head and hands and heart

Over the past few years I have become quite interested in pragmatist philosophy. As part of the sense-making process, I wrote about pragmatism as being a complementary relationship among one's head, heart and hands. Not the most original notion especially since organizations ranging from 4-H (head, heart, hands & health) to the Shakers have made use of similar metaphoric combinations. If my perspective is in any way original it is to bring these ideas into the realm of academic work.

Today I learned about a genetic connection between the heart and hands. Much of what has been learned in human biology is through the study of defects. The most obvious example are brain injuries where physicians determine how the different portions of the brain control different functions. Oliver Sacks has shown himself to be a master essayist and diagnostician. A hereditary defect called Holt-Oram syndrome affects the embryonic development of the heart and hands. A specific gene on Chromosome 12 controls the formation of the heart's four chambers as well as influences the differentiation of the hand into fingers. T-Box 5 is a gene that does not function as it should. Quite poetically, Heart and Hand Syndrome suggests that there is more than a philosophical connection — a genetic connection exists between the two.