Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. Concept; 2. Giant cells in the medullary reticular formation; 3. Pons; 4. Midbrain; 5. Hypothalamus: low road; 6. Thalamus: high road; 7. High arousal; 8. Phase transitions from low Ga states; 9. Roots of consciousness and its disorders; 10. A vertically integrated system.

Promotional Information

A succinct, neurobiological explanation of the pathways that 'wake up the brain' from deep anesthesia, sleep and brain injury.

About the Author

Donald Pfaff is Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior at the Rockefeller University, New York. With over fifty years of experience in the field, he has authored or edited more than thirty books and is active on six journal editorial boards in topics of neuroscience. His study of generalized arousal led to the first operational definition of the term, enabling scientists to measure arousal quantitatively in laboratory animals and humans.