<P> In the short story "From Beyond" by H. P. Lovecraft, a scientist creates an electronic device that emits a resonance wave, which stimulates an affected person's pineal gland, thereby allowing her or him to perceive planes of existence outside the scope of accepted reality, a translucent, alien environment that overlaps our own recognized reality . It was adapted as a film of the same name in 1986 . The 2013 horror film, Banshee Chapter is heavily influenced by this short story . </P> <P> The secretory activity of the pineal gland is only partially understood . Its location deep in the brain suggested to philosophers throughout history that it possesses particular importance . This combination led to its being regarded as a "mystery" gland with mystical, metaphysical, and occult theories surrounding its perceived functions . </P> <P> The pineal gland was originally believed to be a "vestigial remnant" of a larger organ . In 1917, it was known that extract of cow pineals lightened frog skin . Dermatology professor Aaron B. Lerner and colleagues at Yale University, hoping that a substance from the pineal might be useful in treating skin diseases, isolated and named the hormone melatonin in 1958 . The substance did not prove to be helpful as intended, but its discovery helped solve several mysteries such as why removing the rat's pineal accelerated ovary growth, why keeping rats in constant light decreased the weight of their pineals, and why pinealectomy and constant light affect ovary growth to an equal extent; this knowledge gave a boost to the then new field of chronobiology . </P>

What does the pineal gland do in the brain