An attempt to determine the structure of the nervous system serving mechanoreceptors.

Abstract

Following disparities between physical stimuli and psychophysically measured sensation patterns are investigated: 1. long or short duration stimulation of the same area on the skin produces different sensation patterns. No transient response is observed. 2. when a set of points on the skin is stimulated one by one at the rate, at least 2 points per second, the subject perceives easily readable, continuously moving tactual sensation. As the rate of stimulation of the same points increases, the trajectory of the sensation changes. Investigations regarding the above distortions, supplemented with other experiments, lead to some conclusions concerning the structure of the nervous system serving mechanoreceptors, and show the connections between psychophysical, electrophysiological and theoretical observations of this system.