[FairfieldLife] Coherence schmoherence

[Vaj]

Large-scale alpha synchronization blocks information processing  
because very large
populations of neurons oscillate with the same phase and frequency;  
thus, it is a state
of high integration but low differentiation. Within a bandwidth of  
perhaps 2Hz near this
spectral peak, alpha frequencies frequently produce spontaneously  
moderate to large
coherence (0.3-0.8 over large inter-electrode distance (Nunez et al.,  
1997)).
The alpha coherence values reported in TM studies, as a trait in the  
baseline or during meditation,
belong to this same range. Thus a global increase of alpha power and  
alpha coherence
might not reflect a more “ordered” or “integrated” experience, as  
frequently claimed in
TM literature, but rather a relaxed, inactive mental state (Fenwick,  
1987).

-The Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness