In the 19th century, the case of Phineas Gage, a railway worker who was injured by a stout iron rod passing through his brain, convinced both researchers and the public that cognitive functions were localized in the brain. There is clear empirical evidence that physical manipulations of, or injuries to, the brain (for example by drugs or by lesions, respectively) can affect the mind in potent and intimate ways. "There has always, however, been a strong argument in the opposite direction. "Doubt about the possibility of a mechanistic explanation of thought drove René Descartes, and most other philosophers along with him, to dualism: the belief that the mind is to some degree independent of the brain. Supposing this, one should, when visiting within it, find only parts pushing one another, and never anything by which to explain a perception." (Leibniz, Monadology) In imagining that there is a machine whose construction would enable it to think, to sense, and to have perception, one could conceive it enlarged while retaining the same proportions, so that one could enter into it, just like into a windmill.
"One is obliged to admit that perception and what depends upon it is inexplicable on mechanical principles, that is, by figures and motions. This difficulty was expressed by Gottfried Leibniz in the analogy known as Leibniz's Mill: This is because of the difficulty in explaining how mental activities, such as thoughts and emotions, can be implemented by physical structures such as neurons and synapses, or by any other type of physical mechanism. The relationship between the brain and the mind is a significant challenge both philosophically and scientifically. "The philosophy of the mind studies such issues as the problem of understanding consciousness and the mind–body problem. I present below the results of this "research", in a concise form.
I tried to collect information from sources/references that are generally accepted as standard and/or reliable. So, I made a small "research" in the Web on the subject of where does thought take place. If this was a scientific place, I certainly wouldn't be surprised. I often read in philosophical discussions (in here and elsewhere) the word "brain" connected to higher level human functions, like thought, even consciousness.
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