Electroencephalogram (EEG) Images Showing the Impact of ... · Electroencephalogram (EEG) Images...
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Electroencephalogram (EEG) Images Showing the Impact of Sound on the Brain (Images taken from research by Alexandre Tannous) Electroencephalography (EEG) is the method used for measuring and recording the brain’s spontaneous electrical activity. To appreciate this it is first relevant to understand the various activity wave states of the brain. It may be helpful to describe these as the five gears of the brain. Each gear is represented by a different wave pattern in the graph below. Throughout the day our brains circulate between each of these brain wave states or gears depending on the activities the body and/or mind is involved in. A collection of EEG scans taken as part of research by Alexandre Tannous into the affects of harmonic producing instruments on the brain wave frequency. It should be noted that the EEG scanner monitors the electrical activity on the surface of the brain, so is only indicative of the brain wave affects of hearing sounds. There are size distinct levels to the brain that are likely to respond in different ways.
Transcript of Electroencephalogram (EEG) Images Showing the Impact of ... · Electroencephalogram (EEG) Images...
Electroencephalogram(EEG)ImagesShowingtheImpactofSoundontheBrain
(ImagestakenfromresearchbyAlexandreTannous)Electroencephalography(EEG)isthemethodusedformeasuringandrecordingthebrain’sspontaneouselectricalactivity.Toappreciatethisitisfirstrelevanttounderstandthevariousactivitywavestatesofthebrain.Itmaybehelpfultodescribetheseasthefivegearsofthebrain.Eachgearisrepresentedbyadifferentwavepatterninthegraphbelow.Throughoutthedayourbrainscirculatebetweeneachofthesebrainwavestatesorgearsdependingontheactivitiesthebodyand/ormindisinvolvedin.
AcollectionofEEGscanstakenaspartofresearchbyAlexandreTannousintotheaffectsofharmonicproducinginstrumentsonthebrainwavefrequency.ItshouldbenotedthattheEEGscannermonitorstheelectricalactivityonthesurfaceofthebrain,soisonlyindicativeofthebrainwaveaffectsofhearingsounds.Therearesizedistinctlevelstothebrainthatarelikelytorespondindifferentways.
TheBaselinescanshownbelowwastakenwhenthesubjectwaslyingdownwithablindfoldon,inarelaxedstatepriortoanyexposuretosound.Theelectricalactivityheresimplerepresentsthepassivebrainstateandillustratesthevolumeofactivitygoingoninthe‘MonkeyMind’.TheEEGimagespresentthescansfromtheLeftandRighthemispheresotheycanbedirectlycomparedinrealtime.Theimagerepresentsatimespanofaboutsixsecondsofbrainactivity.ThefivebrainwavestatesaremeasuredinHzalongthebottomofthegraphs.BrainwaveactivityisshownintheverticalplainandismeasuredinMicro-Volts,whichisapproximatelyonemillionthofavolt.ColoursrepresentdifferentintensitiesofbrainwaveactivityfromBlue,Green,Red,Orange,YellowandfinallyWhite.
Fromaneuroscienceperspectivetheaboveimageisindicativeofthesleepingstateofthebrain,butthispersonisnotsleeping.Thisisanalmostinstantaneousresponsethatoccursafteralargegongisplayed.Thesoundofthegongappearstoaffectthesubjectsawarenessinawaythatallthoughtprocessaredisruptedandbrainwaveactivityalmoststops.
Note:imagestakenasscreenshotsfromtheyoutubepresentationbyAlexandreTannousavailablehere:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFMa7PGEq0A
ThebrainactivityinthesecondEEGischaracteristicofemotionalresponses,withthelargeroundedpeaksratherthanthemanysharppointsthatcharacterisethe‘MonkeyMind’
Thesoundsignatureofthedrumisquitedifferentfromharmonicinstruments,butitcanstillproduceacomplexcombinationofovertones.ThesignificanceoftheEEGaboveisthesynchronicitybetweenthetwohemispheresofthebrain.Thebrainwaveactivityisreduced,butstillactiveandappearscontained.
ThechacapaisaleafrattleusedduringAyahuascaceremonies,whichisusedincloseproximitytothebodytoinduceatactile(touch)response,whilealsoproducingasent.Thismeansthatthebrainisrespondingtoacomplexcombinedstimulationfromatleastthreesenses.Meanwhile,theEEGscanfromtheincensePaloSantoalsousedinAyahuascaceremoniesandasasmudgingincensepriortootherceremonialactivities,canclearlybeseentostimulateadramaticbrainactivityresponse.Notewherethisactivityisinthelowerbrainwavestates(thelimbicsystem)representingadramaticinfluenceontheemotionalstateofthesubjectsinvolved.
