Waves beyond waveforms:
(Mis)interpretation of alpha oscillations
in cognitive neuroscience

Abstract

An axiomatic view in contemporary neuroscience is that, under well-controlled experimental conditions, event-induced potentials and oscillations vary with task-specific cognitive demands and reflect the neural support of the cognitive operation performed.
A complementary view is discussed based on the premise that brain rhythms evolved to control the movement of the brain’s sensors and to register the consequences of this movement. This control of behavior is a species-independent necessity and a key survival requirement for all organisms equipped with and relying on the ability to explore the environment. Consequently, brain rhythms appear correlated with the cognitive task at hand, while they evolved primarily to support action. A series of results will be discussed that challenge the prevailing premise and support the conclusion that EEG components derived from electrophysiology appear to “underpin” cognition when they primarily reflect the potentiality and manifestation of oculomotor action, a requirement in all experimental examinations of human cognition. Waves, beyond mere waveforms, enable collective behavior across various organizational scales, ranging from neurons to animal societies.​

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Speaker

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​Tzvetan Popov researches how and why the dominant rhythm of the human brain relates to nearly all psychological concepts and constructs studied. He received training in clinical psychophysiology supervised by Brigitte Rockstroh and Gregory A. Miller. Encouraged and supported by Nathan Weisz during a sabbatical in Trento (Italy), a research stay working with Ole Jensen at the Donders Institute in Nijmegen followed. After several years of managing the MEG laboratories at the University Konstanz and the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim, Tzvetan is now an academic associate in the Department of Psychology at the University of Zurich and a Stand-in Professor for Cognitive Psychology at the University of Konstanz.