Pim van Lommel M.D.,  a cardiologist, was struck by the number of his patients who claimed to have near-death experiences. He designed a research study to investigate the phenomenon under the controlled environment of a series of hospitals with a medically trained staff.  In 2001, he and his fellow researchers published his study on near-death experiences in the The Lancet; it was the first scientifically rigorous study of the NDE. His book Consciousness Beyond Life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience  shares this research and its implications for understanding the continuity of consciousness. Learn more about Pim at ConsciousnessBeyondLife.com.