Scientists have shown they can change people's moral judgements by disrupting a specific area of the brain with magnetic pulses.
They identified a region of the brain just above and behind the right ear which appears to control morality.
And by using magnetic pulses to block cell activity they impaired volunteers' notion of right and wrong.
The key area of the brain is a knot of nerve cells known as the right temporo-parietal junction (RTPJ).
While subjected to these magnetic pulses subjects were unable to make moral judgments that require an understanding of other people's intentions.
Previous work has shown the RTPJ to be highly active when people think about the thoughts and beliefs of others.
Dr Liane Young
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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