A creativity boost is as simple as a 10-Hertz current run through electrodes attached to the scalp, according to a new research study on the impact of alpha wave oscillations in the brain. Meditation yields the same result, as people who have incorporated the practice regularly can attest to. The goal of the University of North Carolina, however, is to use alpha wave stimulation to help people with neurological and psychiatric illnesses, since those patients typically display impaired alpha oscillations. Two clinical trials are underway for people with major depressive disorder and premenstrual dysphoric disorder, or PMDD—a severe form of premenstrual syndrome.