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On Thu, 2010-11-11 at 14:32 -0800, Tom Cauchois wrote:<BR>
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This sounds completely awesome. Do you have any materials about the neuroscience of what you're doing?<BR>
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<BR>
Hi Tom, thanks for the positive feedback (c:<BR>
<BR>
As far as material I have a OO.org presentation I give to the schools but currently its entirely visual. I have a recording of one of the recent classes and have started transcribing the talk into the presentation file "notes" screen but haven't finished yet. Most of the information is in the form of analogies kids can relate to (but which still remain accurate to the underlying science).<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
For example:<BR>
<BR>
Think of your brain as a giant baseball stadium. With EEG we are all standing outside and can't see anything happening on the field, let alone hear and understand any single conversation in the stands. But every once in awhile the crowd roars and cheers and from that we have a pretty good idea something exciting is happening. If we hear happy noises maybe the home time is winning or someone just made a good play. If we hear booing and shouting maybe there was a bad call or an error was made. We don't know for certain because we can't see for ourselves but the more we learn about how the brain works and the better our tools become the better we can understand what's going on inside.<BR>
<BR>
Now that said, there are scientists and researchers doing work which directly accesses the brain, called "ECog." To do this they actually have to cut past the skull and place sensors on the surface of the brain. This is like installing a tiny window in the wall of the stadium. Then they can see a corner of the field, or even overhear part of a muffled conversation[1].<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
The software we are going to use today however is very simple. Think of this EEG headset as a radio, and this electrode which rests on your forehead is the antenna. We can use it to "tune in" that baseball game going on inside your head. Remember we still can't use it to see what's happening on the field, but if we tune to the right station this will let us hear the roar of the crowd clapping in cheering whenever you are able to get very focused and pay attention.<BR>
<BR>
It won't matter what you are actually thinking about (because we can't tell anyway). You can be doing math problems in your head, or practicing translating a foreign language or planning about all the things you would need to pack if you won a trip to go on vacation for an entire month.<BR>
<BR>
Once that crowd is cheering, we just need to tune our radio to the right frequency and see what we hear. If the crowd starts coming through loud and clear then we know you're concentrating. If the sound is soft and faint and there's a lot of static, then either you're not concentrating very hard or we simply can't hear it.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Now this is important.<BR>
<BR>
Just like every baseball stadium is different, so is everyone's brain, but there are consistencies in layout and we do know roughly in which areas to expect to find third base versus home plate. You've seen what brains look like before, they all have funky little wrinkles all over them. If you were to take two different brains and stretch them all out flat you'd see the baseball fields look pretty much the same. Third base is in the same place. But everyone's heads come in different shapes and sizes, so the brain wrinkles up to fit in different ways. In some people third base might be pointing up, in others it might be pointing off to the side. That means some people will naturally be easier to detect levels of concentration, and for others it will be harder. If anyone has trouble today, no matter how hard you try, it doesn't means than anyone is smarter or better than anyone else. <BR>
<BR>
<BR>
When you concentrate, the neurons in your brain start firing messages around, and these chemical processes generate very small amounts of electricity which are still detectable all the way through the skull, on the surface of your scalp. Its these changes in electricity that we are are measuring. If you took one of the "AA" or "AAA" batteries out of the TV remote control in your house and looked on the side, you'll see on the side that it says 1.5 volts. Well the EEG is actually a very precise voltmeter. It doesn't measure in volts however, it measures in microvolts - millionths of a volt. So the changes we are looking at are very tiny.<BR>
<BR>
etc....<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
[1] <A HREF="http://www.aro.org/archives/2010/2010_501_1287521998.html">http://www.aro.org/archives/2010/2010_501_1287521998.html</A><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
-S<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
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On Thu, Nov 11, 2010 at 5:14 AM, Steve Castellotti <<A HREF="mailto:sc@puzzlebox.info">sc@puzzlebox.info</A>> wrote:<BR>
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Hey all--<BR>
<BR>
I just wanted to send a quick word of introduction to the group.<BR>
<BR>
My name is Steve. I swung over this past Tuesday evening along with<BR>
the Make:SF crew, and hung around the next several hours meeting a fair<BR>
few of you.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
I've been managing an Open Source project for the past year which<BR>
is geared towards teaching kids (ages 10+ or so) a little bit of<BR>
neuroscience, helping them build robots out of LEGO Mindstorms, then<BR>
control and race them with their brains using consumer-grade EEG headsets.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Here is a brief demonstration video:<BR>
<BR>
<A HREF="http://brainstorms.puzzlebox.info/index.php?entry=entry100923-100000">http://brainstorms.puzzlebox.info/index.php?entry=entry100923-100000</A><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
And here is the project website:<BR>
<BR>
<A HREF="http://brainstorms.puzzlebox.info">http://brainstorms.puzzlebox.info</A><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
The current version of the software measures attention and<BR>
relaxation levels using a NeuroSky MindSet, translating those into<BR>
acceleration levels sent to the robots. Basic support for the Emotiv<BR>
EPOC is also available, although for classroom use I've been leaning<BR>
towards the former as it has dry sensors (where kids are concerned, wet<BR>
+ heads = bad) and is easy to put on and start using without much<BR>
fiddling about.<BR>
<BR>
There's a variety of paradigms for controlling the robots and<BR>
several new types of "games" planned on the roadmap, but for the moment<BR>
the software is working and in active use in at least one classroom on<BR>
the East coast (Incidentally I am looking for more local schools which<BR>
might be interested to get involved). The focus is now on building up<BR>
case studies and fleshing out the teaching materials to better integrate<BR>
into existing curriculum.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Last night I brought round the remote control for a small RC<BR>
helicopter, and with a great deal of help from Milo, Anthony, John, and<BR>
a few others we managed to almost completely reverse-engineer the<BR>
circuit board and transmitter's communications protocol. I'd like to<BR>
extend a huge thanks to those guys for sticking around past 2 AM to help<BR>
bang it all out!<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
I'm planning to bring in my gear on Monday for the electronics<BR>
hacking session. I'll have the NeuroSky and Emotiv headsets, my LEGO<BR>
kit, and the RC helicopter (assuming I can managed to transport it all)<BR>
and would be happy to show anyone interested how it all hangs together.<BR>
With any luck I will already be on my way to getting the RC helicopter<BR>
to fly via the software. The intention is to pick up a second helicopter<BR>
and be able to have races in which two people compete to achieve and<BR>
maintain high enough levels of focus to keep the helicopters in the air<BR>
and be first to cross the finish line.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Thanks again for everyone's help and looking forward to catching up<BR>
with folks come Monday.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Cheers<BR>
<BR>
Steve<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<FONT COLOR="#888888">--</FONT><BR>
<FONT COLOR="#888888">Steve Castellotti</FONT><BR>
<FONT COLOR="#888888">Puzzlebox Limited</FONT><BR>
<BR>
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Puzzlebox Limited
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