ABSTRACT
Certain general attributes of the brain enable it to generate large-scale patterns of cooperative activity. These include the immense numbers of nerve cells packed at high density; the filamentous threads of protoplasm that each neuron extends over distances relatively great with respect to the diameters of neurons; the lack of protoplasmic contact between neurons that gives each a significant degree of autonomy; and the specialized junctions or synapses that neurons sustain with thousands of others within their arbors, such that there are innumerable feedback loops. Neural activity at the microscopic level of single neurons occurs in two main forms, the pulse and the wave that are characteristically associated with two main types of filament: the dendrite and the axon. The bulbar and cortical fields of potential both show the strong tendency for a brief burst of oscillation to occur during each inspiration. The mechanism of burst formation is of particular interest for an understanding of olfactory function.
