Now that we have a good understanding of the electromechanical nature of the neuron, we can look at the principle of operation behind some modern electromagnetic based weapons.  The one most people will be familiar with is the Taser.  What most people will not be familiar with is the fact that medical experts claim not to know how it functions.

Well, let's correct that now.

The Taser Mystery

The following is a relatively recent conclusion provided at a medical conference in Germany:

Despite the Taser being one of the most heavily researched less-lethal weapons in the world, its operational mechanism remains a mystery, a conference on non-lethal weapons was told.

Explanations for the electro stun weapon’s apparent ability to stiffen the whole of the human body without (usually) causing any physiological damage remain unclear, inconsistent and contradictory, and it might be that psychological factors play a more important role in its effect than previously thought.

These were the conclusions of researchers at the Bundeswehr Medical Centre, who presented their research at the 5th Symposium on Non Lethal Weapons in Ettlingen, Germany earlier this month.

 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/25/taser_mechanism/

Whilst the above statement can almost sound conspiratorial, the truth is that to understand the human body requires individuals who are trained in multiple areas.  The human body, whilst a biological system, is at the same time a product of physics that has control networks driven by electromechanical switches.  As such, anyone trained solely in biology or medicine will be completely baffled by structures that will be blatantly obvious to professionals in other fields such as electronic engineering and computational theory.  The result is medical professionals lack the necessary education to describe how weapons such as the Taser work, due to the fact that it requires a knowledge of electromagnetics.

After reading the last two articles in this series, it should be pretty obvious how a taser is functioning, but we will spell it out here.  Let's examine the key technical information: 

TASER M26 output is a pulsed, damped sine wave current with a frequency equivalent to 50,000 Hz

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=129937&p=irol-newsArticle_pf&ID=679184&highlight=

Reviewing the X26 waveform graph released by Taser (LG-STND-TECDBEC-001 Rev: C) makes it obvious that there is a significant Direct Current (DC, is zero Hz) component during the pulse (which would produce a significant 19 Hz component, and harmonics, on a longer time scale).

http://excited-delirium.blogspot.co.uk/2008/01/summary.html

The 19Hz component is the pulse repetition frequency.  This would divide the delivery of the 50/100Khz signal into 19 equal portions per second.  Thus, we will get 19 waveforms similar to the next diagram every second:

The above waveform is a "damped Sine", that is it is a typical sine wave that fades out.  This is the same type of signal used in the earliest of radio communications, a pulse of alternating current (AC).  In the above diagram, the center line is defined as zero volts, or a lack of potential difference.  The diagram tells us that the charged particles are accelerated in one directions, gradually slowing, then the process is repeated in the opposite direction.  Thus, the waveform above is a diagram of movement induced by the potential difference.  If this diagram related to a radio wave, it would be describing the number of photons, not the motion.

Whenever an AC signal is encountered, there is one thing that will always happen, photon emission.  The Electron transduces its kinetic energy (i.e. motion) to photons when acted upon by another force.  Energy must be conserved and this is the only method an Electron has to lose energy.  The photon that is emitted will be exactly the amount of Energy lost by the Electron.

In classical physics we would say that these emitted Photons have a wavelength and frequency (just like the diagram above).  This is meaningless in modern quantum theory.  These terms are still used in engineering as they are functional, but in scientific settings it is replaced with the concept of Energy and measured in Electron Volts (eV).  A Photon does not have a physical size, nor does it have mass.

When the electrodes strike the human body, the electrons begin to flow from negative to positive.  This is an electrical current.  An electrical current will always follow the path of least resistance to complete a circuit.  This means that the current that is delivered into the human body, takes the most electrically direct route to the other electrode from the taser.

At 50/100Khz, the electrical current will not penetrate deep into the body, it actually flows across the surface.  This is known as the "Skin Effect".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_effect

So, if the current is just moving between the electrodes along the surface of the human body, how does it cause widespread disruption to the muscles?

The only two aspects left are the magnetic fields of the flowing current and the Photon (or radio) emissions made by the alternating current.  As these are the same thing, we obviously have our answer in terms of the source.

If we now return to our previous analysis, that demonstrates the neuron to be an electromechanical switch, we can see that this also applies to somatic motor neurons as well.  Thus, a high frequency alternating EM field (i.e. radio wave) is being absorbed by each of the axons in the somatic motor neurons  causing the switch to become scrambled.

This scrambling of the somatic motor neurons causes the loss of coordinated behaviour.  This loss of coordinated behaviour causes a seizure type response followed by temporary paralysis and fatigue.

Now see it in action.