BIO-X: Biocomplexity, Biodesign, Bioinnovation, Biomanufacturing and Bioentrepreneurship

STUDENT CORNER

December 2018

The 17th International Summer School on BIO-X: Biocomplexity, Biodesign, Bioinnovation, Biomanufacturing and Bioentrepreneurship, sponsored by the NSF, the University of Houston Biomedical Engineering Department and technically co-sponsored by the IEEE Brain Initiative and the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, was held at the Chania Academy, Crete, June 11-17, 2018. This summer school was a continuation of previous summer schools. Thirty students and six distinguished and three junior faculty (post-docs) attended the 17th summer school. The NSF, the IEEE Brain Initiative and the University of Houston co-sponsored 30 students. 

Listening to the Brain with Hearing Devices

RESEARCH
Bleichner M. G., Grzybowski M., Ernst S. M. A. , Kollmeier B. , Debener S. , Denk F.

While you are reading this text, pay attention to the sounds around you. How many different sounds do you notice? Where do they come from? Concentrate on one of them. Is the sound high or low pitched? Now concentrate on a different sound. Does that sound have a specific rhythm?

Near-infrared Upconversion Optogenetics Helps Brain Stimulation Go Deep

RESEARCH
Shuo Chen

For decades, scientists and physicians have electrically stimulated neurons deep in the brain with implanted electrodes connected through wires to a pacemaker-like device under the skin of the chest. This approach, known as deep brain stimulation (DBS), can treat patients with various neurological symptoms, such as Parkinson’s disease and major depression.

The Decoding of Oscillatory Brain Dynamics induced by Haptic Stimuli and Imagined Haptic Stimuli Sensation and its application for a Novel Type of Somatosensory Brain-computer Interface

RESEARCH
Lin Yao, Ning Jiang.

Brain-computer Interface (BCI) permits a direct channel between the brain and the external environment, bypassing the physiological channel for such interaction, i.e. the neuromuscular system. This technology can be useful in medical applications, including locked-in syndrome, stroke, spinal cord injury, and cerebral palsy, as well as applications of a more general purpose such as education, ergonomics, and manufacturing. Event-related desynchronization (ERD) and synchronization (ERS) of brain signals and movement-related cortical potentials (MRCP), both of which are generated during motor imagery tasks (MI), have been shown to allow real-time, direct BCI control.

Meeting of the Global Current and Emerging Brain Initiatives at the IEEE SMC BMI Workshop

EVENT
Michael H. Smith

On October 9, 2018, the SMC Brain-Machine Interface Systems (BMI) Workshop also featured a first-of-its-kind meeting of Global Current and Emerging Brain Initiatives. This meeting was hosted by the IEEE President, James Jefferies, and Chaired by Michael H. Smith. The meeting brought together global Brain Initiative leaders and representatives from other groups working on large-scale multi-year brain projects from Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, and the US as well as representatives from the IEEE Brain Initiative, the International Neuroethics Society, industry, and other stakeholders.