But last week he just might have struck a collective nerve.

To his surprise, this part of the speech invariably struck the collective nerve.

Needless to say, the situation also frayed this community's collective nerves.

They were feeding off each other, building up a collective nerve for the finale.

"The future of the S.S.C. and American science in general will depend a lot on the nation's collective nerve in the years just ahead."

Had you lost your collective nerve?

In the bargain, the playwright has connected two lives, as both characters share memories of their fathers, and he hits a collective nerve in the audience.

Mr. Ravitch touched a collective raw nerve by saying in an interview over the weekend that legal consultants had advised the commission of potential problems.

It had struck a collective nerve.

To the Editor: Biotechnology and the pharmaceutical industry in general are indeed losing their collective nerve.