Future of the Mind 
shown that if you put a mouse with a pregnant rat for days, 
the rat will take no notice of this mouse; then just 24 hours 
before parturition takes place, the rat will suddenly treat the 
mouse like a newborn rat, even if the mouse kills the litter. 
This is hormonal control, performed through the ovary. 
Pincus: I would like to question for a moment the assump- 
tion that everybody has made, including Dr. Chisholm, that 
what is taught in childhood very strongly influences later 
behaviour. Two phenomena have struck me. One is the one 
which Dr. Klein has remarked on. Coming to the rescue of 
endocrinology, I will say that one can markedly alter behaviour, 
particularly the “‘ pecking order” behaviour that Dr. Hoagland 
spoke about, with hormones, and I don’t think I need to stress 
that here. The other thing which has always interested me 
could for want of a better word be called “‘adolescent rebellion’’, 
in which the adolescent almost automatically rejects many of 
the precepts instilled by parents. I would like to hear more 
detail about this. How influential is it, in fact? Can it be 
used as a basis for reforming the human race? 
Szent-Gyérgvi: If I understand Dr. Chisholm properly, we 
are in a vicious circle, because the adults teach the children. 
What can be done to break the circle? 
Chisholm: There are certain times at which people are more 
amenable to new information than at other times. For instance, 
young married or engaged people are sometimes willing to 
listen to attitudes that they were not willing to listen to pre- 
viously, because they may feel some timidity about the respon- 
sibility they are taking on, and they are not quite sure how to 
cope with it. Also, sometimes during the first pregnancy in the 
family, the potential parents begin to concern themselves about 
what their responsibilities to a child will be; some of them 
quite suddenly realize that there is something to learn about it, 
that there really is no God-given certainty about their fitness 
to bring up children effectively. There are possible approaches 
at those times that can break this vicious circle. 
Szent-Gyérgyi: Children are very important, and the rights 
of a father over his children have been reduced more and more 
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