Electric Emotions
In 1996 the New York Times reported on Dr. Michael Persinger a neuroscientist at Laurentian University in Ontario with relations to clandestine agencies and his experiments with solenoids and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. T.M.S. exploits the fact that neurons are comparable to electrical devices. When a nerve cell is activated, it triggers a flow of electrons and, when reaching the nerve end, the electrons induce the release of chemicals that pass to neighboring nerve cells. Thus stimulated, those cells continue the process throughout the brain.
T.M.S. allows the programming of patterns at which the fields will fluctuate. The impulses move through the temporal lobe and penetrate deep into the brain, where they interfere and interact with the complex electrical patterns of the subject's neural fields. The new sequences spread through the limbic system, producing sensations that range from subtle to profound and can produce rather bizarre experiences, such as thumb moving, while the subject's visual impression is that it remains still. The magnetic device can produce mood changes, sadness, happiness, sexual arousal, and the experience of sensing a negative presence or benevolent force. Focused on the hippocampus, the device produces ecstatic effects but "If you interfere with the opiate pattern, people get very irritated" Persinger says.