Thread by @Wessel_Lab, In Tuesday's EEG class, I wondered out loud whether it was Berger [...]

In Tuesday's EEG class, I wondered out loud whether it was Berger who came up with the α/β freq. nomenclature. To check, I used the one ability that I received in return for a lack of a sense of humor & a weakness for sausages: the ability to read German. Let's go for a ride! 1/N

This paper contains many phrases that would be highly unusual in a 2020 science paper, but I found these often funny, charming, abrasive, or all three. It also includes a rather nonchalant description of a canine cervical spinal transsection, which I'll spare you. Let's go. 2/N

Let's start in the intro. There is a person named "Larionow" or "Larinonow", of which B. isn't much of a fan. In addition to using two spellings, B. leads by saying that L.'s work had been done "By the order of Bechterew" and "without any substantial new findings". Yikes. 3/N

Predicting the pain of ERPists everywhere, according to B., EEG responses to peripheral nerve stimulation disappear when cortex cools down too much, or sometimes "just generally due to inexplicable reasons". Yup. 4/N

On the subject of animal experiments, experiments on dogs were apparently made by differentially narcotizing them with Morphine and then waking them back up with Cocaine. If "Speedballing Dogs" isn't taken as a band name yet, I call dibs. 5/N

A general tendency in this paper is to dismiss things as obvious, which is definitely something I'm thinking of adopting in my own work. Here, B. says "I hardly need to say that the electrodes were placed as intended and I didn't damage the meninges.". Up yours, Reviewer 2. 6/N

Here, he describes getting a new galvanometer, which "took some time" and him getting "lucky". We'll come back to relatable aspects regarding instrumentation later 7/N

Here's some humility that would be nice to see in some current day work. "I am not educated enough in physics to judge the up- and downsides of this Siemens coil galvanometer", but apparently there are other guys that know, so that's that. 8/N

Little observation: most of the early intracranial work that preceded the actual scalp-recorded EEG (both described in this paper) was done on the patients of the same clinician (Neurosurgeon Dr. Guleke), who is not listed as a co-author. THAT certainly wouldn't happen today. 9/N

Here's some cerebellar EEG. Did NOT know that was already in there @IowaParkerLab 10/N

Berger actually describes a TON of artifacts here already (sweat, cable touching, blinks, EKG, ballistocardiogram), but also mentions that warm skin shows better impedance than cold skin, which I don't think I knew. Rub that electrode gel in, people! 11/N

Here is the first scalp EEG. Performed from B.'s son KLAUS, between the ages 15 and 17. For each recording, Berger cut his sons hair "as short as possible", which I'm sure his son just LOVED. 12/N

This figures is titled "Klaus at age 16." I can only imagine his wife asked him if it would kill him to put up some pictures of his kids in his office or something. Thanks dad! 13/N

The idea that EEG could be EMG is dismissed out of hand, because "everyone who has ever recorded muscle currents [...] would immediately reject that notion. They look completely different." Case closed, I guess (he does actually rule this out experimentally later). 14/N

Here's my favorite part. I'll leave you with the verbatim translation on this one. "Since I find the Word 'Elektrocerebrogramm' barbaric for linguistic reasons, as it is combined from both Greek and Latin words, I want to propose [...] Elektroenkephalogram". LMAO. 15/N

Here, a competitor named Bissky's work is dismissed as "phantasy" that wouldn't hold up to "serious investigators". Hit 'em up, Hans. 16/N

Finally, let's come back to instrumentation. The very last para in the paper: "It would be desirable to have more sensitive instruments. [...] Siemens and Halske offered me such instruments in 1927 already. However, they were too costly for me." Some things never change. The End.

Addendum: Some people have correctly identified that I haven't actually answered the original question about α/β. Indeed, in his 1931 second follow up (I can't find a copy of the initial 1930 one), he refers to what he called "1st/2nd order waves" in 1929 as α/β. ALSO ... 1/2

On the 1st page of the 1931 one, he has this footnote: After presenting the 1929 work to other physicians, it received more exposure, but also "alas, the daily papers published misleading & sensationalistic news on the topic, which I disagree with & regret". NOTHING CHANGES! 2/2

If someone has the 1930 paper, please send it to me!

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