lawrence, george l. - electronics and brain control

8/4/2019 Lawrence, George L. - Electronics and Brain Control

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ELECTRONICSBRAIN

CONTROLJTIe are learning more abou t

our gray-matter computers

BY L. GEORGE LAWRENCE

IT IS TIlvlE that we closolv examinedbrain control, no w that scientists areactively seeking to unravel the mvsteries

that shroud tha t min ia tu re bioelectric giantknown as the human brain. Elements ofbrain control can already be found in anticollision radar technology involving birds.I t has also been substantiated that, bvpumping energy in the gigahertz range a'ffrequencies t hrough human heads, subjectscan suddenly "hear" wit hout using theirears.

Much remains to be done to correlateand sift ou t concealed facts, We still knowvery little about th e all-important codingevents that take place in th e brain's neuronsynaptic complex. Ho w can we measure an dreinforce such significant human capacities aslove, will, an d character? Does uncontrolledelectromagnetic pollution affect the brain?These and other quest ions remain to beanswered as scientists delve deeper anddeeper into the h um an b ra in with the helpof electronics.

What Is the Brain? The th eor v t hat th ebrain is a true electronic machine has of tenbeen proposed. To a point, the theory istrue. As Dr. Wilder Penfield demonstratedsome years ago, the electrical stimulation ofbrain tissue during skull surgery triggers

JULY 1973

lucid audio-visual recalls of past events in

patients. Th e patient "sees" and "hears"complete increments of true life experiences,all in correct sequence.

But consider Fig. 1. Studies are enormously complicated by the fact that thehuman brain contains an estimated 10bil lion nerve cells called "neurons" an d another 100 billion of a second type called"glial" cells. The fluid bath in which thesecells are suspended is a vital element in theirelectrochemical interactions. Is it here whereemotional components and memory arestored and where we have susceptance tomicrowave an d other e lect romagnet ic frequencies?

Such quest ions gUide us into the subjectof "synaptic" t ransmission. The term "synapse" is derived from the Greek phrase"to clasp' and was introduced in 1897 bya Dr. Sherrington who used it to describethe junctional region between two nervecells. In many cases there is a ga p or cleftacross a synapse. (In other cases, as in fish,a synapse is a real physical joint.)

On e big n eu ro n m ig ht h av e on its surfaceas many as 10,000 points of contact (synaptic knobs) with other neurons. When thelatter are stimulated, some of the millionsof ribonucleicacid (RNA) molecules insidethem give order s to the glial cells to manu-

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facture ne w proteins. Th e nature and pattern of these proteins contain an imprintof something that has been perceived andapparently gives rise to a molecular "engram."

We also find electrical dipoles in synapticmechanisms which, when ori en ted and arranged in a large array, apparently can produce an electric field strong enough to drivepositive ions over the junction barrier ofthe postsynaptic membrane (in a mannersimilar to that in a transistor) a nd t he re byinitiate excitation or produce depolarization.So, one comes to believe that th e nature ofsynaptic transmission is essentially electrical,be it mediated by electrical or chemicaltransmitters.

By inference, then, th e possibility arises

of human brain control by electromagneticforces directed at it from the outside. I fsuch radiat ions can be suitablv coded toelicit a synchronous response in 'the neuronsynaptic complex, the brain will triggermotor functions which, in turn, cause manor animal to execute a programmed act.Here we have some fascinating experimentsthat hold great hopes for the immediatefuture.

In th e case of hearing, for example, we

have b ee n t au gh t that our audi tory systemcan respond only to acoustic energy. This"fact " is far from correct. Experiments con-

IMPULSE

SYNAPTICVESICLES

JBRAIN CELLS' JUNCTION

ducted by Dr. Frey and others clearly indicate that the audio sense in m a n - a n dprobab ly in animals, too-can respond toelectromagnetic energy in at least a portion of th e r-f spectrum. Data shows that,at very low power levels (to preclude biological damage) in tests like that shown inFig. 2, there are audio sensations at frequencies as low as 200 MHz and at least ashigh as 3 GHz. When low-level energy wasdirected at them, th e tes t subjects reported"hearing" a buzzing sound. However, theyfound it almost impossible to match r-fsounds to a sine wave. The apparent sourceof the buzzing, clicking, knocking, or hissing sounds is described as being within orimmediately beh ind the ir heads, This localization persists no matter how a person ro

tates or twists hishead

inth e

r-f field.I t was during these studies that a profoundly important discovery was made: deafsubjects often had the ability to hear r-fsound. Th e clinical criterion was that, if agiven person could hear audio above 5 kH zeither by bone or air conduction, then r-fsound could be heard as well. This an d related work has resulted in the manufactureof r-f type hearing aids for the deaf, on eof which is made by Listening, Inc., 6 Gar

de n St., Arlington, Mass., an d is known asthe Neurophone Model GPF-l. I t operatesat 100 kHz and employscrystal control.

NERVE CELL TERMINALS

/ ( S Y N A P S E l

/. : . . / - ,v - - , : , \ \

. " '- ..

AXON

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Fig.!. Neuron/synaptic mechanism in the human nervous system.

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These observations tie in with the factthat some individuals ca n detect radio programs through the fillings in their teeth.Thi s phenomenon was technical ly verif iedby interposing shields between respectivepeople wh o exhibited it and the modulatedr-f sources. When th e lower ha lf of th e h eadwa s covered, including the maxillary dentalarea, the r-f sound was perceived. Th esound ceased upon covering the top half ofthe head. While the mechanism responsiblefor this phenomenon is only imperfect ly understood, it can be assumed to be the resultof direc t cortical nerve fiber stimulation,

Vie also have another form of hearingsensations t ha t come about when t he h um anhead is placed between tw o large capacitorplates that are excited by varying electrostatic potentials. "Electrophonic hearing," as

it is called, apparently acts on the ear'stympanic membranes in a quasi -mechanica lmanner. I t is useful as a new research toolin special ized psycho-physiological studieson th e auditory or v ib ro tact il e system.

Unavoidably, data of this sort begs application. Pilot studies are under way toapply effective electrodynamic brain controlto animals an d man himself. Consider, forexample, th e brain-wave proposal based on

ideas put forth by th e late Dr. NorbertWeiner, th e acknowledged father of cybernetics.

According to Weiner, a sheet of tin suspended from the ceiling of a room an d connected to a lO-Hz electrostatic generatorcan cause unpleasant sensations in humansubjects. With a field strength of 1 or 2volts per sq em, the oscillating field roughlycoincides with the human brain 's alpharhythm frequency but attempts to lock itto a fixed frequency-that of th e generator.Electronic sleep machines employ similarprinciples, with currents of fixed amplitudeand pulse width (usually square waves) being fe d bv conduct ive face masks throught h ? ~cranium and brain. L

Brain Control of Birds. Radar technologvis now bei ng used to deal with th e problemof birds getting in the way of fast flyingaircraft. Th e idea is to trigger a flying bird' s(o r a whole flock's) brain into motor functions to ini tia te collision avoidance bv having the bird (s ) veer off th e flight path ofthe plane , This area of research was biggered by th e staggering incidence of plane/bird collisions that result in equipmentdamage estimated to be in th e mill ions of

JULY 1973

/ ~ REGION MOST SENSITIVETO ELECTROMAGNETIC~ ' d ~ ~(!ENERG:RANSMITTER

r-. y., NOISE

r ~ II \ \ . j"NLJ"''''ML

L:\sue.iecr ~ ,, " " " " " , C O "\. r

T R A N S M I N

Fig. 2. Microwave susceptance area in brain.

dollars each year and the human lives thatcontinue to be lost as a result of suchcollisions.

The work being c arr ie d ou t by th e National Research Council of Canada bearsmuch promise in bird-brain control. TheNRC's test svstem takes the form of a carousel of bird' cages containing live chickens.(Fig. 3) Only one of th e many cones sus

pended above th e cages contains a microwave antenna. The program, headed byDr . Alan Tanner, aims to evolve microwavebrain-control svstems that will have th egreatest possible effect on birds while atth e same t ime dep loy ing the leas t amountof power.

When exposed to microwave radiation,birds in general exhibit escape reactions.This fact became clear dur ing Wor ld WarII. Investigators also found that in eachcase th e microwave field through whichbirds were flying was of very low intensity- t o o low, in fact, to account for confusionan d escape reactions on the basis of heatgenerated in th e animals' bodies.

Different species of birds have differentbehavioral patterns. In the laboratorv, afe w seconds after th e microwave field hasbeen initiated, th e given bird's wing outsidethe field of radiation became collapsed an d

th e opposite wing became extended. Similar phenomena were observed wi th th e legs.Sometimes the birds heeled over to th eoutside of the field. In t he turning reaction,th e outer side of the bird becomes, paralvzed. In short, th e microwave beam interacts with th e nervous system of th e testbirds. Seagulls and pigeons reacted similarly,

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though th e gulls are more incl ined to initiat e flight.

It is interesting to note that a bird' sfeathers appear to play a much greater rolein the sensory complex than has been realized before. Defeathered chickens, for example, give little or no reactions to microwave fields until th e twelfth day, at which

time ne w feathers start to grow and tipsprotrude from the surface of the skin. Inthe case of fully feathered chickens whosetail feathers were exposed to microwaveradiation, th e birds immediately ceased exploration of their cages an d exhibitedmount ing signs of distress after a period of10-20 seconds. When the microwave fieldwas switched off, th e birds responded byfluffing their body feathers and active

preening.Th e Canadians believe that the physicalproperties of quill tissue-particularly thepiezoelectric properties that are fundamentalto living tissue-suggest mechanisms thathave heretofore been overlooked. However,work carried on by Dr. Tanner an d his staffas well as research conducted elsewhereshould in time yield a microwave beam ofthe proper wavelength and modulat ion tocause birds to ac tiva te collision avoidancewith all possible haste.

BrainWave Detection. Some 40-odd veal'Sago, university professor F. C a z z a ~ n a l l i

s tar ted publishing papers on the subject ofbrain-wave detection and implied that hehad detected radiations from the mind. Asshown in Fig. 4, he placed subjects in ashielded room (o r Faraday cage) , emanatedvhf radiowaves through their heads, andclaimed to have recorded "beat frequencies"obtained with an untuned receiver consisting

of a galena crystal or diode tube, a fixedcapacitor, an antenna, and a sensitive lightbeam galvanometer.

The trouble is that Cazzamalli nevermentioned transmitter power in his somewhat unprofessional papers. His oscillogramsmeant to show variations of th e "beat"when his subjects were emotionally arousedor engaged in creative tasks when theywere in the Faraday cage. Later, he told an

astounded world that his subjects wouldhallucinate when under the influence of his"oscillatori telegrafica," its frequency beingabout 300 MHz at the time.

Tom .laski, a noted science writer andengineer, duplicated some of Cazzamalli'swork with a modern low-power oscillatorthat was swept from 300 MHz to 60 0 MHz.His subjects could not see the dial. Theywere told to sound off as soon as they feltsomething unusual. At a certain frequencyrange-varying between 380 MHz and 500M H z - t h e subjects repeatedly indicatedpoints with exact accuracy in as many as14 ou t of 15 trials. At these "individual"

Fig. 3. Microwave test carousel to determine react ions in l iv e b ir ds . Only one coneis active; all others are dummies. (Courtesy National Research Counci l of Canada)

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E ARTH- GROUND

.1 """= GROUND

MOVINGFILM

/ / ,1/1/ / ~

L - _ - - < ~ - - J \'",,,LIGHT BEAM ) i f

GALVANOMETER LIGHTSOURCE

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Fig. 4. Cazzamalli's brain-wave detector of some years ago is illustrated here.

frequencies, the same subjects announcedhaving experienced pulsing sensations inthe brain, ringing in the ears, and an odddesire to bite th e experimenters. The oscillator's o ut pu t p ow er was only a few milliwat ts , whi le the oscillator itself was locatedseveral feet away from th e subjects.

The Conclusions. Considering th e ingredients of the few sample discussions presentedabove, it appears that both humans andanimals have brains sensitive to r-f ene rgy.The cor re lat in g m ech ani sm s a re only imperfectly known, but t he y a pp ar en tl y reside within th e neuron-synaptic complex.No r will we know how this susceptance

affects our longevity without p roceed ingwith a great deal more research.

Just how electromagnetic radiation affectsour social structure has le d to a great dealof speculation in th e past. Fo r example, thelate Dr. Goldman once insisted that r-fenergy allows th e id, or primitive brain, totake control over human affairs. Such con

siderations might open a Pandora's boxwhen applied to an explanation of ou rsha rply increasing crime rates and declineof social fidelity. So, before we rush pellmell into electromagnetically contaminatingour environment, it would serve us wellonce and for all to discover what adverseeffects, if any, it will have on ou r lives. ~

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lawrence, george l. - electronics and brain control

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