{"id":380,"date":"2007-04-20T22:23:00","date_gmt":"2007-04-20T22:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/2007\/04\/20\/380\/"},"modified":"2012-07-14T14:38:16","modified_gmt":"2012-07-14T19:38:16","slug":"380","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/?p=380","title":{"rendered":"Magnetic Mockeries in the Brain"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s an interesting little technology quirk coming over the hill called \u201ctranscranial magnetic stimulation\u201d (TMS)<\/a>. I\u2019ve read a few things about how neuroscientists are using it to study the brain. Basically, it shoots a pulsating electro-magnetic inductance field through your skull and into your gray matter, where it can mess around with the electrical signals flowing through your neurons. That\u2019s the stuff that makes your mind work and forms your consciousness. <\/p>\n

TMS has been around for some time now, but with all the brain research going on these days, it has been put to much use lately. Aside from brain function experiments, it is now being tested as a therapy for depression and migraine headaches. And one scientist, Dr. Michael Persinger in Canada, is using it to generate mystical states of consciousness<\/a>, akin to religious experiences. He\u2019s been rather successful at it. Other scientists think that it unlocks many different types<\/a> of creative mind abilities.<\/p>\n

So, the TMS technique is starting to sound like a drug, something that can have a profound effect on consciousness. And it\u2019s not illegal. And furthermore, it\u2019s not all that high-tech. It lends itself to an electrical handyman\u2019s basement project. In fact, there\u2019s a wiki web site for those interested in do-it-yourself TMS<\/a>. It\u2019s a bit uncertain what power levels are going to be needed to get results. Most TMS researchers use high-powered electromagnets outputting 1 to 1.5 Tesla of field strength for short bursts. That sort of machine would require at least 120 V power and some heavy capacitors. But Persinger\u2019s research alleges that weak fields, down in the microtesla range, can have noticeable effects. That would be more in the battery or 12V converter range, where nobody could get badly hurt. Let\u2019s hope that the Popular Science crowd and the new age electro-stoners stay away from the industrial equipment. If it can be done outside the lab, it can be abused, and someone\u2019s gonna get hurt. <\/p>\n

And there are indications that this technology can hurt as well as heal. If the pulses hit the wrong areas of the brain, there is the possibility of seizures, or interference with autonomic brain stem processes (like breathing and heartbeat). So yes, the military has become interested in TMS. At minimum, the University of South Carolina is working on a device to put in soldiers\u2019 helmets that would counter the effects of exhaustion and sleeplessness. But there might also be negative effects that can be guided towards the enemy<\/a>, as the technology develops. One can also imagine TMS as a future domestic homicide tool, if they can miniaturize the technology. A disgruntled spouse charges up his or her TMS-stun gun, then while the unfaithful partner is asleep, just a few zaps to the back of the neck, and . . . . no bullets, no poison, no blood, pretty much no evidence. <\/p>\n

Well, I\u2019m not in any hurry to fry my brain circuits with the equivalent of a nuclear electro-magnetic pulse (those of you who watch Jericho know what that can do). But then again, I can\u2019t help but wonder if waving a magnet back and forth over the right ear might bring inner peace after all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s an interesting little technology quirk coming over the hill called \u201ctranscranial magnetic stimulation\u201d (TMS). I\u2019ve read a few things about how neuroscientists are using it to study the brain. Basically, it shoots a pulsating electro-magnetic inductance field through your skull and into your gray matter, where it can mess around with the electrical signals […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=380"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2867,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380\/revisions\/2867"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=380"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=380"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimgworld.com\/blog1\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}