From an evolutionary perspective, it soon became clear to Rivers that the epicritic nervous reaction was the superior, as it suppressed and abolished all protopathic sensibility . it is at this point that the experiment takes on an almost farcical aspect to the casual reader.
12.
Head and Rivers noted that the thrill evoked by aesthetic pleasure is " accompanied by the erection of hairs " and they noted that this reaction was no greater in the area of skin with protopathic sensibility than it was in the area of the more evolved epicritic, making it a purely psychologically based phenomena.
13.
Head and Rivers had discovered two constituents of cutaneous sensibility : the " protopathic " system, through which pain and degrees of heat and cold beyond normal thresholds can be recognised but not accurately localised, and an " epicritic " system which is concerned with the perception of light touches, degrees of temperature natural to the skin, accurate localisation of stimulus and discrimination of two simultaneous contacts.
