Groundbreaking research revealed that many genes in mice, zebrafish, and humans actually become more active after clinical death. Death, Noble concluded, isn’t a biological switch but more of a dimmer—ushering in what he calls a “twilight,” third state between life and full cellular decay. But there’s a darker side: Noble found that many genes spring to life after death and link directly to both cancer suppression and cancer growth. If life can persist—or even reorganize itself—after clinical death, then what exactly does it mean to die? She coauthored a breakthrough study in 2023 that found surges of gamma waves—high-frequency brain oscillations often related to conscious perception and cognition—in declining brains moments after clinical death.