Evening star., 1953-12-04
Processes Of Though.
Under Investigation
Instrument Studies Waves
In 20 Areas of the Bruin
BY Thomas R. Henry


The chemistry and physics Of think
ing" now are being investigated under
Rockefeller Foundation grants in Europe
and the United States.
Most fundamental of the approaches
to probably the most complex of all
biological problems, described in the
foundations annual report. is that OF
DR.. W. Grey Walter of the Burden
Neurological Institute at Bristol, Eng
land.
It has been known for the past
two decades that activity of brain cells
is accompanied by the production Of
minute electric currentS-the So-called
brain waves which of late have
proved of considerable value in the
diagnosis of certain mental diseases
such as epilepsy. DR.. Walter himself
devised a means of locating brain
tumorS by exploration of these waves.
But "thinking"-o for that matter
any mental activity although it may be
far below the level of what generally
would be considered thoughts an ex-
tremely complex process. 1t involves
the apparently simultaneous activity of
many groups of brain cells. It is pos
sible to determine the electrical ac-
tivity of some specific area. 1t is also
possible to determine that of the brain
as a whole, in which specific area ac-
tivitieS are submerged. Neither de-
termination tells much about the
process of thinking.
Instrument Aids Study.
DR.. Walter, according to the report,
has developed an elaborate instrument,
the toposcope, by which it is possible
to determine simultaneously the cleo
trical activity of 20 or more brain areas.
A person, for example, sees something
that starts train of thought. There
will be an electrical response from
groups of brain cells specifically con-
cerned with tranSlating into vision i'm
pulses transmitted by the optic nerve.
But seeing is not thinking. Before there
can be any thought many other areas,
concerned with association, memory,
word patterns and the like, must go
into action.
DR.. Walter is on the trail of the
pattern in which this happens. His
equipment is designed to detect the
order in which the various brain areas
come into action, the strength OF their
reactions, etc. Already. according to the
report, he has been able to separate
electric patterns of particular interest
from the background activity OF the
brain as a whole. He can trace certain
elements of the primary Sensory pat
ternS-Seeing, hearing, etc.-lnto sew
eral of the so-called association areas
of the cerebral corteX. In the next few
years he hopes to correlate these with
the conscious sensations of the subject,
with elementary mental activities and
with emotional awareneSs.
Under another Rockefeller grant. DR..
Jordi Folch-Pi of the Massachusetts,
General Hospital is carrying on long
term investigation of the chemical
anatomy of the BRAIN" Under his di-
rection one research team is engaged
in an analysis of the fat and protein
substances which form the chief COM
ponentS of brain structure. Many OF
the substances occurring in the brain
are found nowhere else in the body. 1t
now has been possible to isolate and
partially identify three new types OF
complex molecules. The next stage OF
the work, which will require many years
to complete, will be the precise de-
termination of these substances. The
relatively rough approxin1a ationS now
available, however, allow start to be
made in finding whether brains of per-
sons with mental and nervous diseases
differ in chemical composition from
normal brains. .r
Cerebral COrtex Studied.
DR.. Alfred Pope. also at Massachu-
setts General. is directing an intensive
study of the cerebral cortex, the top
layer of the brain, in which all think
ing" takes place. The cortex is layer
of cells and fiberS approximately an
eighth of an inch thick. Within this
thin layer. however. six smaller sub
layers can be Disseminated on the
basis of the number or size of cells
and the pattern of interlacing fibers.
DR.. Popes specific project is to deter
mine the concentration of specific
enzymes-chemical substances which
initiate physiological action and are
necessary for carrying it on but which
do not themselves take part in 1t-ln
these different layers.
Alternate sections about 40 thou
sandths of q .millimeter thick and
few square millimeters in area are
taken for microchemical analysis. The
distribution of six different engines
in the various cortical layers has al
ready been mapped, both for man and
the rat Work is now in progress to
map the distribution of engines in
the cortex of patients suffering from
major nervous and mental diseases.