MRI: Acquisition of Neuroimaging Equipment For Acquiring 4-Dimensional Brain Data From Real-World Stimuli

认知科学是一门跨学科的研究，旨在理解心灵和大脑。神经成像是这项工作的核心工具，但仅限于能够实现大脑活动的高空间或时间分辨率的设备。然而，最近的脑电图（EEG）设备和相关软件的进步，允许高空间和时间（即4-D）分辨率通过脑电图信号的源定位，通过头皮进行无创（和廉价）测量。如果有既定的方法来分析这些数据，所得到的数据可以让科学家和临床医生了解现实世界中发生的大脑功能。首席研究人员正在开发一种程序，能够分析由自然刺激产生的大脑数据，并将其应用于4-D脑电图数据。该合同提供了现有EEG设备、附加设备和软件的升级，这些设备和软件组合在一起，将实现高源定位精度，并允许他们在源定位的4维EEG数据上测试他们的方法。它将允许购买256个脑电图系统。认知科学的一个目标是了解大脑在被认为是进化、典型发展和正常运作的条件下的情况。也就是说，在生态、自然或现实世界的条件下。现有的设备和方法技术还不可能做到这一点。这在一定程度上是因为神经成像设备的空间或时间限制，需要使用严格控制的、通常是简化的刺激，这些刺激并不总是像人们在世界上可能遇到的任何东西。通过将上述分析方法应用于由自然刺激产生的4-D数据，研究人员将能够首次了解大脑如何真实地产生行为。因此，认知科学将有一个新的和变革性的工具来理解思想和大脑。所要求的仪器将用于汉密尔顿学院的跨学科研究。具体来说，这些设备将推动心理学和神经科学系与语言和大脑组织有关的实验室研究，以及计算机科学与人机交互有关的实验室研究。这两个实验室都利用现实世界的刺激或情境，以更现实的方式来理解心灵和大脑。倡导的方法还将有助于创建其他合作，这些合作将由汉密尔顿的学生促进，他们有一个特殊的机会参与实验室课程。这将使这些学生更容易使用自然的刺激进行实验，并使他们更容易进行研究，从而提高他们的教育经验。使用获得的设备对所述方法的验证将在同行评议的期刊上传播，所有软件将公开提供。这最终将在汉密尔顿学院之外产生广泛的影响：如果患者可以在收集大脑数据的同时做一些他们喜欢的事情（例如，看电视），允许医生使用自然的刺激将最终提高治疗项目的保留率。此外，在这些自然条件下获得的高时空分辨率数据可以更好地预测、诊断和治疗疾病。

Cognitive science is a cross-disciplinary effort to understand the mind and brain. Neuroimaging is a central tool in this effort but has been limited to equipment capable of achieving either high spatial or temporal resolution of brain activity. Recent electroencephalography (EEG) equipment and associated software advances, however, allow for both high spatial and temporal (i.e., 4-D) resolution through source localization of the electrical EEG signal as measured noninvasively (and inexpensively) through the scalp. The resulting data could put scientists and clinicians in the position to understand brain function as it occurs in the real-world if there were established methodological approaches to analyze such data. The Principal Investigators are developing a procedure that is capable of analyzing brain data resulting from naturalistic stimuli that could be applied to 4-D EEG data. This award provides an upgrade of existing EEG equipment, additional equipment, and software that, when combined, will achieve high source localization accuracy and allow them to test their approach on source localized 4-D EEG data. It will permit the purchase of a 256 EEG system.A goal of cognitive science is to understand the brain under conditions in which it is thought to have evolved, typically develop, and normally function. That is, under ecological, natural, or real-world conditions. This has not yet been possible with existing equipment and methodological techniques. This is in part because of spatial or temporal limitations of neuroimaging equipment have necessitated the use of tightly controlled and usually reductionist stimuli that do not always resemble anything one might encounter in the world. By applying the aforementioned analysis method to 4-D data resulting from naturalistic stimuli, the investigators will be able to understand how the brain realistically yields behavior for the first time. Thus, cognitive science will have a new and transformative tool to understand mind and brain. The requested instrumentation will be used in a cross-disciplinary effort at Hamilton College. Specifically, the equipment will advance research in laboratories in the Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience pertaining to the organization of language and the brain and in Computer Science pertaining to human computer interaction. Both labs make use of real-world stimuli or situations to understand mind and brain in more realistic terms. The advocated approach will also serve to create other collaborations that will be facilitated by the students at Hamilton who have the an exceptional opportunity to participate in lab-based curricula. It will be easier for these students to conduct experiments using naturalistic stimuli and will make research more accessible to them and, therefore, enhance their educational experience. Validations of the described methods using the acquired equipment will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals and all software will be made publicly available. This will ultimately have a broad impact outside of Hamilton college: Allowing physicians to use naturalistic stimuli will ultimately improve retention in therapeutic programs if patients can do something they enjoy while brain data is collected (e.g., watching television). Furthermore, the high spatial and temporal resolution data acquired under these natural conditions could lead to better predictors, diagnosis, and treatment of disease.