brain waven.
/ˈbreɪn weɪv/, U.S. /ˈbreɪn ˌweɪv/ 1. (a) A (supposed) telepathic wave emanating from the brain (cf. brain vibration n. (a) at brain n. Compounds 2). Now rare. (b) colloquial. A sudden inspiration or bright idea.
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the world > the supernatural > the paranormal > [noun] > telepathy > energy involved in
thoughtwave1849
brain wave1869
telergy1884
the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of ideation > idea, notion, or concept > [noun] > bright
stroke of genius1728
brain wave1869
brainstorm1925
1869 Spectator 30 Jan. 133/2 Every idea in a living man's mind is accompanied by a special physical undulation, which our correspondent calls a brain-wave.
1871 A. Thackeray Let. in Lett. A. T. Ritchie (1924) 147 You must have sent a brain wave, for oddly enough we had all just read the book..when your letter came saying you too had been reading it.
1887 Proc. Soc. Psychical Res. 1886–7 4 178 Such expressions as ‘brain-waves’ (Knowles), ‘mentiferous ether’ (Maudsley)..testify to this natural, though premature, desire to ticket or identify a force which..cannot at present be correlated with nerve-force [etc.].
1890 Harper's Mag. Apr. 744/1 Lucilla, with what she was fond of terming a brain wave, comprehended the situation.
1916 Blackwood's Mag. Aug. 264/1 Then the wirers got brain waves, saw the folly of their first orders,..and began to panic terribly.
1917 W. P. Ridge Amazing Years xi. 160 It's a brain wave... Aunt Weston, how bright you are!
1926 J. Galsworthy Escape ii. vi. 72 Look here! I've got a brain-wave. Let's all go into Widecombe in the car?
1996 Daily Mirror 12 June (TV Suppl.) 2/6 Philip has a brainwave to cure Karl's lack of sleep—lending him Colin's boring audio-letter from China.
2. A fluctuation of electrical potential in the brain, as measured by electroencephalography; (with distinguishing Greek letter name or letter) a specific pattern of such fluctuation, as seen in certain parts or functional states of the brain. Frequently attributive.Cf. alpha wave at alpha adj. 3a, beta waves at beta n. 2h, delta wave n. at delta n. Compounds 2.
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the world > life > biology > biological processes > action of nervous system > [noun] > electrical phenomena
neuroelectricity1914
rheobase1917
bioelectricity1925
monophasicity1932
Berger rhythm1934
skin potential1934
brain wave1935
beta rhythm1936
beta waves1936
theta1944
hyperpolarization1946
hyperpolarizing1950
conductance1966
biopower1978
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electricity in living organisms > [noun] > impulse in brain
brain wave1935
1935 Discovery Jan. 1/1 By means of electrical records made through the skull various states of the brain can be recognised; but the ‘brain waves’ thus recorded do not appear to be the result of thought-action.
1959 Listener 1 Oct. 534/3 Study of the activity of the brain of puppies with the electro-encephalograph for ‘brain waves’..reveals a juvenile type of wave form.
1970 Look 6 Oct. 90/2 Four primary brain-wave patterns have been identified using this technique—delta, theta, alpha and beta, all contained within a total energy spectrum of about 0 to 40 cycles per second.
1990 G. G. Liddy Monkey Handlers xiv. 236 An echocardiogram kept track of the T and S waves causing the ventricles of the heart to contract, and an electroencephalogram measured the alpha and delta brain waves.
2009 N.Y. Times Mag. 19 July 17/2 Data from some recent brainwave studies of athletes showed that during long, hard exercise, there's often a moment when portions of the brain become ‘de-aroused’.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2011; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1869