Talk:Alpha wave

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Medicine. Please visit the project page for details or ask questions at the doctor's mess.
Stub	This page has been rated as stub-Class on the quality assessment scale
Low	This article has been rated as low-importance on the importance assessment scale

"Alpha waves are electromagnetic oscillations (...)" AFAIK the brainwave activity is an electric potentials [voltage] measured on the scalp. So where that "electromagnetic" came from? :P EEG is measured by electrodes connected with differential amplifiers [voltage amplifiers - so, voltage again]. Conclusion: brainwaves are NOT electromagnetic waves, and don't radiate out from the scalp like if it were some radio waves or so :P The "waves" are the electric potential [voltage] changes. --SasQ

A wave is irrelevant to the method you use to pick it up. In EEG one detects electric voltage changes. However, in MEG on detects magnetic flux changes. In both cases the frequency defines the alpha wave (or beta etc.). "Electromagnetic" is a good generalization for both techniques.