Homo Sapiens became the dominant mammalian species on Earth largely because having a powerful, flexible, sophisticated brain offers all sorts of evolutionary advantages. However, until recently, we had relatively little idea how this energetically-hungry lump of gray matter really worked, and a full picture emerged only gradually. The electrical nature of nerve impulses was recognized by the late 19th century, and chemical synaptic transmission via neurotransmitters was discovered in the mid 20th century, culminating in today's integrated view that neural signaling depends on tightly coupling those two routes. But a lot still remains to be discovered. Case in point: a new review article suggests that there might be a third brain signaling pathway, dubbed the biofield, that scientists have been largely neglecting. |
