title: Scaling behavior in beta-wave amplitude modulation and its relationship to alertness.
abstract: We performed an experimental study of beta waves occurring in human electroencephalographic signals obtained from six healthy subjects that were monitored during the performance of a task requiring attention to auditory signals. We use wavelet analysis to study whether the fluctuations in the modulation of the beta-wave amplitude related to an indirect measurement of alertness. We found that these fluctuations exhibit a power-law behavior. When the level of alertness dropped, the associated exponent was found to increase, reflecting the fact that long-range correlations grow rapidly within the system. We also studied the fluctuations of amplitude modulation for alpha and theta waves, for which we did not find a power-law behavior.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Explorations Fonctionnelles Respiratoires, Pneumologie, Hĵpital Robert Ballanger, Aulnay-sous-Bois, France
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Poupard
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sartène
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Wallet
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology; D003491:Cybernetics; D004569:Electroencephalography; D006801:Humans; D008959:Models, Neurological