“decerebrate rigidity”, nor “decerebrate reaction”, is not the same thing as “neuromuscular reaction”. No where did Dr. Lattimer or Larry Sturdivan say that.
Definition of “decerebrate rigidity” is defined in:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_posturingAbnormal posturing is an involuntary flexion or extension of the arms and legs, indicating severe brain injury.
I did not find a definition of “decerebrate reaction”, but I assume this is the reaction of an animal, to severe brain injury, where it starts to assume the “decerebrate rigidity” posture.
“decerebrate rigidity” is not too uncommon in animals and is a well-known and studied phenomenon.
A “neuromuscular reaction” or “neuromuscular spasm” is not as well known because it can only occur, as far as I know, from a rifle bullet passing through the brain of an animal. This has not as extensively studied but the 1948 U. S. Army film shows that it is real.
You know that's false, or else you can't read. As I've pointed out three or four times now, not all neuromuscular reactions are decerebrate reactions, but Sturdivan identified JFK's alleged neuromuscular reaction as a decerebrate reaction. I've already gone over this ground for you in detail and quoted Sturdivan several times in the process.
Larry Sturdivan said the “neuromuscular reaction”, sometimes called the “neuromuscular spasm”, is observed starting 40 milliseconds after impact. He then says “decerebrate reaction” ends about 1 second after impact.
I’ve been told that the “neuromuscular spasm” is a myth. Now, your telling me that it is not a myth but real, a type of “decerebrate reaction”, one of the fairly common reactions of animals to varies severe brain injuries. You CTers can’t have it both ways.
Here is what Mr. Sturdivan said:
First, we will observe the neuromuscular reaction, the goat will collapse then, and by the wiggling of his tail and the tenseness of the muscles we will see what I think has sometimes been called the decerebrate rigidity, and that takes place about a second after the shot and then slowly dissipates and you will see the goat slump, obviously dead. The decerebrate reaction and terminus of the decerebrate reaction
By which he means:
1. First the neuromuscular reaction occurs. He later makes this clear that this started after 40 milliseconds.
2. Then the “decerebrate reaction” starts to take place.
3. Then the goat reaches “decerebrate rigidity”, it’s final position it took as a result of the “decerebrate rigidity”, after 1,000-milliseconds.
You are accidently, or more likely on purpose, confusing these 3 stages that occurred over a second of time. The “neuromuscular reaction” is not the same as “decerebrate reaction”
Later he states:
Now, if you will look up at the forehead of the goat you may see a very small white spot, which was not visible on the last frame. If you can't, don't worry about it. What it is is the bullet entering the head of the goat. And if I can make sure that I have it going forward now. Four one-hundredths of a second after that impact then the neuromuscular reaction that I described begins to happen; the back legs go out, under the influence of the powerful muscles of the back legs, the front legs go upward and outward, that back arches, as the powerful back muscles overcome those of the abdomen.
After 40 milliseconds the “neuromuscular reaction” starts. Sometime later, its not important when so Mr. Sturdivan did not specify, the “decerebrate reaction” starts. After 1,000 milliseconds, the “decerebrate reaction” comes to an end and the goat is in “decerebrate rigidity”, its final position.
Only by some willful mis-interpretation does one come to the conclusion that Mr. Sturdivan was describing a single process, a neuromuscular-reaction/decerebrae-reaction/decerebrae-rigidity which came to an end after 1,000 milliseconds. By which, Mr. Sturdivan really meant started after 1,000 milliseconds, not ended.
And you have some sort of parallel argument that because Mr. Sturdivan mentioned that the film was shot at 2,400 frames per second, it allowed him speak of an event that took place over 1,000 milliseconds as taking place over 40 milliseconds. Another bizarre argument that makes no sense.
“About a second” equals about 1,000 milliseconds. There are 1,000 milliseconds in 1 second. So, if the goat began to react “about a second after the shot,” then it began to react about 1,000 milliseconds after the shot. We can reasonably infer that when Sturdivan said "about a second," he meant 800-1100 milliseconds, or perhaps 800-1000 milliseconds, or perhaps 900-1000 milliseconds.
Sturdivan was nice enough to explain that the 24 fps film was a “normal” view and “real time”:
Sturdivan then explained that the second sequence, which is the one that Elliott has been citing, was taken at 2,400 fps, and that in that 2,400-fps film, yes, the goat’s reaction begins about 40 milliseconds, or “four one-hundredths,” after bullet impact:
“Mystery” solved! I say “mystery” because I was frankly a bit baffled by the seemingly impossible speed of the goat’s reaction in the film that Elliott cited. I attributed it to the many differences between goat and human neurobiology and neurophysics (not to mention that the goat’s reaction movements differ markedly from JFK’s). But I also read that goat/sheep/dog/horse and human neuromuscular reaction times are similar—not identical, but similar. Every source I checked said that the fastest human neuromuscular reactions ranged in speed from 100 milliseconds in a few cases to around 200-600 milliseconds in most cases.
One of the most bizarre and incoherent arguments I have ever heard. How does your math work here? If Mr. Sturdivan was describing a 24,000 frame per second film, would that have caused him to claim a 1,000-millisecond event occurred over an interval of 4 milliseconds?
