5. Experimental Results and Discussion

Figure 3

[16]  It is now reasonable to evaluate the influence of global indexes of solar and geomagnetic activity on the revealed regularities in the context of the suggested mechanism. In this connection, all the results of the experimental investigations for sample statistics were inspected with the aim of revealing whether the correlations between the parameters of the range of exogenous determination of the EEG and the ELF variations of the EMF are influenced by the solar and geomagnetic activities. Figure 3 shows the 10-day dynamics of daily averaged correlation coefficients between the parameters of EEG and ELF EMF and the solar activity level (Wolf numbers). The trends in the variations of the values considered are seen to be similar. A linear correlation analysis of the presented data has shown that the correlation coefficient is 0.75 ( a = 0.95 ). The relationships with the dynamics of the geomagnetic activity represented by the Ap indexes are similar.

[17]  The obtained results suggest that there is a general regularity, i.e., as the levels of solar and magnetic disturbances increase, the degree of correlation between the characteristics of the neuro-dynamic activity and the parameters of the Schumann resonances become higher. This regularity allows us to interpret the available data on exacerbations of a number of diseases, the so-called dynamic diseases, when a disturbance of the solar or geomagnetic activity occurs. It is known that the range of adaptive abilities of an organism appreciably depends on the general state of the organism. If nosological deviations take place, this range becomes substantially narrower. Because of this, the coordinating system of the exogenous regulation of rhythms can fail to follow the dynamics of the exogenous agent of the physical nature, which potentially can cause a temporal mismatch of a set of biological rhythms or violation of the homeostasis of functional systems.

[18]  Therefore, by modifying the state of the Schumann resonator, solar and geomagnetic disturbances indirectly affect the functional state of a human organism, in particular the levels of neurodynamics and hence the biorhythmic activity of the organism as a whole.

Figure 4

[19]  Let us consider the results obtained in the experiments aimed at justification of the resonance mechanism of solar-terrestrial connections taking the cardiovascular system of a human being as an example. Figure 4 presents changes in the daily dynamics of the frequency of the fundamental harmonic of the electromagnetic background (FHB) in the frequency range from 0.8 to 2.5 Hz and variations in the period of heart contractions ( d RR) for two volunteer research subjects from a sample of 10 persons. The dashed line in the figure is the linear interpolation of experimental results, and the solid line shows the polynomial approximation of the data. It can be seen that there is a pronounced correlation between changes in the individual circadian rhythm and variations in one of the components of the natural electromagnetic background.

Figure 5

[20]  It is obvious that correlated changes in the parameters considered above do take place, however their regularity and quantitative degree of correlation with the magnitude of variation in the FHB period are different for different volunteer research subjects. One of possible factors responsible for a lack of uniqueness in the response of functional systems of a human organism is a varying individual psychosomatic state. This means that variations in the absolute values have individual characteristic correlation relations with the dynamics of variations in the fundamental harmonic of the electromagnetic background (FHB). An attempt was made to reveal a common tendency in possible modulations of the level of functioning of the cardiovascular system ( d RR) and changes in the FHB. To this end, 24-hour measurements of d RR in four volunteer research subjects at one and the same time were carried out and, simultaneously, changes in the period of the FHB of the ELF range were measured. Using individual changes in the cardio intervals combined relative to the time axis, envelopes of extrema were drawn (Figure 5).

[21]  It has been found that the actual dynamics of the variables discussed, while appreciably differing in each individual case, is characterized by a rather high statistically significant correlation (Pearson's coefficient of correlation is equal to 0.4 at a = 0.05 ). Analysis of the time intervals of the additive components of d RR corresponding to the presented data has shown that the major contribution to variations in the heart activity cycle comes from changes in the durations of the atrium excitation interval and constituents of the relaxation phase interval. Analysis has also revealed that the character of the correlated variations of the electrocardiogram portions depends on the individual typological features and the circadian rhythm phase of a volunteer research subject.

[22]  Because of an insufficient amount of the obtained data, the cause-and-effect relationships between variations in the processes investigated cannot be revealed, however a strong correlation between the dynamics of the cardiovascular system parameters and the dynamics of the period of the separated out mode of the background EMF of the ELF range suggests that natural electromagnetic fields of the ELF range belong to significant ecological factors even in magnetically quiet days. The fact that the responses of the cardiovascular system have characteristic activity modulations typical of the dynamics of the electromagnetic background of the particular geographical location leads to the conclusion that the hypothesis that this exogenous factor can be one of external synchronizers for oscillatory systems of a human organism has been experimentally confirmed.

Figure 6

[23]  Variations in the components of the vector of the magnetic field as a circadian synchronizer are considered from a similar point of view. Results of this investigation are illustrated in Figure 6, where smoothed values of the Y component ( dY ) of the magnetic field and the period of heart contractions d RR are shown as functions of the time of a day for one of the patients.

Figure 7

[24]  If a measure of correlation is taken to be the magnitude of the cross-correlation function, its reliable value for a given volunteer research subject at a zero shift and a confidence probability level of 95% is 0.56 for the eastward component and - 0.11 for the northward component. For the vertical component the correlation coefficient is negligible under these conditions. For the entire sample, the partial correlation coefficient of d RR is the highest for the eastward component (0.70), it is equal to 0.60 for the vertical component, and it is negligible for the northward component [Borodin and Kolesnik, 2001]. A characteristic feature is that significant correlated changes in the period of heart contractions and pattern of variations in the magnetic field vector components are maintained for time periods of up to tens of seconds (see Figure 7) [Borodin and Kolesnik, 2001].

[25]  Such regularities should not be underestimated because considerable changes in the pattern of variations of the magnetic field vector components in different frequency ranges can cause a provoked ectopic activity in the patients suffering from diseases of the cardiovascular system.

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