Thread by @MWCvitkovic

Things that can happen when you implant electrodes deep in someone's brain:

Their OCD is cured.

Nuttin et al. (2003). doi:10.1227/01.NEU.0000064565.49299.9A  sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1227/01.neu…

See also FDA approval for this treatment accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/c…

They start feeling erotic sensations and become addicted to activating the electrodes.

Portenoy et al. (1986) doi:10.1016/0304-3959(86)90155-7 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1016/0304-3…

They feel hopelessness to the point of weeping, then change their mind and begin joking with their doctor, "playfully pulling his tie," then go back to normal, all within 10 minutes.

Boulos-Paul et al. (1999) nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NE…

They fly into a rage, attempting to rip surgical hardware from their skull. After being sedated and waking up, they only remember that "something went wrong."

Bejjani et al. (2002). doi:10.1212/01.WNL.0000031428.31861.23 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1212/01.WNL…

They switch instantaneously between having a "panic attack" to giddiness to euphoria to haziness, all depending on the electrode and voltage.

Shapira et al. (2006) doi:10.1136/jnnp.2005.069906 ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

Their intractable chronic pain disappears.

Rasche et al. (2006) doi:10.3171/foc.2006.21.6.10 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.3171/foc.20…

They powerfully recall autobiographical memories from their youth.

Clement et al. (2008). doi:10.1002/ana.21295 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1002/ana.21…

They stop violently attacking people for no reason, which had previously been an unfortunate habit of theirs.

Careful though: "When her stimulation was turned off during testing, she attacked the technician and was immediately calmed with restoration of stimulation."

^ That one's Maley, et al. (2010) doi:10.3171/2010.5.FOCUS10102 thejns.org/focus/view/jou…

What's the difference between civilization and chaos, you ask? Turns out about 3 volts a few centimeters behind your eyes.

They become ATV enthusiasts who think it would be fun to try and sneak across the US border without passports.

Bell et al. (2011) doi:10.4061/2011/871874 ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

They feel pure elation, happiness, bliss.

But...perhaps too much?

Synofzik et al. (2012). "How Happy Is Too Happy?" doi:10.1080/21507740.2011.635633 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1080/215077…

They cease abusing heroin.

Carlos-Eduardo et al. (2012) doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.12.013 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1016/j.biop…

They, in all likelihood, continue to be homosexual, despite people trying to change that.

(A truly unsettling paper. Yes, the first author is really named "moan".)

Moan and Heath (1972) doi:10.1016/0005-7916(72)90029-8 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1016/0005-7…

^ See also O’Neal et al. (2017) doi:10.3171/2017.6.FOCUS17252 and @LoneFrank's book "The Pleasure Shock"

They stop intentionally injuring themselves.

Sturm, et al. (2012) doi:10.3389/fnhum.2012.00341 ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

Their major depression is cured.

Mayberg, et al. (2005) doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2005.02.014

(Hard to get right, though. See theatlantic.com/science/archiv…)

They are overcome with "the will to persevere". Like "driving into a storm...and you’ve got to get across the hill".

If you have no idea what that means, here's a video of them explaining: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

Parvizi, et al. (2014) doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2013.10.057

They experience wild mood changes, from major depression to complete remission, depending only on whether 4, 5, or 6 Volts were used.

Giordana, et al. (2015). doi:10.1016/j.brs.2015.05.004 sci-hub.scihubtw.tw/10.1016/j.brs.…