Lesson 19-2      The stuff of dreams

If it is not a question of resting the body, then perhaps it is the brain that needs resting? This might be a plausible hypothesis were it not for two factors. First the electroencephalograph (which is simply a device for recording the electrical activityof the brain by attaching electrodes to the scalp) shows that while there is a change in the pattern of activity during sleep, there is no evidence that the total amount of activity is any less. The second factor is more interesting and more fundamental. Some years ago an American psychiatrist named William Dement published experiments dealing with the recording of eye-movements during sleep.

plausible /ˈplɔːzəbl/  可信的;有道理的;看似合理的;

hypothesis /haɪˈpɑːθəsɪs/  假设;  假说

electroencephalograph /ɪˈlektroenˈsefələɡræf/ 脑电图仪

electrode /ɪˈlektroʊd/ 电极

scalp /skælp/ 头皮

pattern /ˈpætərn/  模式;图案;方式;模型;

evidence /ˈevɪdəns/  证据; 证明

fundamental /ˌfʌndəˈmentl/  基础的;十分重大的;

psychiatrist  /saɪˈkaɪətrɪst/  精神病学家;精神科医生

deal with  处理，应付;涉及;讨论