Gasser and Graham and spinal cord electrophysiology

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of the pioneering electrophysiological study of the spinal cord by H. S. Gasser and H. T. Graham (Am. J. Physiol. 103: 303-320, 1983). Gasser and Graham's paper is of historical interest, because it was the first study of the spinal cord to use a cathode ray tube. It is of scientific interest, because their careful recordings and insightful interpretations laid the groundwork for subsequent studies of spinal cord electrophysiology in anesthetized animals and, more recently, for the interpretation of noninvasive spinal cord recordings in awake, intact humans.