Transcript What are the markers of the 4th state of consciousness

Brain and
Consciousness
Brain Patterns and TM
Practice
4/7/2017
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Grey
Matter
White
Matter
Cortex
(grey
matter)
is 1/8
Inch
Thick
Parts of neurons
• Dendrites and
dendritic spines
– Input
• Cell body
– make energy,
neurotransmitters,
integrate activity of cells
• axon
– Output
EEG: Ions in the Fluid Around
the Neuron
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+ ++ - - ++ + - + ++
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Sodium and
potassium
Chloride
Sources and Sinks along the Apical Dendrites
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Sodium and
potassium
Chloride
Electrical Activity from Neurons “Talking”
Can be Measured at the Scalp
EEG
Skull
Surface of
the brain
(1/8” thick)
Brain waves measured by EEG mostly reflect
electrical activity in the cortex, but include
contributions from the whole brain.
Frequency
(cycles/sec or Hz)
Cognitive Processes
1-3 Delta
Restoration during deep sleep.
Delta is also seen during waking
when brain areas are strongly
inhibited from firing.
4-5 Theta1
Drowsiness and dreaming
5-7.5 Theta2
Inner mental processes such as
during a memory task
8-10 Alpha1
Inner wakefulness (Seen during TM)
10-12 Alpha2
Brain modules primed to be used in
a task, but currently are quiet (Seen
during eyes-closed rest)
16-20 Beta1
Ongoing processing of experience
20-50 Gamma
Strong focus or concentration (Seen
right now in your brain…)
Power Spectrum
Power Maps: Frontal Theta
Task: 5 sec – 0 sec
Alpha
Beta
Gamma
TM: 30 sec – 35 sec
Alpha
Beta
Gamma
Inward and Outward Strokes of TM
.
Inward stroke
Outward Stroke
Travis, 2001
Transcendental Consciousness Apneustic
Breathing and Autonomic Measures
Travis, 2000
“Whatever the object is, if the subject keeps on changing, the
knowledge will keep on changing. A fresh, alert man likes oranges, but if, when
he starts to feel sleepy and dull, some says, Here is some very sweet orange
juice. Would you like it? he may not even say no; he is now sinking another state
of consciousness: drowsiness, sleep. The same orange juice, which was so
sweet, so likeable, now has not much value and does not draw his attention at all.
So knowledge differs on the basis of the differing states of consciousness of the
knower.” Maharishi
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TM Versus Eyes-Closed Rest
0.5
0.4
0.3
Frontal
Coherence
Differences
Frontal
Power
Differences
0.2
0.1
0
-0.1
Alpha1
Beta1 Frontal
Frontal
Coherence
Coherence
TM
Alpha1
Frontal
Power
Beta1 Frontal
Power
Gamma
Frontal
Power
Eyes Closed
Travis et al, 2010
fMRI (Blood Flow) during TM
Red =
Higher
Blood Flow
Blue=
Lower
Blood Flow
Transcendental Consciousness and
the Junction Point Model
Transcendental Consciousness, the
fourth state of consciousness
experienced during Transcendental
Meditation practice between
thoughts, is also available between
states of consciousness.
Junction Point Model
Travis, 1994
Transcendental Consciousness
and the Junction Point
Junction
Point in
nonmeditators
falling
asleep and
during TM
Travis, 1994
Junction points between sleeping
and dreaming
Travis, 1994
Srīmad Bhāgavatum
• Discourse XIII, 4
– “With eyes turned towards the Self,
he should discover the true nature of
the Self at the point of contact
between deep sleep and waking life
and look upon both bondage and
release as illusion and not real.”
Main Point
The continuous firing of 100 billion
neurons, each responding to
different aspects of experience,
create the electrical field around the
brain that are sampled by EEG
recording. Changes in the whole
electrical field characterize
conscious experience and states of
consciousness from sleeping to pure
consciousness.
Small Group Exercise
• Why might changes in brain
functioning be seen primarily in
the frontal areas of the brain
during TM practice?
• A considerable body of previous research
on the prefrontal cortex (PFC) has helped
characterize the regional specificity of
various cognitive functions, such as
cognitive control and decision making.
Here we provide definitive findings on this
topic, using a neuropsychological
approach that takes advantage of a unique
dataset accrued over several decades. We
applied voxel-based lesion-symptom
Prism analogy
Decomposing a complex signal into
component waves.
Delta 0-4 Hz
Theta 4-8 Hz
FFT
Raw
FFT
Alpha 8-12 Hz
FFT
FFT
FFT
Gamma 20-50 Hz
Beta 12-20 Hz
Power = Amplitude squared
Alpha
amplitude
Beta
amplitude
Default Network: Frontal-Midline circuits
(eLORETA-exact Low Resolution Electrotomography)
Travis et al, 2010
Make into transnecnding…
Action
Thinking
Motor
CEO
Emotions
Concrete
Experience
AnteriorPosterior
Alpha
Synchrony
Hebert et al, 2005. Journal of Signal
Processing.