View source for Brenda Milner

{{short description|British-Canadian neuroscientist and neuropsychologist (born 1918)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2014}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Brenda Milner
| honorific_suffix  = {{post-nominals|country=CAN|CC|GOQ|FRS|FRSC|size=100%}}
| image             = Brenda_Milner.jpg
| caption           = Milner at [[TEDxMcGill]] in 2011
| birth_name        = Brenda Langford
| birth_date        = {{Birth date and age|1918|7|15|df=y}}
| birth_place       = [[Manchester]], England
| nationality       = 
| death_date        = 
| death_place       = 
| spouse            = {{marriage|[[Peter Milner]]|1944|2 June 2018|end=died}}
| field             = [[Neuropsychology]]
| work_institution  = [[McGill University]], [[Montreal Neurological Institute]]
| alma_mater        = [[Newnham College, Cambridge]]<br />[[McGill University]]
| doctoral_advisor  = [[Donald Olding Hebb]]
| thesis_title      = Intellectual effects of temporal-lobe damage in man
| thesis_year       = 1952
| thesis_url        = http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/891398626
| doctoral_students = {{Plainlist|
*[[Suzanne Corkin]]
*[[Ingrid Johnsrude]]
*[[Doreen Kimura]]
}}
| known_for         = Study of [[memory]] and [[cognition]]; Work with patient [[Henry Molaison|H.M.]]
| prizes            = {{Plainlist|
* Companion of the [[Order of Canada]]
* [[Karl Spencer Lashley Award]] {{small|(1979)}}
* [[NAS Award in the Neurosciences]] {{small|(2004)}}
* [[Gairdner Foundation International Award|Gairdner Award]] {{small|(2005)}}
* [[Balzan Prize]] for Cognitive Neurosciences {{small|(2009)}}
* [[Kavli Prize]] in Neuroscience {{small|(2014)}}
}}
}}
{{Neuropsychology}}

'''Brenda Milner''' (''[[née]]'' '''Langford'''; born 15 July 1918) is a British-Canadian [[neuropsychologist]] who has contributed extensively to the research literature on various topics in the field of [[clinical neuropsychology]].<ref>Birchard, Karen (November 6, 2011) [http://chronicle.com/article/NosyObservant-a/129649/?sid=at "'Nosy' and Observant, a Neuroscientist Continues Her Memorable Career at 93"], ''Chronicle of Higher Education''</ref><ref name="Canadian Encyclopedia">{{cite web |title=Brenda Milner |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/brenda-milner |website=Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=3 June 2020}}</ref> Milner is a professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at [[McGill University]] and a professor of Psychology at the [[Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital|Montreal Neurological Institute]].<ref name="Milner Wins">[http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/switzerland-suisse/eyes_abroad-coupdoeil/PrixBalzanPrize-BrendaMilner-April2010.aspx?lang=eng&view=d Brenda Milner Wins Balzan Prize for Cognitive Neurosciences]. (2011). Government of Canada. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224112231/http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/switzerland-suisse/eyes_abroad-coupdoeil/PrixBalzanPrize-BrendaMilner-April2010.aspx|date=2010-12-24}}</ref> {{As of|2020}}, she holds more than 25 honorary degrees and she continued to work in her nineties.<ref name="Canadian Encyclopedia"/> Her work covers many aspects of neuropsychology including her lifelong interest in the involvement of the temporal lobes in episodic memory.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Brenda Milner: List of Publications|url=https://neurotree.org/beta/publications.php?pid=347|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123053020/https://neurotree.org/beta/publications.php?pid=347 |archive-date=January 23, 2021 }}</ref> She is sometimes referred to as one of the founders of neuropsychology<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.genengnews.com/insight-and-intelligence/science-legend-dr-brenda-milner/77900405/|title=Science Legend Dr. Brenda Milner|last=Perdue|first=Mitzi|author-link= Mitzi Perdue|date=15 April 2015|work=[[Gen. Eng. Biotechnol. News|Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News]]|issue=8|volume=35|pages=6&ndash;7|type=Paper}}</ref><ref name="medical news">{{cite web|date=May 26, 2011|title=Pioneering Memory Researcher Brenda Milner To Receive Pearl Meister Greengard Prize|url=http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/226617.php|access-date=May 14, 2013|publisher=Medical News Today}}</ref> and has been essential in its development. She received the [[Balzan Prize]] for Cognitive Neuroscience in 2009, and the [[Kavli Prize]] in Neuroscience, together with [[John O'Keefe (neuroscientist)|John O'Keefe]], and [[Marcus Raichle|Marcus E. Raichle]], in 2014. She [[centenarian|turned 100]] in July 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thesuburban.com/life/health/pioneering-neuropsychologist-brenda-milner-turns/article_b68c57ec-87bb-11e8-b1ff-875bc74f283d.html|title=Pioneering neuropsychologist Brenda Milner turns 100|website=Thesuburban.com|date=July 15, 2018 |access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Brenda Langford was born on 15 July 1918, in [[Manchester]], England.<ref name=Distinguished>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1037/h0020147| title = Distinguished Scientific Contribution Awards for 1973| journal = American Psychologist| volume = 29| pages = 27–43| year = 1974| last1 = No Authorship Indicated}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws//Milner/Biography/Milner_bio1.html|title=Dr. Brenda Milner - Biography|website=The Great Canadian Psychology Website|series=Milner_bio1.html|publisher=Worth Publishers|access-date=2016-06-20}}</ref> Her father [[Samuel Langford]] was a musical critic, journalist, and teacher, and her mother (née Leslie Doig) was one of his students.<ref name=":1" /> Though she was a daughter to two musically talented parents, she had no interest in music.<ref name=":1" /> She was tutored by her father in [[mathematics]] and the [[arts]] until the age of 8."<ref name=":1" /> She attended [[Withington Girls' School]],<ref name=":0" /> which led her to attend [[Newnham College, Cambridge]],<ref name="Distinguished" /> to study mathematics, having received a scholarship in 1936.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws//Milner/Biography/Milner_bio2.html|title=Dr. Brenda Milner - Biography|website=The Great Canadian Psychology Website|series=Milner_bio2.html|publisher=Worth Publishers|access-date=2016-06-20}}</ref> However, after realising she was not "perceptive" enough for mathematics, Milner changed her field of study to psychology.<ref name=Distinguished/> In 1939, Milner graduated with a B.A. degree in [[experimental psychology]],<ref name=Distinguished/> which at that time was considered a [[moral sciences|moral science]].<ref name=":2" />

One of her supervisors in the Department of Experimental Psychology, Cambridge was [[Oliver Zangwill]] and to him she owed her first interest in human brain function,<ref name=Distinguished/> and the value of studying [[brain lesion]]s.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws//Milner/Biography/Milner_bio3.html |title=Dr. Brenda Milner: Biography|website=The Great Canadian Psychology Website |publisher=Worth Publishers |access-date=2016-06-20 |page=3}}</ref>

After her graduation near the time of World War II Newnham College awarded her a Sarah Smithson Research Studentship, which allowed her to attend Newnham for the following two years.<ref name=Distinguished/> As a result of World War II, the work of the Cambridge Psychological Laboratory, under Bartlett's leadership, was diverted almost overnight to applied research in the selection of aircrew.<ref name=Distinguished/> Milner's position was to devise perceptual tasks for future use in selecting aircrew. More specifically, she was on a team interested in distinguishing [[fighter pilot]]s from [[bomber pilot]]s using [[aptitude tests]].<ref name="medical news"/><ref name=Distinguished/><ref name=":3" /> "Later in the war, from 1941 to 1944, she worked in Malvern as an Experimental Officer for the Ministry of Supply, investigating different methods of display and control to be used by radar operators."<ref name=":0" /><ref name=Distinguished/>

In 1941 Brenda met her husband, [[Peter Milner]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws//Milner/Biography/Milner_bio4.html |title=Dr. Brenda Milner: Biography |website=The Great Canadian Psychology Website |publisher=Worth Publishers|access-date=2016-06-20 |page=4}}</ref> Both Brenda and her husband were working on radar research. He was an electrical engineer who had also been recruited for the war effort.<ref name=":4" /> In 1944, they married and left for Canada where Peter had been invited to work with physicists on atomic research.<ref name=Distinguished/><ref name=":4" /> They travelled to Boston on the ship the Queen Elizabeth together with "war brides" who were travelling to the United States to live with their husbands' families during the war. Upon arrival in Canada, she began teaching psychology at the University of Montreal, where she stayed for 7 years.

In 1949, Brenda Milner graduated with a M.A. in experimental psychology in Cambridge.<ref>{{Cite web|title=McGill University Staff|url=https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/brenda-milner|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916050907/https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/brenda-milner |archive-date=September 16, 2020 }}</ref> In Montreal, she became a Ph.D. candidate in physiological psychology at [[McGill University]], under the direction of [[Donald Olding Hebb]].<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|url=http://www.ordre-national.gouv.qc.ca/membres/membre.asp?id=126|title=Brenda Milner|website=Membres de l'Ordre national du Québec|publisher=Gouvernement du Québec|language=fr|access-date=2012-01-01}}</ref> While working on her Ph.D., Milner and Hebb presented research on their patient P.B. who had undergone a medial temporal lobectomy and had subsequent memory impairment. This garnered the attention of [[Wilder Penfield]]. In 1950, Hebb gave Milner an opportunity to study with him at the Montreal Neurological Institute.<ref name=Distinguished/><ref name=":4" /> Under the supervision of Penfield, she studied the behaviour of young adult [[Epilepsy|epileptic patients]] treated with [[Elective surgery|elective]] focal ablation of brain tissue to treat uncontrolled seizures.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5" /> In 1952, Milner earned her Ph.D. in experimental psychology<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws//Milner/Biography/Milner_bio5.html|title=Dr. Brenda Milner - Biography|website=The Great Canadian Psychology Website|series=Milner_bio5.html|publisher=Worth Publishers|access-date=2016-06-20}}</ref> with a thesis on the cognitive effects of temporal lobe damage in man.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/-?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=123923&silo_library=GEN01|title=Intellectual effects of temporal-lobe damage in man.| last=Milner| first=Brenda| date=1952| website=Digitool.library |access-date=15 September 2016 }}</ref> Milner has been awarded a  number of honorary degrees including an honorary Sc.D from the University of Cambridge in 2000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Brenda Milner List of Awards and Degrees.|url=https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/brenda-milner/awards-and-honours-brenda-milner|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803155908/https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/brenda-milner/awards-and-honours-brenda-milner |archive-date=August 3, 2020 }}</ref>

== Professional career ==
In 1954, Milner published an article in the McGill University Psychological Bulletin entitled 'Intellectual Function of the Temporal Lobes'.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Milner|first=Brenda|title=Intellectual Function of the Temporal Lobes|url=https://archive.org/details/sim_psychological-bulletin_1954-01_51_1/page/42|journal=Psychological Bulletin|year=1954|volume=51|issue=1|pages=42–62|doi=10.1037/h0054728|pmid=13237374}}</ref> In this publication, she presented data that showed that temporal lobe damage can cause emotional and intellectual changes in humans and lower primates.<ref>{{Cite journal|year=1954|title=Intellectual function of the temporal lobes|url=https://archive.org/details/sim_psychological-bulletin_1954-01_51_1/page/42|journal=Psychological Bulletin|volume=51|issue=1|pages=42–62|doi=10.1037/h0054728|pmid=13237374|last1=Milner|first1=B}}</ref> Her review of neuroscience studies conducted in animals discouraged many neurosurgeons from completing surgeries on humans that could negatively impact their lives.<ref name=":0" /> "Milner's early work on the temporal lobes was influenced by the results of ablation work with lower primates, and particularly by Mishkin and Pribram's discovery of the role of the inferotemporal neocortex in visual discrimination learning."<ref name=":5" />

Milner was a pioneer in the field of neuropsychology and in the study of [[memory]] and other [[cognition|cognitive]] functions in humankind. She was invited to Hartford to study [[Henry Molaison]], formerly known as patient H.M., who became the most famous patient in [[cognitive neuroscience]]. He "had undergone a bilateral temporal lobectomy that included removal of major portions of the hippocampus."<ref name="Turner">Turner, M. S. (2010). [http://www.dana.org/news/features/detail.aspx?id=25322 Tracing Permanent Memories] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120212203814/http://www.dana.org/news/features/detail.aspx?id=25322 |date=February 12, 2012 }}. The DANA Foundation.</ref> She studied the effects of this damage to the [[medial temporal lobe]] on memory and systematically described the cognitive deficits exhibited by H.M.

In the early stages of her work with H.M., Milner wanted to completely understand his memory impairments. Milner showed that the medial temporal lobe [[amnestic syndrome]] is characterised by an inability to acquire new memories and an inability to recall established memories from a few years immediately before damage, while memories from the more remote past and other cognitive abilities, including [[language]], [[perception]] and [[reasoning]] were intact.<ref name="mcgill">{{cite web|url=https://www.mcgill.ca/about/history/mcgill-pioneers/milner |title=Dr Brenda Milner, CC |publisher=McGill University |access-date=May 14, 2013}}</ref> For example, Milner spent three days with H.M. as he learned a new perceptual-motor task in order to determine what type of learning and memory were intact in him. This task involved reproducing the drawing of a star by looking at it in a mirror.<ref name=Turner/> His performance improved over those three days. However, he subsequently retained absolutely no memory of any events that took place during those three days.<ref name=Turner/> This led Milner to speculate that there are different types of learning and memory, each dependent on a separate system of the brain .<ref name=Xia>{{cite journal | last=Xia | first=C. | title=Understanding the human brain: A lifetime of dedicated pursuit. Interview with Dr. Brenda Milner | journal=McGill Journal of Medicine | volume=9 | issue=2 | year=2006 | pmid=18523614 | pmc=2323518 | pages=165–172}}</ref> She was able to demonstrate two different memory systems - [[episodic memory]] and [[procedural memory]].<ref name="chrcrm"/>

Milner discovered from H.M. and other case studies that "bilateral medial temporal-lobe resection in man results in a persistent impairment of recent memory whenever the removal is carried far enough posteriorly to damage portions of the anterior hippocampus and hippocampal gyrus."<ref name="loss of memory">{{Cite journal | last1 = Scoville | first1 = W. B. | last2 = Milner | first2 = B. | doi = 10.1136/jnnp.20.1.11 | title = Loss of Recent Memory After Bilateral Hippocampal Lesions | journal = Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry | volume = 20 | pages = 11–21 | year = 1957 | pmid =  13406589| pmc = 497229 | issue=1}}</ref> She showed that in patients with this syndrome the ability to learn certain [[motor skill]]s remained normal.<ref name="loss of memory"/> This finding introduced the concept of multiple memory systems within the brain and stimulated an enormous body of research. Milner stated in an interview with the ''McGill Journal of Medicine'', "To see that H.M. had learned the task perfectly but with absolutely no awareness that he had done it before was an amazing dissociation. If you want to know what was an exciting moment of my life, that was one."<ref name=Xia/>

She has made major contributions to the understanding of the role of the [[frontal lobe]]s in memory processing, in the area of organizing information. "Dr. Milner's seminal research has provided many landmark discoveries in the study of human memory and the brain's temporal lobes, which play a key role in emotional responses, [[hearing (sense)|hearing]], [[memory]] and [[speech]]."<ref name="loss of memory"/>

She demonstrated the critical role of the dorsolateral frontal cortex for the temporal organization of memory and her work showed that there is partial separability of the neural circuits subserving recognition memory from those mediating memory for temporal order. She described the inflexibility in [[problem solving]] that is now widely recognized as a common consequence of frontal-lobe injury. These refinements in the understanding of memory and exposition of the relevant brain regions revealed the anatomically diffuse nature of complex cognitive functions in the brain.

Milner helped describe the [[lateralization]] of function in the human brain and has shown how the neural substrate of language in the cerebral hemispheres can vary in left-handed, right-handed and ambidextrous individuals (see [[handedness]]). She used the [[Wada test]] to show that for any handedness, the left hemisphere is dominant for language in most people.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Andrew-Gee |first1=Eric |title=At 104 years old, memory scientist Brenda Milner seems to remember almost everything |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-brenda-milner-memory-neuroscientist/ |website=Globe and Mail |access-date=4 January 2024 |date=7 April 2023 |quote=she showed that the left hemisphere is dominant for language in the vast majority of people, regardless of handedness.}}</ref> These studies of the relationship between hand preference and [[Speech communication|speech]] lateralization led to an understanding of the effects of early unilateral brain lesions on the pattern of cerebral organization at maturity. Her studies were among the first to demonstrate convincingly that damage to the brain can lead to dramatic functional reorganization.

Using mostly prize money from her numerous awards, Milner donated 1 million dollars to the [[Montreal Neurological Institute]] in 2007, after establishing a foundation in her name.<ref name="montrealgazette.com">{{cite web |date=July 19, 2018 |title=Mind of her own: Montreal neuroscientist Brenda Milner on turning 100 |url=https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/mind-of-her-own-montreal-neuroscientist-brenda-milner-on-turning-100 |access-date=November 30, 2018 |website=Montrealgazette.com}}</ref>

==Recent research==
[[File:Brenda Milner 2014.jpg|thumb|Brenda Milner in 2014]]
In more recent times, Milner has expanded her research to the study of brain activity in normal subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging ([[fMRI]]) and [[positron emission tomography]] (PET).<ref name="chrcrm">{{cite web |url=http://www.chrcrm.org/en/rotm/dr-brenda-milner |title=Dr. Brenda Milner |publisher=Canadians for Health Research |date=June 2005 |access-date=May 14, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141008170303/http://www.chrcrm.org/en/rotm/dr-brenda-milner |archive-date=October 8, 2014 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> These studies focus on the identification of brain regions associated with [[spatial memory]] and language, including the neural substrates of monolingual and [[bilingualism|bilingual]] speech processing.<ref name="chrcrm"/> In another series of PET studies, she has sought to delineate further the role of the right hippocampal region in memory for the spatial location of objects.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Milner |first1=B. |last2=Johnsrude |first2=I. |last3=Crane |first3=J. |title=Right medial temporal-lobe contribution to object-location memory.|journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences|year=1997|volume=352|issue=1360|pages=1469–1474|doi=10.1098/rstb.1997.0133|pmid=9368935|pmc=1692061|bibcode=1997RSPTB.352.1469M}}</ref>

Milner kept some involvement in teaching and researching past her 100th birthday.<ref name="cbc.ca">{{cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/trailblazing-montreal-neuroscientist-brenda-milner-turns-100-1.4743054|title=As she turns 100, 'there's no stopping' trailblazing Montreal neuroscientist Brenda Milner - CBC News|website=Cbc.ca|access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Still Charting Memory's Depths |first=Claudia |last=Dreifus |date=20 May 2013 |journal=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/science/still-charting-memorys-depths.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Brenda Milner, Eminent Brain Scientist, Is 'Still Nosy' at 98 |first=Benedict |last=Carey |date=15 May 2017 |journal=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/15/science/brenda-milner-brain-cognitive-neuroscience.html |quote=People think because I'm 98 years old I must be emerita. Well, not at all. I'm still nosy, you know, curious.}}</ref> She is the [[Dorothy J. Killam]] Professor at the Montreal Neurological Institute, and a professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University.<ref name="chrcrm"/> One of Milner's current collaborators is [[Denise Klein]], an assistant professor in the Neurology/Cognitive Neuroscience unit at McGill.<ref name="Great">[http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/GCPWS/index.html The Great Canadian Psychologist Website.] (2008).</ref> Their research on bilingualism entails investigating the difference in neural pathways used to acquire new and native languages.<ref name="Great"/>

In 2018, Milner celebrated her 100th birthday in Montreal with about 30 friends, including fellow researcher Denise Klein.<ref name="cbc.ca"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iheartradio.ca/cjad/news/meet-the-brainy-montrealer-who-at-100-is-still-going-to-work-1.4116011|title=Meet the brainy Montrealer who, at 100, is still going to work|first=Bell|last=Média|website=Iheartradio.ca|access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref> Although she never expected to reach this age, Milner stated that she has "every intention of continuing for many more birthdays."<ref name="cbc.ca"/> The Montreal Neurological Institute held a symposium in September 2018, celebrating her accomplishments.<ref name="view.joomag.com">{{cite news|url=https://view.joomag.com/montr%C3%A9al-ensant%C3%A9-mes-v10n3-%C3%89t%C3%A9-summer-2018/0407331001528817052?e=1&page=1&embedInfo=;|title=Montréal enSanté MES V10N3 Été/Summer 2018|website=View.joomag.com|access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref> That same year, Milner participated in a video series, launched by the Montreal Neurological Institute, dedicated to promoting female scientists and researchers.<ref>[https://mcgill.ca/neuro/news/neuro-xxceptional-women] xxceptional-women, McGill University</ref><ref name="view.joomag.com"/><ref name="youtube.com">[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhfNtyL_Cj0], youtube.com</ref> During the interview, Milner spoke about her early life and gave an overview of her career.<ref name="youtube.com"/>

She has continued research into memory and language throughout her career.

Her recent work includes the utilisation of modern neuroimaging techniques — such as positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) — to further investigate brain regions involved in bilingualism, language processing, and memory.

==Awards and honours==
Milner has received numerous awards for her contributions to neuroscience and psychology including Fellowships in the [[Royal Society of London]], the [[Royal Society of Canada]] and membership of the  [[National Academy of Sciences]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name="chrcrm"/> In total, she has been awarded honorary degrees from more than 20 different universities across Canada, Europe, and the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/notable-figures/brenda-milner/awards-and-honours|title=Awards & Honours of Brenda Milner|website=Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital: About|publisher=[[Montreal Neurological Institute| Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital]]|access-date=21 January 2019}}</ref>

Early on, Milner was awarded a Sarah Smithson Research Studentship by Newnham College, Cambridge after her graduation, which allowed her to continue her work at Newnham College.<ref name="Distinguished"/> In 1984 Milner was made an Officer of the [[Order of Canada]] and was promoted to Companion in 2004. In 1987, she was awarded the [[Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience]]. She was also awarded the [[NAS Award in the Neurosciences|National Academy of Sciences Award in the Neurosciences]] in 2004 for her seminal investigations of the role of the temporal lobes and other brain regions in learning, memory, and language.<ref>[http://www.nasonline.org/programs/awards/neurosciences.html Nas Award in the Neurosciences.] (2012).</ref> In 1985, she was made an Officer of the [[National Order of Quebec]] and was promoted to Grand Officer in 2009.<ref name=":5" /> She was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] in 2007.<ref name=AAAS>{{cite web|title=Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter M|url=http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterM.pdf|publisher=American Academy of Arts and Sciences|access-date=July 25, 2014}}</ref> She was awarded the [[Balzan Prize]] for her contributions to Cognitive Neurosciences in a ceremony held in the Swiss Parliament in December 2009.<ref name="Milner Wins"/>

Milner was awarded the [[Kavli Prize]] in Neuroscience in 2014.<ref name=":0" /> Other awards and recognition include: Election to the National Academy of Sciences (1976), the [[Metlife Foundation Award for Medical Research in Alzheimer's Disease]] (1996), election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2005), the [[Dan David Prize]] (2014), the {{lang|fr|Prix Hommage du 50e anniversaire|italics=no}} from the {{lang|fr|Ordre des psychologues du Québec|italics=no}} (2014), induction into the [[Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame]] (2012), recipient of a medal of honour from the [[National Assembly of Quebec]] (2018),<ref name="cbc.ca"/> [[Pearl Meister Greengard Prize]] (2011), the Norman A. Anderson Lifetime Achievement Award (2010), the Goldman-Rakic Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Cognitive Neuroscience by NARSAD (2009), the NSERC Medal of Excellence (2009 and 2010), the [[Gairdner Foundation International Award]] (2005), the [[Prix Wilder-Penfield]] (Prix du Québec) (1993), and election as a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, and Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

Milner has received more than 20 honorary degrees.

As of 2025, Brenda Milner has received honorary degrees from over 25 universities across Canada, Europe, and the United States.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Brenda Milner}}
*{{OCC|1179}}
*[http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~gcpws/Milner/Milner.html Great Canadian Psychology Website – Brenda Milner Biography]
*[http://www.twit.tv/fib33 Interview on Futures in Biotech (2008)]
*[https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/science/still-charting-memorys-depths.html "Still Charting Memory's Depths – A Conversation with Brenda Milner"], [[The New York Times]] (2013)
*[https://www.mcgill.ca/neuro/about/brenda-milner McGill University – Brenda Milner Biography / Awards & Profile]
*[https://dandavidprize.org/laureates/brenda-milner/ Dan David Prize – Brenda Milner Bio-bibliography]
*[https://www.cdnmedhall.ca/laureates/brendamilner Canadian Medical Hall of Fame – Brenda Milner]

{{Canadian Medical Hall of Fame}}
{{Kavli Prize laureates}}
{{Memory}}
{{Psychology}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Milner, Brenda}}
[[Category:1918 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:British emigrants to Canada]]
[[Category:British women academics]]
[[Category:Canadian women academics]]
[[Category:English psychologists]]
[[Category:English neuroscientists]]
[[Category:Canadian cognitive neuroscientists]]
[[Category:Companions of the Order of Canada]]
[[Category:Female fellows of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:Fellows of Newnham College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada]]
[[Category:Scientists from Manchester]]
[[Category:Grand Officers of the National Order of Quebec]]
[[Category:Academic staff of McGill University]]
[[Category:McGill University Faculty of Science alumni]]
[[Category:Neuropsychologists]]
[[Category:Canadian women neuroscientists]]
[[Category:Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:People educated at Withington Girls' School]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Cognitive Science Society]]
[[Category:Canadian women centenarians]]
[[Category:British women centenarians]]
[[Category:Canadian women psychologists]]
[[Category:Kavli Prize laureates in Neuroscience]]
[[Category:Canadian fellows of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:APA Distinguished Scientific Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology recipients]]