In 1972, an eleven-year-old member of a tribe that inhabits the Fiji islands walked on white-hot coals. He seemed to experience no pain. The gate-control theory of pain would explain this by maintaining that ________.

Question

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The gate-control theory of pain proposes that sensory nerves in the spinal cord can prevent pain impulses from reaching the brain, acting like a gate that can be opened or closed. In the case of the boy walking on hot coals, it is likely that his sensory nerves closed the gate and prevented the pain impulses from reaching his brain. This would explain why he did not experience pain.

In 1972, an Eleven-Year-Old Member of a Tribe That Inhabits