neuroscientist Who Devised ‘Triune Brain’ Theory, Dies Dr. Paul D. MacLean, a neuroscientist and psychiatrist who developed the intriguing theory of the ‘triune brain’ to explain its evolution and to try to reconcile rational human behavior with its more primal and violent side, died on Dec. 26 in Potomac, Md. He was 94." Dr. MacLean (pronounced mac-LANE) termed the brain’s center of emotions the limbic system, and described an area that includes structures called the hippocampus and amygdala. Developing observations made by Dr. James W. Papez of Cornell, he proposed that the limbic system had evolved in early mammals to control fight-or-flight responses and react to both emotionally pleasurable and painful sensations. The concept is now broadly accepted in neuroscience.
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