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Surgical removal of the temporal lobe is becoming an established therapeutic procedure in the treatment of focal epilepsy arising in one or other of the temporal lobes and good results in the control of otherwise intractable seizures have been widely reported (e.g. Falconer et al., 5; Picaza and Guma, 18). Indeed, with increasing experience of anterior temporal lobectomy and delineation of the indications for operation, even greater success may be anticipated (Hill, 9; Rasmussen and Jasper, 19).

The pattern of drug abuse by young people in Britain over the past decade or so is described. The London heroin epidemic of the 1960s appears to have been checked by the 1968 regulations and the abuse of amphetamines has declined, with more cautious prescribing habits by British doctors. On the other hand, cannabis and lysergide misuse is more widely prevalent throughout the country. Unlike the U.S.A. there is no direct link between drugs and violence or major crime, although a proportion of drug takers are also delinquent. Similarly, there is no particular connexion between drugs and pornography. It is fashionable to consider that we live in a ‘permissive society’, but it may be more aptly described as a ‘rebellious society’ in which the great majority (but unfortunately not all) of young people is able to handle its emancipation responsibly.