The Guillotine

Not sure what got me thinking about this. I heard a story. On a playground in elementary school. After Mr Pletcher's history class in high school. Who knows.

The story was that consciousness doesn't stop until oxygen runs out to the brain and just because you cut off NEW blood flow to the brain, the lights don't go out immediately.

So goes the story, Louis XVI was able to stare at his own body as his head rolled slowly away.

For how long though and young me cried out inside. A default mode of brain function -- Raichle et al. 98 (2): 676 -- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences -

This dependence of the brain on oxygen is highlighted by the fact that failure of oxygen delivery to the brain, usually the result of a stoppage of the heart, results in unconsciousness within seconds.

Now, if you ever find that those poor life choices you've made have spun your life wildly out of control and there you stand before the mighty blade, you can thank the National Academy of Sciences for this small comfort.

The rules on oxygen deprivation are different during birth. We will address that in a future post.