SUMMARIES AND CORRELATIONS. 



257 



session. The incidence of the maximum effect appears to differ some- 

 what for the different processes, as is shown in table 47. 



The general time of incidence of the maximum effect of alcohol, as 

 shown by table 47, is surprisingly uniform within the limits of the half- 

 hour periods in which the measurements were repeated. While there 

 are apparently some individual differences, the averages show consid- 

 erable uniformity. The most conspicuous exception to the average 

 incidence is found in the case of the eye-movements. The alcoholic 

 disturbance, as shown in these most complex of the coordination proc- 

 esses which we attempted to measure, increased up to the last period of 

 the session. This disturbance of the eye-movements may partially 

 account for the subjective impression of several of our subjects that they 

 found it less easy to study effectively during the evening after an experi- 

 mental session when dose B was given. In general it appears that the 



TABLE 47. Time of incidence of the maximum depressive effect of alcohol. 

 [Values in minutes after ingestion of alcohol.] 



Measurement. 



Patellar reflex: 



Reaction time 



Extent of contraction 



Lid reflex: 



Reaction time 



Extent of contraction 



Eye-reaction 



Word-reaction 



Faradic threshold 



Finger-movements 



Eye-movements 



Time. 



95 

 65 



90 



100 



90 



95 



100 



100 



120 



reflexes begin to recover first. It would be an easy hypothesis that the 

 more primitive processes should show the earliest recovery. On the 

 other hand, in the intricate interconnection of neural processes which 

 we must take into account, it would be uncritical to assume that the 

 relatively early maximum effect of alcohol on the reflexes and a conse- 

 quent relatively early commencement of recovery is really an indication 

 of particularly rapid recuperation of the reflex arcs from the effects of 

 alcohol. It is not impossible that the partial recovery of sensitivity 

 of the lower is due to the increasing paralysis of the higher centers. It 

 is physiological commonplace that reflexes are quicker, more pro- 

 nounced, and more regular when the lower centers are freed from the 

 inhibiting action of the higher. Against this hypothesis, however, is 

 the fact that the knee-jerk is depressed or lost in sleep, notwithstanding 

 the extreme depression of the cerebral processes. Conversely, mental 

 excitement commonly increases the amplitude of the jerk. Mere 

 attention to the process may reinforce it. Direct evidence that might 

 decide the question as to the conditions of the variation in incidence 

 in our experiments is entirely lacking. It is doubtful if it can be 



