PeterWatts_Blindsight

Peter Watts 314 Blindsight
Others (e.g. Grey Syndrome) have not yet made their way into the
DSM 23 —truth be told, I invented a couple— but are nonetheless
based on actual experimental evidence. Depending upon whom
you believe, the judicious application of magnetic fields to the
brain can provoke everything from religious rapture 24 to a sense of
being abducted by aliens 25 . Transcranial magnetic stimulation can
change mood, induce blindness 26 , or target the speech centers
(making one unable to pronounce verbs, for example, while
leaving the nouns unimpaired) 27 . Memory and learning can be
enhanced (or impaired), and the US Government is presently
funding research into wearable TMS gear for—you guessed it—
military purposes 28 .
Sometimes electrical stimulation of the brain induces "alien hand
syndrome"— the involuntary movement of the body against the
will of the "person" allegedly in control 29 . Other times it provokes
equally involuntary movements, which subjects nonetheless insist
they "chose" to perform despite overwhelming empirical evidence
to the contrary 30 . Put all this together with the fact that the body
23 American Psychiatric Association. 2000. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders. (4 th Ed., Text Revision). Brandon/Hill.
24 Ramachandran, V.S., and Blakeslee, S. 1998. Phantoms in the Brain: Probing
the Mysteries of the Human Mind. William Morrow, New York.
25 Persinger, M.A. 2001 The Neuropsychiatry of Paranormal Experiences. J
Neuropsychiatry & Clinical Neuroscience 13: 515-524.
26 Kamitani, Y. and Shimojo, S. 1999. Manifestation of scotomas created by
transcranial magnetic stimulation of human visual cortex. Nature
Neuroscience 2: 767-771.
27 Hallett, M. 2000. Transcranial magnetic stimulation and the human brain.
Nature 406: 147-150.
28 Goldberg, C. 2003. Zap! Scientist bombards brains with super-magnets to
edifying effect. Boston Globe 14/1/2003, pE1.
29 Porter, R., and Lemon, R. 1993. Corticospinal function and voluntary
movement. Oxford University Press, NY.
30 Delgado, J.M.R. 1969. Physical control of the mind: toward a psychocivilised
society. Harper & Row, NY.