Harvard neuroscientist Baland Jalal has published a new book on sleep paralysis, a temporary inability to move that affects one in five people and can cause lasting fear. Jalal's book, The Phantom Mind, argues that studying sleep paralysis offers insight into how consciousness works. "What you get very close to in sleep paralysis," Jalal says, "is that subjective world of the mind. It's very hard to put into words." He describes his research as having made him more interested in mystery and the intangible dimensions of experience, even as he examines the brain's mechanics during these episodes.