2010 - saroka, mulligan, murphy & persinger - neuroquantology - experimental elicitation of an out...

7/29/2019 2010 - Saroka, Mulligan, Murphy & Persinger - NeuroQuantology - Experimental Elicitation of an Out of Body Expe

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NeuroQuantology|December2010|Vol8|Issue4|Page466477

SarokaKetal.,Experimentalelicitationofanoutofbodyexperience

466

ThemeIssue:ExperimentalNeuroTheology

ExperimentalElicitationofanOutofBody

Experienceand

ConcomitantCrossHemispheric

ElectroencephalographicCoherence

KevinSaroka*,BryceP.Mulligan*,ToddR.Murphy*

andMichaelA.Persinger*

Abstract

Brief exposure to a counterclockwise global externally applied magnetic field

generated from an array of 64 solenoids designed to affect the cerebral fields

associatedwiththeleftandrighthemisphericcorrelatesofconsciousnessevokeda

powerful out of body experience (OOBE) in a single naive subject. The energy

availablefromtheappliedfieldwithinthecorticalvolumewaswithinthesameorder

ofmagnitude as that associatedwith the sum of action potentials in all cortical

neurons.DuringtheOOBEtherewasamarkedgeneralizedincreaseincoherencein

quantitative electroencephalographic activitybetween the left temporal lobe and

rightprefrontalregionwithspecificabnormallyhigh increaseswithinthe4to7Hz

and 15 to 21 Hz band. These results are congruent with the experience of

"consciousness"detachedfromthebodyandmovingthroughspace.Thediagonal

congruenceismoreconsistentwiththeexistenceoftwoquantizedfieldsoraglobal

fieldwith

opposing

polarities

whose

vector

determines

various

emergent

states

experiencedasOOBEsorsensedpresencesduringbriefperiodsofperturbation.

Key Words: out of body experiences, weak magnetic fields, interhemispheric

coherence,thetaactivity,Schumannresonances

NeuroQuantology2010;4:466477

Introduction1

Changes in states of consciousness (Jibu andYasue, 1995) have been considered analogousand perhaps even macroscopicrepresentations of changes in quantum states

Correspondingauthor:MichaelA.Persinger

Address: Consciousness Research Laboratory Behavioural

Neuroscience and Biomolecular Sciences Programs Laurentian

University, Sudbury, Ontario Canada P3E 2C6. Behavioural

Neuroscience Laboratory* Departments of Psychology

, Biology

,

BiomolecularScienceLaurentianUniversity935RamseyLakeRoad

Sudbury,Ontario,CanadaP3E2C6

Phone:+017056754824

email:

[email protected]

Received June2,2010.RevisedJune24,2010.

AcceptedJune27,2010.

(Bohm, 1951; Bohr, 1958; Persinger and

Koren, 2007). A state can be considered aquantized field composed of zero point energyfrom which specific properties emerge.Different space-time organizations of this fieldin localized space would exhibit slightlydifferent properties (Persinger and Meli,2008). Perturbations of the boundariesbetween these organizations, such as theprotrusion of one field into another, wouldproduce interactions. The relativity of frame ofreference, that is which field was invaginatingthe other, would affect the measurement or

the experience in fields that generate thisproperty.


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The human brain is considered theprimary spatial localization of humanconsciousness and its various states. The twocerebral hemispheres have remarkablydifferent structural configurations, even attopographical perspectives (van Essen and

Drury, 1997). The approximately 20 to 40billion neurons (Blinkov and Glezer, 1968;Pakkenberg and Gundersen, 1997) in thecerebral cortices of each hemisphere exist asrelatively independent fields whose normalintercalation is constrained by the corpuscallosum and anterior commissure. About 1%of the neurons in one hemisphere are directlyinvolved with interhemispheric interaction(Kolb and Whishaw, 2009).

If structure dictates function, then

normal left and right hemispheric processesshould display specific organizations ofconscious states and frames of reference.There is evidence that the left hemisphere isassociated with a linguistic-based sense of selfwith spatial boundaries and persistence intime (Joseph, 1982). The right hemisphericequivalent to the left hemispheric sense of selfis the "sensed presence", the feeling of aSentient Being (St-Pierre and Persinger,2006). There is both correlational andexperimental evidence for this distinction

(Persinger, 2003; Persinger and Healey,2002; Persinger and Makarec, 1992; Suedfeldand Mocellin, 1987). In fact brain dysfunctionlocalized to the temporoparietal junction hasbeen shown to be associated with both OOBEsand autoscopy (Blanke et al., 2004). The latteris characterized by the experience of seeingone's body in extrapersonal space.

The vectorial hemisphericityhypothesis (Persinger, 1993) states that whenthere is a transient or paroxysmal intrusion ofright hemispheric processes (or field) into left

hemispheric awareness the personexperiences a sensed presence, the righthemispheric equivalent to the sense of self.However if the left hemispheric processes (orfield) intrude into right hemispheric space, thesense of self is maintained and the experienceis "outside of the body". The self isexperienced as dissociated from the body.These phenomena have been labelledhistorically as out of body experiences (OOBE)in scientific contexts and astral or "soul"travelling within more mystical traditions(Fox, 1962; Twitchell, 1969).

Content analyses of reports of OOBEsby Tart (1967) revealed fundamental elementsthat included: 1) floating, 2) seeing one'sphysical body from the outside, 3) thinking ofa distant place while "outside" and suddenlyfinding oneself there, 4) possessing a non-

physical body, and, 5) being absolutelyconvinced the experience was not a dream.Persinger (1974) who analyzed the temporalsequence showed that 38% of experientsreported the OOBE suddenly occurred. Theremainder reported antecedent experiencesthat included tingling sensations (10%),vestibular experiences (16%), paralysis or pain(12%), fear (8%) or unusual sounds (8%).

The temporal sequence of theexperiences involved a progression from

"being pulled by a force", awareness of the"consciousness" looking down on the physicalbody, floating sensations "like the wind", andmovement through space by "thinking" or"willing". Two-thirds of experients foundthemselves in another place; about one-thirdof these places were the ones the people werethinking about at the time of the onset of theOOBEs; the remaining places were not "onearth" but in environments that ranged fromancient settings to "other worlds" (usuallywith religious meaning).

In about half the cases a "bright star"or light was reported in the blackness andapproached the experient. This wasassociated with a sensed presence attributedto culturally appropriate religious figures ordead relatives. A voice, reported in about 70%of the cases, told the person to "go back" or"return" to the body. The temporallycontiguous experiences of a sensed presenceand the instruction to "return" usuallypreceded the experient's return to the normalstate, i.e., "returning to the body".

Given the limited immediateinterhemispheric access throughinterneuronal communications (the 5 to 10msec complete latencies through corpuscallosal pathways) and the approximately 80to 120 msec coherence of a microstate over theentire cerebral surface before the next stablestate is organized (Koenig et al., 2002), onewould expect that neither OOBEs nor sensedpresences should occur frequently in a normalperson's lifetime. They would occur for brief

periods after acute minor functionalreorganization of the right hemisphere, such


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as mild brain injury (Persinger, 1994), duringappropriate electrical stimulation within thetemporoparietal regions (of the righthemisphere in particular), or during extrememetabolic states that typically diminish theblood flow or perfusion rates that are

approximately 10% higher in the righthemisphere. These suppositions have beensupported clinically and experimentally(Bancaud et al., 1994; Persinger and Meli,2008).

Both OOBEs and the sensed presencefrequently occur in a sequential order duringnear-death experiences (NDEs). From theperspective of the vectorial hemisphericityhypothesis, the enhanced vulnerability todiminished blood flow or hypoxia of the right

hemisphere during the conditions associatedwith near death would encourage theintrusion of the left hemispheric processesinto right hemispheric "space". Hence thesense of self and the prominence of "thought"in determining outcomes of experiences wouldpredominate. The content of the perceptionsreported by individuals who experience NDEsare compatible with this interpretation.

However the normal compensatorychanges in blood flow within the righthemisphere would then occur within the order

of tens of seconds and a reversal of the processwould ensue. The subjective experienceswould be expected to involve the awareness ofthe sensed presence and "returning" to thebody. Acquired verbal labels and associatedverbal images, determined by the person'scultural history, would affect the details of thesources and of the attribution for theseexperiences (Persinger, 1999a).

Such "analytical overlay" would beresponsible for the richness and variability of

detail which do not always reflect the"classical" forms reported in the popularmedia. For example one of our patients whosustained a mechanical impact to andsubsequent haemorrhage within the rightparietal lobe during a snowmobile incidentsuddenly felt himself detached from his bodyand riding as a passenger in a white limousinethat was speeding down a narrow road. Theinterior of the car was shining white. The carstopped at a red stop light and the dooropened and he was about to exit. However his

dead grandmother leaned into the car andsaid "stay inside you are not ready to get out".

The next experience he recalled wasawakening in the hospital. This man's passionand profession was working as the clerk of alarge company that sold automobile parts.

Tests of various hypotheses are most

optimally verified within the laboratory undercontrolled conditions but without the life-threatening conditions associated withtraditional OOBEs. Normal volunteers whosecerebrums have been stimulated by

extracerebrally applied weak (1 T range)magnetic fields whose patterns were designedto simulate natural phenomena, commonlyreport sensed presences as well as out of bodyexperiences. Both occur, although at varioustimes during the experiences, within 15 to 30min of continuous exposure while sitting in a

darkened, quiet room. However the externallyapplied fields are focused over a restrictedregion of the brain volume.

For the following experiment wereasoned the following. If there are twoquantum fields representing the left and righthemisphere, then an experimental conditionthat produces a coherent stimulation overmost of the cerebral volume and allows thepenetration of the field associated with thesense of self into the right hemisphericcondition there should be an associated

powerful OOBE. Because the lefttemporoparietal region is strongly associatedwith the sense of self (Joseph, 1982) and theright prefrontal region is associated with thereconstruction of the organization of spacewith respect to the self (Buckner and Petersen,1996), we predicted increased transientneuroelectromagnetic coherence betweenthese areas. The frequency of coherenceshould be within the theta (4 to 7 Hz) rangebased upon previous reports (Tart, 1967;1968) from people who could voluntarilyproduce these experiences as well as thetheoretical calculations that the generalfrequency ranges associated withconsciousness exist as second and third orderderivatives within the 5 to 6 Hz range(Persinger, 1999b).

The brain can be approached as acomplex space whose organization serves assubstrates for electromagnetic patterns thatare the quintessential sources of behaviour,including consciousness. If electromagnetic

patterns are the origin for consciousness(McFadden, 2002; 2009; McKay and


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Persinger, 2006), then it should be modifiableby the appropriately patterned, appliedmagnetic field. In the least, the magnitude ofthe energy from our applied fields shouldapproximate the magnitude of theneuromagnetic correlations of consciousness

within the whole of cerebral space so thatpotential interference or modification couldoccur. The quantum unit of neuronal function(Persinger, 2010), derived from the actionpotential, is approximately 2 x 10-20 J, theproduct of 120 mV (peak-to-peak voltagechange during an action potential) and 1.6 x10-19 Coulombs (charge per ion).

The energy within the cerebral corticesof the human being exposed to the estimated

intracerebral strength of 1 T magnetic fields

is calculated as J=[B2

(kg/A2

) /2*4pi x 10-7

N/A2] * volume. Because the cerebral corticesare .44 of the cerebral volume (1.1 x 10-3 m3),this means the energy available would beabout 6 x 10-9 J. If there are on average 40 x109 neurons within the cerebral cortices andeach neuron's action potential is 2 x 10-20 Jand the average firing frequency is 7 Hz, theenergy associated with the "electromagneticactivity" of consciousness is 560 x 10-11 J orabout 6 x 10-9 J (Mulligan et al., 2010). Theconvergence of these values indicates that the

energy generated from our applied magnetic

fields overlaps with that available within theentire cerebral cortices.

Subject and MethodsThe subject was a 27 year old male university

student. He sat in a comfortable chair in asmall office with normal low lighting (400 lux)and acoustic background (people walking inhallway). The subject wore a custom-constructed (by Todd Murphy) hat containing64 solenoids (see Figure 1) obtained fromRadio Shack. The 64-solenoids weredistributed equally around the cerebrum incolumns of 8 separated by 45 deg.Consequently there were 8 columns over theleft and right frontal, temporal, parietal, andoccipital lobes.

Shiva Neural Stimulation Software(Todd Murphy) was used to apply themagnetic field through 4 USB audio devices.This software was custom-designed by ToddMurphy to deliver weak-intensity magneticfields to each of the 8 columns of solenoids atspecified times with the same parameters usedin previously published studies (Martin et al.,2004; Richards et al., 2002). The actualsignals were audio derivatives of patternsconverted to magnetic fields that are usedregularly within our laboratory.

Figure1.Lateral, frontalandtopographicalviewsofthecustomconstructedhatused intheexperiment.Thehatcontains64

solenoidsarranged

in

columns

of

8separated

by

45

degrees.


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An 8-channel GrassElectroencephalograph was used to monitorbrain activity. Eight sensors (oddnumbers=left hemisphere; evennumbers=right hemisphere) were applied

with EC2 electrode cream over the frontal (F7and F8) parietal (P3 and P4) temporal (T3 andT4) and occipital (O1 and O2) regions inaccordance with the 10-20 InternationalStandard of Electrode Placement. Eyes openand closed baselines were collected prior tothe application of the magnetic fields forcomparisons.

The patterns of stimulation used inthis experiment were 5-minutes ofstimulation, 1.5 minutes of no stimulation,followed by a second period of 5-minutes of

stimulation. Such durations are capable ofeven qualitative EEG entrainment (Persingeret al., 1997). The base pattern of thestimulation was a burst-firing field, designedto imitate amygdaloid-firing patterns, whosetemporal structure has been publishedelsewhere (Martin et al., 2004). It iscomposed of 289 points each with a valuebetween 0 and 256 that is transformed tobetween -5 and +5 V. The specific voltage wassent to the strips of 8 solenoids to generate themagnetic field at any given time for any given

space around the cerebral perimeter. Thepoint duration of the voltage associated witheach point or value was 3 msec; consequentlyone sequence of the pattern was completedevery 867 msec. Point durations that are lessor more than 3 msec are less effective fromboth theoretical (Persinger and Koren, 2007)and experimental (Martin et al., 2004)perspectives.

Application of this pattern for onesecond every four second across the two

hemispheres by separate applicationgeometries at the level of the temporoparietalregion has been shown to attenuate markedlyclinical depression in patients who havesustained closed head injuries and who areresistant to antidepressant medication (Baker-Price and Persinger, 2003); thesephysiologically-patterned fields also produceanalgesia equivalent to about 4 to 5 mg/kg ofmorphine in rats (Martin et al., 2004). Theeffect size (how much variance in the changein clinical depression explained) for the relief

in depression is comparable to that frompulsed fields a million times (1 T) more

intense. In the present experiment each of the8 strips of 8 solenoids from the apex to themost lateral extent of the skull was activatedfor specific durations in a counterclockwisedirection.

During the first 5 minutes the leftfrontal strip was activated for 20 msec whileeach of the next succeeding strips of 8solenoids were activated for 2 msec less. Thusthe counterclockwise duration was 20 msec(over the left prefrontal region), 18 msec, 16msec until the duration of the right prefrontalstrip was 6 msec. The range in velocity was3.75 m/s to 12.5 m/s with the average=5.8m/s. This temporal configuration generates anaverage velocity and successive changes invelocity or acceleration. Near the right

prefrontal region the acceleration wouldapproach 9.8 m/s2. Such changes in rates ofchange or derivatives over the entire cerebralmanifold have been considered essentialproperties of human consciousness (Edelman,1989; Llinas and Ribardy, 1993).

The second configuration presentedfor 5 minutes after the 1.5 min no fieldcondition involved a base rate of 100 msec anda change of 10 msec. This means that theduration of the burst-firing field over the leftprefrontal region was 100 msec but the

duration for each of the successive 8 positionsaround the head decreased by 10 msec untilthe duration over the right prefrontal regionwas 30 msec. Both configurations (20+2 and100+10) were selected based upon boththeoretical calculations and empiricaldemonstration of effectiveness (Richards etal., 2002).

Statistical analysis was performed oncoherence and power measures derived fromthe raw data according to previous methods.

Six 3-second segments were extracted fromeach condition (eyes open, eyes closed, time ofOOBE). The segments were imported intoMatlab v.7 where specialized scripts calculatedcoherence and spectral power for each 1-Hzincrement. The data was then grouped byaveraging each frequency range according tothe classical bands (delta, theta, alpha1 (8 to10.5 Hz), alpha2 (10.5 to 13 Hz), beta andgamma). All of these derived data were thenimported into SPSS for Windows v.17 forstatistical analysis.


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ResultsElicited ExperiencesWithin a few seconds after the cessation ofactivation of the first 64-point magnetic fieldstimulation for 5 min with the 20+2configuration the subject reported a mild

floating sensation. A feeling of lightness,especially in the limbs, ensued. The feeling oflightness then became a sense of floating as if"my body was oscillating around the place inthe chair like a pendulum oscillating aroundits resting point even though I knew my bodywas sitting".

The sensation of floating/oscillationcontinued and was accompanied byintermittent "rushes of anxiety or sensationsof falling". During this period the experience

was similar to motion sickness. He focused onbreathing to avoid the urge to vomit. These"rushes" became more and more frequent andwere associated with feelings of dissociationfrom the body and a loss of body image andawareness.

The experience culminated with thesubject feeling his head was floating above thespot where his body was sitting. He could notdistinguish between his limbs, his torso, or thesurrounding space and objects in the room.During this intense experience, he considered

asking the experimenter to terminate theprocedure. Following the experience there wasnoticeable fatigue and a headache developed.

Quantitative EEG ResultsThe relative power (uV2/Hz) from eyes-closedbaseline associated with 7 of the 8 sensorpositions showed peak intensity within the 9to 13 Hz (alpha region) and an extraordinaryenhancement of voltage over the left temporallobe (T3) at 2 Hz (Figure 2) during the OOBE.

There was an overall increased coherencebetween the left temporal and right frontalregion during the OOBE relative to the eyes-closed reference (Figure 3).

Figure2.Elevatedpowerat2Hzwithin the lefttemporal lobewithaconcomitant increase in9 to13Hzpowerat7sensor

positionsduring the outofbody experience relative to theeyes closedbaseline.O1leftoccipital,O2rightoccipital, P3left

parietal,P4rightparietal,T3lefttemporal,T4righttemporal,F7leftfrontal,F8rightfrontal.


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However there was an additional "bimodal"peak in coherence (minimum=0;maximum=1) within the theta (3-7 Hz) andlow beta (15-23 Hz) range during the OOBEonly. These coherences were abnormally high

compared to typical waking cerebral activity.The means and standard error of the meansfor the coefficients of coherence withinsuccessive 1-Hz bands within the theta rangeare shown in Figure 4 for the conditions ofeyes-opened, eyes-closed, and the OOBE. Thestrength of coherence during the OOBE wastwice to three times greater on averagecompared to these values during the eyes-opened or eyes-closed condition.

There was also an enhanced coherencebetween the left temporal and left frontalregions within the theta band during theOOBE. To control for possible confoundingvariables, zero-order and partial correlationswere completed for the coherence values. The

zero order coefficients for the theta bandcoherence were: T3,F7 vs F7,F8 (.68), T3,F7 vsT3,F8 (.91) and F7,F8 vs T3,F8 (.68). Howeverafter partial correlation these values were .21,.84, and .19, respectively, indicating that thesource of the left temporal-right prefrontalcoherence originated from the left temporallobe and was not indirectly mediated betweenthe left temporal to the left frontal lobe andthen across to the right frontal region.

Figure3.Overall increased interhemisphericcoherencebetweenthe lefttemporalandrightfrontalregionsduringtheoutof

bodyexperience(OOBE)comparedtotheeyesclosedbaselinewithbimodalpeaksinthetheta(37Hz)andlowbeta(1523Hz)

frequencyranges.

DiscussionThe results of this study indicated that withthe appropriate stimulation by a globalextracerebral magnetic field generated by anarray of 64 solenoids the first stages to apowerful OOBE can be induced quickly in a

person sitting in a normally lit room withhallway sounds in the background. In otherwords, the energy and patterns associatedwith the globally applied magnetic fieldsdisplaced the holistic vectors (Wackermann,1999) correlated with normal sensory input.


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Figure4.Mean interhemisphericcoherenceforsuccessive1Hzbandswithinthetheta(37)rangeweresignificantlyelevated

during the outofbody experience (OOBE)when compared to eyesopen and eyesclosed conditions. Error bars represent

standarderrorofthemean.

The increased cerebral power within the rangeof alpha rhythms over most of the cerebrumduring the occurrence of the experimentally-elicited OOBE is consistent with reports ofother researchers. During partial sensorydeprivation subjects reported sensations ofthe self being detached from the body duringincreased amplitude of synchronous slowwaves with theta-like characteristics (Zubeketal., 1960; Coffer and Appley, 1964). Alphoidactivity, defined as synchronous activity 2 Hz

lower than the person's fundamental alphafrequency, was displayed in two differentspecial subjects who could voluntarily elicitOOBEs (Tart, 1967, 1968).

The coherence results observed in thepresent study strongly support the hypothesisthat OOBEs are associated with the protrusionof the left hemispheric field into the righthemispheric field. For this diagonalassociation there was a generalized increase incoherence between the left temporal and rightprefrontal region across all major frequencies(3 to 40 Hz) with specific peaks between 3 Hz

to 6 Hz and between 15 Hz to 22 Hz. If the lefttemporal region is associated with the sense ofself and consciousness and the right prefrontalregion is associated with spatial navigation,the reconstruction of autobiographicalmemory about when, where and with whoman event occurred (Buckner and Petersen,1996), and "mental time travel", then thisspecific coherence could encourageexperiences consistent with the classicalOOBE.

The left temporal-right prefrontalcoherence might be expected to include thefeeling of separation of the self from the body,"movement in space", "thought" as the centralframe of reference to control this movement,and the feeling of being somewhere else.These are classic features of OOBEs (Tart,1968). The remarkably enhanced amplitude ofpower within the 2 Hz band over the lefttemporal lobe, from this context, could beconsidered the source of initiation. Partialcorrelation analyses with the strongest

coefficients of coherence support thisinterpretation. The "left hemispheric field"


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would have been directed into the "righthemispheric field".

It is relevant that the OOBE did notoccur during the presentation of either fieldconfiguration. It began within seconds after

the termination of the 20+2 configuration ofthe counterclockwise rotating, globalextracerebral magnetic field to which thesubject had been exposed for 5 min. Theenergy within the cerebral cortices associated

with the application of the approximately 1 Tstrength burst firing magnetic field that wasrotated approximately 9.6 times per secaround the circumference of the head wouldhave been in the order of 10-9 J. We selectedthis intensity because it would be within thesame order of magnitude as the energy

generated by action potentials of theapproximately 40 billions neurons in thecortices. Even if only 10% of neurons'neuropatterns were coherent per second, theapproximately 100 msec duration of a percept(Koenig et al., 2002), the energy would besufficient to interact with the cohesive or"binding" factor (Llinas and Ribardy, 1993)that organizes the cerebral manifold.Theoretical calculations suggest the existenceof a recondite second or third derivativecontained within the 5 to 7 Hz band

(Persinger, 1999b).We suggest that the global magnetic

field generated by an array of 64 solenoids wassufficient to initiate instability within theholistic parameters that define the functionalstate of the whole brain (Wackermann, 1999).When this field stopped suddenly thecompensatory changes in the cerebralmagnetic field during this period ofstabilization produced the conditions for theleft hemispheric field to intrude into righthemisphere space. In fact the holisticmeasures of complexity decreased over the lefttemporal and right prefrontal regionsconcurrent with an increase in coherenceduring this transience which was associatedwith the OOBE.

The nature of the hemispheric fieldinteractions might be considered analogous tothe transient disruption of the constrainedpolarity of the geomagnetic field from thepenetration of opposite polarity flux linesduring shear disruptions from the solar wind

before the "reconnections" occur. In thepresent case, the initial vector for penetration

was driven by the marked elevation of voltageoriginating over the left temporal lobe. Thispeak would be congruent with the subjectsinitial vestibular experiences.

If consciousness exists within a narrow

band of neuroelectromagnetic activity thenstimulation below that threshold would not beeffective and magnitudes of stimulation abovethat threshold would be aversive andpotentially disruptive. Some spontaneouscases of OOBE are associated with negativeexperiences such as dizziness, nausea andfear. In addition, not all NDEs are positive.About 7 to 10% of these cases are extremelynegative affectively (Persinger, 1974). Theimagery, which involves the cultures labels foraversive sensations, is mood congruent. Such

non-linearity between the number and valenceof NDEs would be expected based upon theannular-like organization of reward andaversive areas within the limbic system.Aversive areas surround and suppresspleasure centers.

There would be a point where themicrocurrent induction from the conditionsassociated with the NDE would exceed thelower threshold pleasure areas and diffuseinto the surrounding aversive areas. If themagnitude of the induction was too high there

would be a complete disruption of the processand hence complete amnesia. In other words,most people would remember nothing. It maybe relevant that the transition from intrinsichippocampal patterns that promote normalmemory consolidation to those that reflectparoxysmal, epileptic seizure activity (andhence amnesia) occurs mathematically as anall-or-none, catastrophic event.

The occurrences of the left temporal-right prefrontal coherence within the theta

and low beta band have two majorimplications both for OOBEs and for thenature of consciousness within brain space.First the diagonal nature of the coherencewould not be consistent with a fixedstructuralist model whereby two hemispheresinteract laterally through the corpus callosumand anterior commissure. The asymmetrymight be considered representative of afundamental, holistic standing wave derivedfrom the beats or emergent organizationsfrom the rapid alternations from reciprocal

inhibitory control between the twohemispheres and the ascending input from the


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brain stem. This cohesive field moves in arostral to caudal direction through the corticalmanifold with repetition rates and phase-modulations within the 10 to 20 msec range(Llinas and Ribardy, 1993).

Within an equilibrium system wherethere are periodically shifting polarities, suchas the solar magnetic field, one would expectat least four fundamental states or brieflystable configurations within the three planes.Along the horizontal (x,y) plane the first twowould be: left frontal-right caudal and rightfrontal-left caudal. Along the z-axis or verticalplane one would expect two similar polaritiesmore homogeneously integrating bothhemispheres but differing in the focus over therostral or caudal dorsal frontal pattern. In fact

these four patterns are very similar to thefundamental microstates that define thehuman brain ontogenetically (Koenig et al.,2002). From this perspective theneuroelectromagntic field associated withstates of consciousness are cohesivetranscerebral fields that occupy the brain'svolume.

The second implication involves thetwo bands of coherence. Both the theta andlow beta band are very similar to the first andsecond harmonic of the Schumann resonance.

It defines the essential standing wave, with theusual range of 7 to 8 Hz, between the earth'ssurface and the ionosphere. This frequencyrange is shared by the human hippocampus,the "gateway to memory", and has beenhypothesized to be a potential mechanism bywhich the transient 20 to 30 min of electricallylabile state of experiences before they areconsolidated to protein structures anddendritic spine growths could be representedin extracerebral space (Persinger, 2008).OOBEs are more probable in people with

elevated complex (temporal lobe) partialepileptic-like signs during periods ofmoderately enhanced geomagnetic activity(Persinger, 1995).

Secondly, Minakov et al (1993) haveshown theoretically that gravitational wavescan be converted into electromagnetic waves.Gravity waves freely propagated inside theearth-ionospheric resonator induce alterationsin the boundaries as well as perturbations inthe space-time metric. According to these

authors, the most powerful region of

amplification of a gravity wave is near thesecond global Schumann harmonic around 14to 15 Hz. The second peak of coherencebetween the left temporal lobe and rightprefrontal region occurred within this band.Whether or not these similarities could

explain the acquisition of information fromdistal sources during OOBEs remains to beexamined. Throughout the last two millenniathere have been repeated claims of"projections" into distal spaces. Althoughmost experiences are easily accommodatedthrough the nuances of normal neuronalchemistry and neuropsychological processesassociated with fantasy and confabulation, theoccasional reports of information notaccessible to the experient within this"cerebral noise" may be worth pursuing.

Pursuit of the neuroQuantologycomponent of OOBEs may be revealing. Weconsider states of consciousness as conditionsanalogous to quantum states embedded withcerebral fields. The fields contain quantizedpoints. A candidate for this quantum has beenthe 10-20 J associated with the quintessentialdigital component of information transferwithin brain space: the action potential(Persinger, 2010). If the operating intensity ofthe cerebrum is about 10 pT, then the energy

available within the cerebral cortices would be2 x 10-20 J. That the magnitude of the unitreflects the magnitude of the whole would bean important component for the condition of afield.

In previous research (Booth et al.,2005) we applied the quantum nature ofelectron energies during the presentation ofmagnetic fields to the cerebral volume. TheZeeman effect occurs when the application ofa magnetic field "splits" the emission andabsorption spectrum of the constituents of

matter into equally polarized components.One solution for the equivalent Zeemanfrequency is the product of the field strengthand charge divided by the mass of theelectron. For a field strength of 10 x 10-12 T anda unit charge of 1.6 x 10-19 A s, the frequency toproduce this effect in an electron with a massof 9.1 x 10-31 kg is about 2 Hz. Whether or notthe extraordinary peak of power at 2 Hzwithin the left temporal lobe noted in thepresent case was indicative of this effectrequires further examination.


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