New research performed at the University of Chicago suggests the human brain is able to detect within a split second whether a harmful action is intentional or accidental. The research, performed by UChicago Professor Jean Decety and research associate Stephanie Cacioppo, was published in a paper, “The Speed of Morality: A High-Density Electrical Neuroimaging Study,” on Dec. 1 in the Journal of Neurophysiology. According to a news summary: The researchers studied adults who watched videos of people who suffered accidental harm (such as being hit with a golf club) and intentional harm (such as being struck with a baseball bat). While watching the videos, brain activity was collected with equipment that accurately maps responses in different regions of the brain and importantly, the timing…