It is important, indeed necessary, we believe, that the study of the higher brain func- tions be introduced by a brief account of the evolution of the philosophical thinking and scientific researches on cognition. The intuition that sensations and intelligence reside in the brain goes back to the Egyptians, in particular the Edwin Smith papyrus, probably dated between 2500 and 3000 b. c., where the term "brain" appears for the first time and where there is a description of its coverings (meninges) and circumvolutions (Walsh 1994). The philosophical debate on brain and mind made its appearance...