A Possible Iiiechanisii

The relati onship betu7ecn the speed of the conduction process and the diameter of an invcrtehrate nerve is well known. However, no satisfactory theory yet exists which correlates this experimentally observed relation (Yrosser, '46). To this end a theoretical investigation of localized propagated mechanical disturbances in the fibers appears worthwhile. I n part, this consideration is prompted by the order of magnitude of the velocities in the nerves. The velocities of propagation of the nerve impulses compare in magnitude to the velocities of propagation of localized mechanical disturbances in various structures. Geometrically, the nerve fiber approximates a cylinder consisting of a medium enclosed by a membrane. We consider, therefore, the propagation of small ampltitude transverse disturhances on a cylindrical membrane embedded in a fluid. A possible role of shear waves in the nerve conduction process has been discussed by Rutherland ( '05, '06-'07, '08'09). Results reported in the literature indicate the possibility of mechanical rnotiori in nerve. For example, investigators (Curtis and Cole, '42; Hodgkin and Huxley, '45; Hodgkin and Rushton, '46) have postulated the existence of a membrane inductance in order to correlate certain aspects of the observed