Placebos come in all shapes and sizes and have been shown to help treat pain, depression, and alleviate some of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. In this film, Horizon meets the scientists who are trying to find out why they work. From the man who performed fake operations to alleviate back pain to the scientist studying the effect of fake oxygen on physical performance, placebos have been shown to cause real and measurable physiological changes....

We now know that the brain is the organ which, more than any other, makes us human-and yet, until the 17th century, it was barely studied. This program highlights the twin sciences of brain anatomy and psychology and their varying visions of what it means to think, feel, make decisions, and experience the world. Viewers learn about the potential for these disciplines to overlap or merge, and in the process the film reveals some surprising and uncomfortable...