Brain Waves

At the root of all our thoughts, emotions and behaviours is the communication between Neurons within our Brains called Brain Waves. Brain waves are produced by synchronised electrical pulses from masses of neurons communicating with each other.

It is important to know that all humans display five different types of electrical patterns or Brain Waves across the cortex. The brain waves can be observed with an EEG that is a tool that allows researchers to note brain wave patterns. Each brain wave has a purpose and helps serve us in optimal mental functioning. The human brain’s ability to become flexible and/or transition through various brain wave frequencies plays a large role in how successful we are at managing stress, focusing on tasks, and getting a good night’s sleep. If one of the five types of brain waves is either overproduced or under produced in our brain, it can cause problems. For this reason, it is important to understand that there is no single brain wave that is better or more optimal than the others.

Each serves a purpose to help us cope with various situations – whether it is to help us process and learn new information or help us calm down after a long stressful day. The five brain waves in order of highest frequency to lowest are as follows: gamma, beta, alpha, theta, and delta.

Neural Oscillaitons

Neural Oscillations have been most widely studied in neural activity generated by large groups of neurons. Large-scale activity can be measured by techniques such as EEG. In general, EEG signals have a broad spectral content similar to pink noise, but also reveal oscillatory activity in specific frequency bands. The first discovered and best-known frequency band is alpha activity (7.5–12.5 Hz) that can be detected from the occipital lobe during relaxed wakefulness and which increases when the eyes are closed. Other frequency bands are: delta (1–4 Hz), theta (4–8 Hz), beta (13–30 Hz) and gamma (30–70 Hz) frequency band, where faster rhythms such as gamma activity have been linked to cognitive processing. Indeed, EEG signals change dramatically during sleep and show a transition from faster frequencies to increasingly slower frequencies such as alpha waves. In fact, different sleep stages are commonly characterized by their spectral content. Consequently, neural oscillations have been linked to cognitive states, such as awareness and consciousness.

Frequency response

In response to input, a neuron or neuronal ensemble may change the frequency at which it oscillates, thus changing the rate at which it spikes. Often, a neuron's firing rate depends on the summed activity it receives. Frequency changes are also commonly observed in central pattern generators and directly relate to the speed of motor activities, such as step frequency in walking. However, changes in relative oscillation frequency between different brain areas is not so common because the frequency of oscillatory activity is often related to the time delays between brain areas.

Alpha Waves

Alpha waves are neural oscillations in the frequency range of 7.5–12.5 Hz[1] arising from synchronous and coherent (in phase or constructive) electrical activity of thalamic pacemaker cells in humans. They are also called Berger's wave in memory of the founder of EEG.

Beta Waves

Beta wave, or beta rhythm, is the term used to designate the frequency range of human brain activity between 12.5 and 30 Hz (12.5 to 30 transitions or cycles per second). Beta waves can be split into three sections: Low Beta Waves (12.5–16 Hz, "Beta 1 power"); Beta Waves (16.5–20 Hz, "Beta 2 power"); and High Beta Waves (20.5–28 Hz, "Beta 3 power"). Beta states are the states associated with normal waking consciousness.

Delta Waves

A delta wave is a high amplitude brain wave with a frequency of oscillation between 0.5–4 hertz. Delta waves, like other brain waves, are recorded with an electroencephalogram (EEG) and are usually associated with the deep stage 3 of NREM sleep, also known as slow-wave sleep (SWS), and aid in characterizing the depth of sleep.

Gamma Waves

A gamma wave is a pattern of neural oscillation in humans with a frequency between 25 and 100 Hz, though 40 Hz is typical.According to a popular theory, gamma waves may be implicated in creating the unity of conscious perception.

Theta Waves

Theta waves generate the theta rhythm, a neural oscillatory pattern in electroencephalography (EEG) signals, recorded either from inside the brain.In human EEG studies, the term theta refers to frequency components in the 4–7 Hz range, regardless of their source. Cortical theta is observed frequently in young children. In older children and adults, it tends to appear during meditative, drowsy, hypnotic or sleeping states, but not during the deepest stages of sleep.

See Also

Mind Control

Mind Controlled Gene Expression