Marketing Department, Author at BIOPAC Blog

Neuroscience – A Brief History

What is neuroscience? In a nutshell, the study of neuroscience encompasses the physical and functional workings of the human brain and nervous system, drawing from a mix of cellular and molecular biology, anatomy, physiology, human behavior, and cognition. This field remains in a state of near-constant evolution, as the brain does not easily give up its secrets. Although the brain is home to a hundred billion neurons (brain cells), with nearly a quadrillion connections linking them, we have yet to fully and deeply understand the full breadth of a single cell.

But when and how did neuroscience originate? We know that as far back as 7,000 years ago, healers were boring holes into the skulls of their companions, a process known as trepanation. One can imagine the grim determination these ancients exhibited in their efforts to understand and relieve suffering, even if it was only with the intent of exorcising evil spirits. And it’s harder still to imagine how boring into someone’s living skull without anesthesia could possibly offer any measurable relief from suffering. However misguided these ministrations were, it’s clear that even millennia ago, the brain was recognized as an organ of great physiological significance.

For centuries, conventional wisdom recognized the heart as the seat of human consciousness. The Greek physician Hippocrates challenged this hypothesis, believing the brain to be the center of intelligence, yet the heart continued to hold sway with physicians and healers until long beyond Hippocrates’ time. This view persisted until the Roman physician Galen consistently observed that brain injuries sustained by gladiators often resulted in a marked decrease in cognition and mental acuity. (These injuries possibly foreshadowed today’s phenomenon of NFL CTE injuries.) Gradually, the brain began to take its rightful place in the pantheon of human physiology.

During medieval and Renaissance times, continuing important discoveries about the brain helped lay the foundation of what would become modern neuroscience, much of this new knowledge gleaned through illicit dissections, or by examining the brains of executed criminals. It’s safe to say that much scientific discovery—including that of human physiology—was hobbled by the religious constraints of the day. It wasn’t until the late 18th century, when Luigi Galvani observed the electrical activity of muscles and neurons, that key indicators about brain function became more apparent. Observations during this period often raised more questions than answers, however.

The 19th century brought further advances in the study of the brain and nervous system, notably by Emil du Bois-Reymond, who successfully demonstrated the electrical properties of nerve signals, and Paul Broca, who discovered through his pioneering work with brain-damaged patients that different regions of the brain were responsible for specific functions. This was later borne out by the German anatomist Korbinian Brodmann, who mapped the human cortex into 52 distinct areas, along with their corresponding functions.

In the 20th century, and particularly since the 1950s, neuroscience has evolved into an increasingly wide-ranging discipline, incorporating the brain and nervous system on a molecular level. This gave rise to many different types of neuroscience, which include affective, behavioral, molecular, cellular, clinical, computational, and a great many more. As the study of neuroscience has progressed, this field has produced no fewer than 19 Nobel Prize Laureates between 1904 and 2017. Neuroscience encompasses the most complex and sophisticated organ system in the body, a system that may possibly never be fully understood and certainly will continue to present wonders and challenges for centuries to come.

If you study neuroscience and want to learn more about how to get great data & meaningful life science measurements for human, animal, virtual, or MRI protocols, be sure to check out [button link=”https://www.biopac.com/webinars/” type=”small” newwindow=”yes”] BIOPAC Webinars[/button].

Photo by Jack Antal on Unsplash

T4 Conference Wrap-up

August is a month of barbecues, baseball, and last-minute vacations against the backdrop of a fading summer, and the eighth month of 2019 proved to be an equally exciting time at BIOPAC, with something of a pleasant vacation thrown in. On August 12-14, BIOPAC hosted its 2nd Biennial “Tools, Trends, Techniques, and Technology” Human Physiology Conference, known as “T4” to our friends and partners around the world. This three-day event, first held in 2017, featured lively, informative sessions hosted by BIOPAC staff, partners, noted academics, and industry experts, and covered a wide range of physiological techniques and disciplines. Over 150 attendees joined BIOPAC at the 2019 T4 Conference staged once again at the beautiful University of California at Santa Barbara campus. Participants and instructors winged in from China, Australia, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Spain, U.K., Ireland, and Egypt, as well as from wide regions of the U.S and Canada to soak up the idyllic surroundings of this ocean-side campus.

The focus of BIOPAC’s T4 Conference was to provide a fun, relaxed environment while hosting nearly 40 hands-on, human physiology training workshops chaired by over 20 distinguished instructors from around the globe. One of the many conference highlights was the “Mindfulness, Meditation, and Measurement: Mindfulness Exercises in Physiological Monitoring” session, hosted by Dr. Allan Weiss of the University of Southern California and BIOPAC Co-founder and Director of R & D Alan Macy. These sessions, conducted in two parts over a two day period were booked beyond capacity, even though the early morning fog hadn’t yet lifted from the campus skyline.

The varied additional sessions covered a range from the basics, “Setting Up Your Lab, Getting Great Data and Troubleshooting,” (hosted by Dr. Terry Blumenthal of Wake Forest University, and BIOPAC’s Alan Macy and Tim Cook), and “Creating Your Own Lessons Using BSL PRO,” (hosted by Dr. Taffeta Elliot of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology), to exciting new technologies such as “Integrating Screen-based Eye Trackers with AcqKnowledge,” with Keith Jackson of BIOPAC partner company EyeTech, BIOPAC CEO Frazer Findlay, and BIOPAC Engineering Manager Ed Peterlin. Additional wide-ranging physiological disciplines were also covered, including MRI techniques, stimulation, and exercise physiology. All sessions were conducted using BIOPAC hardware and software systems, as well as platforms provided by BIOPAC partners such as Cedrus, fNIR, WorldViz, Psychology Software Tools, and CNSystems. At the end of each day, it was time to relax and unwind with a beverage of choice, a a walk along the beach, and some good conversation. Each evening featured excellent meals and camaraderie in the relaxed yet elegant environment of some of Santa Barbara and Goleta’s most stunning surroundings. After three great days of immersive sessions, it came time for everyone to part ways, having forged new collaborative partnerships and an enhanced knowledge about the full potential of BIOPAC and BIOPAC partner products.

You don’t have to wait for T4 2021 to learn more about life science data—watch Fundamentals of Physiological Data Recording now!

For a closer look at T4, and a preview of what is sure to be an exciting 2021 event, we invite you to visit our T4 Human Physiology Conference page.

Looking for additional resources, tips, tricks, and expert advice on BIOPAC and BIOPAC Partner products? Please also visit our Webinars and Video Tutorial pages.

BIOPAC offers a wide array of wired and wireless equipment that can be used in your research. To find more information on solutions for recording and analyzing signals such as ECG, heart rate, respiration and more using any platforms mentioned in this blog post, you can visit the individual application pages on the BIOPAC website.

Best Practices for Recording & Analyzing Data

Over the past several years, tools and techniques for recording and analyzing physiological data recording have seen steady and marked improvement. Modern life science data acquisition systems such as the MP160 System and powerful research-grade software suites such as AcqKnowledge bring high-end physiology tools within reach of the smallest lab. Even with continuing advances and reduced margin for error, it remains prudent to follow some fundamental guidelines for maximizing data quality and clarity.

Preparation is important. First, invest time exploring the system if it’s new or unfamiliar. An overview of the documentation, training videos, and available webinars, as well as some practice runs with the hardware and software will save time and effort when the time comes to conduct a study. This will also build proficiency at identifying the differences between good and poor data.

Next, familiarize yourself with the type of electrodes and/or transducers necessary for the physiological signals you will be acquiring, which includes proper electrode and skin site preparation. For example, gently abrading the skin prior to applying electrodes is normally recommended for most signal types, except for electrodermal activity (EDA), in which case it’s vital to NOT abrade the skin beforehand. It is also helpful to wait at least 5 minutes before starting a recording, which enables the electrode gel to be absorbed into the skin, helping reduce the impedance.

Performing an impedance check to ensure that the electrodes are making good contact with the skin is also highly recommended. This task is made easier by using an Electrode Impedance Checker (such as EL-CHECK), a simple device for quickly measuring the resistance between the skin and the electrode that provides an LED readout of the skin/electrode contact quality. If the resistance is too high (indicating poor contact) proper adjustments can be made before starting an experiment.

For certain signal types, excessive participant movement can introduce unwanted artifact into the signal, resulting in poor or skewed data. Make sure the participant remains as still as possible during studies involving these signals. Using tape to attach the electrode leads to the skin and keep them from moving excessively can also be helpful.

A thorough check of the system and all connections, cameras, and other hardware is important, so that any problems with equipment or setup can be addressed in advance, thus avoiding a show-stopping issue in the midst of an experiment. This would include performing a pilot study with trained personnel in order to head off any unforeseen issues with the data collection.

Creating a lab setup conducive to a relaxed environment for the participant and technician alike will yield better results. This means eliminating clutter, noise, and other distractions that can affect comfort and attention span. Some labs even avoid having their staff wear lab coats because this can heighten participant nervousness.

Keeping detailed notes on successful lab setups is also helpful and will streamline the preparation process for future experiments. Additionally, creating and saving graph templates for regularly-repeated experiments will save further time and effort.

For more about the fundamentals of recording great data, we invite you to view this free on-demand webinar Fundamentals of Physiology Recording.

Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

ECG – The Little Wave You Can’t Live Without

For millennia, ancient healers across the globe long recognized the human heart as immeasurably vital to human life. Other organs may take an occasional time out, but not the heart. This sinewy fist-sized pump contracts and relaxes an average 60 to 80 beats per minute and faithfully repeats this cycle some two and a half billion times over an average human lifespan, constantly driving and recirculating lifeblood through 100,000 miles of veins, arteries, and capillaries. It’s a monumental task that we take for granted, but if the process stops for more than a few minutes, so will this mysterious force we call life.

It’s intriguing to consider the wonder with which the ancients must have contemplated this organ that thumps so audibly. They knew it was of critical importance, and over the centuries learned its form and surface physiology, but what did they imagine animated it? What force kept the heart moving so steadily and faithfully, while remaining implacably divorced from the consciousness of its host? (Go ahead. Try to stop your heart. On second thought, don’t.)

The answer, in a word, is electricity. Although the stethoscope, invented in 1816 by French physician René Laennec, augmented audible heart sounds, it wasn’t until 1901 that Dutch physician Willem Einthoven developed a “string galvanometer,” capable of reliably recording the heart’s electrical activity. Einthoven’s work established a standard configuration for recording the electrocardiogram (ECG) and garnered him the Nobel Prize in 1924. Because the ECG reflects electrical activity, it is a useful “picture” of heart normality or abnormality through the observation and analysis of various distinct components of the cardiac cycle. If there are interruptions of the electrical signal generation or transmission, the ECG changes. These changes can be useful in diagnosing changes within the heart.

The methods for recording ECG have become increasingly sophisticated with the advent of digital technology and have put state-of-the art acquisition and analysis of ECG within reach of not only clinicians, but also researchers and educators. Wired in-lab systems such as the BIOPAC MP160 System with AcqKnowledge software are widely used for Research applications, while the MP36 System with Biopac Student Lab software are the industry standard for physiology education around the globe. Wireless systems such as BioNomadix or BioNomadix Smart Center can be used to collect ECG and other body signals in an untethered environment and the BioNomadix Logger is a great solution for acquiring ECG and other body signals over extended periods outside the lab.

We have come a long way since our forebears contemplated the mysteries of the vital mechanical wonder that beats in every chest, and we now have a myriad of accessible options for unlocking its secrets.

For further exploration of ECG, we invite you to enjoy the following comprehensive free ECG webinars:

Recording Great ECG

HRV & RSA – Fundamental ECG Analysis Techniques

Using fEMG for Facial Expression Analysis

Facial expressions, even at their most subtle, cover a wide palette of emotions. The study of these expressions can be approached several ways, including via a camera and facial mapping using FaceReader expression analysis software—but another common method for acquiring this type of data is through facial electromyography (fEMG).

fEMG is a relatively simple procedure that focuses on recording the activity of two specific sets of facial muscles:

zygomaticus major (cheek muscle used for smiling)
corrugator supercilli (forehead muscle associated with frowning and negative emotions such as anger, fear, and disgust).

While parsing a subject’s nuanced emotional state can be tricky, zygomaticus and corrugator muscle activity are highly reliable indicators of the physiological components of smiling or frowning. Even tiny variations of expression barely discernible in video are detectable via fEMG, as the slightest tension and release of the zygomaticus or corrugator muscles will be reflected in separate channels in the fEMG data.

So, how do we acquire good quality fEMG?

Since the zygomaticus and corrugator muscles on each side work in tandem during natural smiling or frowning, it’s only necessary to apply electrodes to one side of the face. It’s also important that one—and only one—ground electrode be used; for fEMG, ground is normally applied near the corrugator electrodes.

First, the facial skin needs to be properly prepared by gently cleaning with an alcohol wipe, after which it’s recommended to apply a skin prep solution called ELPREP to enhance signal quality.
Select and apply reusable (EL254, EL654) or disposable (EL513) electrodes.
Before recording fEMG data, it’s also highly recommended to verify that the impedance of the attached electrodes falls between between 5 and 10 KOhms. This is easily achieved through the use of an electrode impedance checker called an EL-CHECK, which takes the guesswork out of proper electrode adhesion
Connect the appropriate lead to the selected amplifier. The type of recommended electrode leads will depend on whether the setup uses
- wired fEMG, such as an MP160 with fEMG100D Smart Amplifier or EMG100C Amplifier
- wireless fEMG, such as a BioNomadix EMG Transmitter with a paired receiver to MP160, stand-alone Smart Center, or Logger.

With the proper setup and equipment, acquiring great fEMG data is as easy as smiling.

To learn more, we invite you to visit our webinar page for these and other free, on-demand webinars that detail methods for recording and analysis of fEMG data:

- Understand Human Emotions with Facial EMG
- How to Record Great Facial EMG Data

Exercise Physiology – Pulling Out All the Stops

Everyone has experienced showing up at the doctor’s office and being tasked with sitting very still while vital signs are taken. You sit almost trance-like, concentrating on slowing your heartbeat, willing your blood pressure down, avoiding any sudden movement that might affect the signals being monitored for posterity. It’s quite another matter when body signals are being monitored and measured from someone in full motion, particularly an elite athlete, all systems performing at maximum capacity. How are multiple facets of our physiology accurately captured when we are puffing and sweating at full exertion? Don’t these movements introduce artifact into the data and affect its quality? Won’t the result be an unusable mess? The truth is with proper setup and hardware, acquiring accurate signals from exercise physiology subjects has never been easier.

Signals typically and simultaneously acquired during exercise physiology studies are heartbeat (ECG), respiration (RSP), muscle activity (EMG), in addition to oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production, blood pressure, core/surface temperature data, range of motion, and even GPS, if the participant is performing the activity outside the lab.

An important factor in exercise physiology studies is choosing the right electrodes, as well as their placement. We recommended using long-term electrodes, such as EL502, which can be worn up to 24 hours. If sweat is a problem, use stress electrodes which adhere better and are resistant to moisture. For even better adhesion to contoured parts of the body, use fabric electrodes. It is also important to prep the electrode site correctly, by first abrading the skin using an ELPAD, and making sure the electrode has sufficient conductive gel.

For measuring ECG signals, particularly Lead II, place the electrodes over bone such as a clavicle or rib to minimize movement artifact. For studies involving a lot of abdominal movement, a Lead I ECG configuration is recommended (left and right clavicle placement). This will help assure a good ECG signal during exercise.

If the participant is inside the lab (say, on a treadmill or exercise bike), a “wired” system, such as BIOPAC’s MP160 System with 100D-Series Smart Amplifiers is a good choice. Up to 16 channels of data can be acquired which can be extended to include 16 calculation channels of derived signals or online filters. For more freedom of movement, the MP160 System with BioNomadix wireless transmitters/receivers offer unrestrained comfort, including a BioShirt with built-in ECG fabric electrodes and RSP transducer. The wireless BioNomadix System has a range of 10 meters line-of-sight between transmitters and receivers. For long-term studies outside the lab, the BioNomadix Logger records and logs data for up to 24 hours while the subject goes about their protocol.

An additional wireless system commonly used for exercise studies is the Mobita System. Mobita is wireless, and like the aforementioned systems, works with the MP160 and AcqKnowledge software for recording and advanced analysis. Mobita is compact enough to fit in your hand and will record up to 32 channels of biopotential data.

No reason to keep still or be quiet any longer. With this many choices, acquiring high-quality exercise physiology data over a full range of body signals is within easy reach.

For more information about exercise physiology and how to maximize your results, we invite you to view our free webinar, Recording Great Data from Exercising and Mobile Subjects.

fNIRS Systems—a NIR miracle

At the dawn of the 19th century, pioneering astronomer Sir William Herschel discovered the existence of infrared radiation, which is electromagnetic radiation invisible to the human eye but identifiable via its ability to heat objects. Infrared radiation is commonly divided into three categories, near, mid, or far infrared waves. In ensuing years, infrared radiation was found to be useful for industrial, scientific, military, and law enforcement applications, such as heat signature tracking and night vision goggles. Over two decades ago, a new technology called near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was developed for non-invasively measuring specific aspects of human physiology using near infra-red waves. While far infrared waves lie closest to the microwave region, near infrared waves are closest in length to the visible light part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and are microscopic in size. Unlike far infrared waves, near infrared waves do not produce any heat. In fact, we can’t feel them at all. They are the small waves used by common devices such as a
remote control.

Today, near infrared waves are commonly used for studying many application areas of human physiology, notably by the fNIRS Imaging Systems to gather precise, high-density brain function and muscle oxygenation data.

How does fNIRS work with regard to human physiology? It’s an optical technology which sends light into the tissue and records the light that scatters back via a photo-diode and sensor attached to the subject. The fNIRS continuous wave technology uses an optical window in the near infrared spectrum that enables light to pass through. For example, when you hold your hand in front of a strong white light, the tissue can appear red and almost translucent. fNIRS shines light into the skull or muscle tissue, and using special detectors, records the resulting light scatter that returns to the surface. The light penetrates skin, bone, and alights on the brain before its return trip to the surface detectors, and accomplishes this painlessly without heat. In fact, the subject does not even feel the near infrared energy and the light is harmless. The result is startling images and functional data of the brain at work. The fNIRS Systems (ranging from Educational to High-Density versions) include fNIRsoft software for processing, analyzing and visualizing functional near infrared (fNIR) spectroscopy signals through a graphical user interface. Additionally, the fNIRS Systems work with the BIOPAC MP160 Research System and AcqKnowledge software in conjunction with other physiological signals such as ECG, respiration, cardiac output, blood pressure, electrodermal activity, and stimulus response markers. AcqKnowledge software also provides automated analysis tools for event related potentials and ensemble averaging.

fNIRS brain function application areas include workload assignment, VR, stress, attention, geriatrics, economics, ergonomics, learning and performance, sports science, HCI, pain perception, and cognitive workload – low or high.

fNIRS Systems can also be used to measure muscle oxygenation data, including oxidative capacity, muscle load, lateral imbalances (left vs. right muscle group) oxygenated hemoglobin and de-oxygenated hemoglobin in muscle activity.

We invite you to enjoy a comprehensive free fNIRS webinar and to visit our fNIRS products page.

Getting the Bands Back Together – Components of the EEG Signal

Many notable events occurred in 1929, not all of them good. The St. Valentine’s Day massacre. The stock market crash that triggered a worldwide economic crisis. The chain saw was invented. Not much good was happening in Germany either. Rampant inflation, the decline of the Weimar Republic, and the implacable rise of Nazism. But 1929 was also the year that German physician Hans Berger made an important scientific discovery that continues to influence how we study the human brain today. Dr. Berger discovered that electrodes placed on the human scalp could detect various patterns of electrical activity. After further study confirmed that these patterns were indeed related to brain activity and not mere scalp muscle artifact, scientists began to delve into the constructs of these “brain waves.” Today, electroencephalography (EEG) is still the primary method employed for recording brain function. In medical and basic research, correlation of particular brain waves reveals valuable information about sleep phases, emotional states, psychological profiles, and other mental activities. Much of this information is derived from five simple periodic rhythms, or frequencies, recorded in the EEG signal—alpha, beta, delta, theta, and gamma waves. These frequencies are known to be associated with specific degrees of alertness, affect, emotional states, and sleep. What do these frequency bands tell us about what is going on behind the gray matter? Allow us to introduce the band members.

Alpha (8-13 Hz) – Mellow Band Member

Alpha waves are associated with relaxation and calm. In general, the alpha rhythm is the prominent EEG wave pattern of adult subjects who are awake, but relaxed with eyes closed. Each region of the brain has a characteristic alpha rhythm but alpha waves of the greatest amplitude are recorded from the occipital and parietal regions of the cerebral cortex. In general, alpha wave amplitudes diminish when subjects open their eyes and are attentive to external stimuli, although some subjects trained in relaxation techniques can maintain high alpha amplitudes even with eyes open.

Beta (13-30 Hz) – Band Manager

Beta waves are related to memory, focus, and problem-solving. beta rhythms occur in alert individuals who are attentive to external stimuli, or exerting specific mental effort. Paradoxically, beta rhythms also occur during deep REM sleep. Beta waves may also be associated with “remembering” or retrieving memories.

Delta (1-5 Hz) – Supportive Band Member and Theta Rhythm (4-8 Hz) – Creative Band Member

Delta and theta rhythms are low-frequency EEG patterns that increase during sleep in the normal adult. Delta waves are associated with rejuvenation of the body through restorative deep sleep. Theta waves are more aligned with creativity and emotional connection. As people move from lighter to deeper stages of sleep (prior to REM sleep,) the occurrence of alpha waves diminishes and is gradually replaced by the lower frequency theta and then delta rhythms.

Although theta and delta rhythms are generally most prominent during sleep, there are cases when delta and theta rhythms are recorded from individuals who are awake. For example, theta waves will occur for brief intervals during emotional responses to frustrating events or situations. Delta waves may increase during difficult mental activities requiring concentration. In general, the occurrence and amplitudes of delta and theta rhythms are highly variable within and between individuals.

Gamma (> 32 Hz) – Perceptive Band Member

Gamma waves bring to the party cognition, information processing, learning, memory, and perception. Gamma waves were largely overlooked before the development of digital electroencephalography, as analog electroencephalography is restricted to recording and measuring rhythms that are usually less than 25 Hz.

A gamma wave is considered to be the “fastest” brain activity. The prominence of this wave leads to anxiety, high arousal, and stress. In optimal conditions gamma waves help with attention, focus, binding of senses (smell, sight, and hearing), consciousness, mental processing, and perception.

Research studies reported that gamma activity is involved in attention, working memory, and long-term memory processes, although excessive Gamma activity is also involved in psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, hallucination, Alzheimer’s disease, and epilepsy.

So in a sense, the periodic rhythms alpha, beta, delta, theta, and gamma, like the members of a tight musical ensemble, have distinct but overlapping roles for enabling the human brain to achieve wondrous things great and small that are often taken for granted.

BIOPAC Systems, Inc offers the following solutions for recording and analyzing EEG signals for research and education applications.

MP160 System with AcqKnowledge Software
EEG100D Smart Amplifier
EEG100C Amplifier Module
EEG100C-MRI Amplifier Module
BioNomadix Wireless EEG
BioNomadix Smart Center
Mobita 32-Channel Wireless EEG System
B-Alert Wireless EEG with Cognitive States Software
EPOCH Wireless In Vivo Neural Recording Systems—longterm EEG for rats, mice, or pups
Biopac Student Lab Systems—with EEG I, EEG II, and Hemispheric EEG lessons

We also invite you to enjoy our library of free EEG webinars on our Webinars page.

Why Smart Technology Is Smarter

Physiological research studies require a great deal of focused expertise, including an ability to properly set up all necessary equipment for the study at hand. This has long consisted of overseeing a host of manual hardware connections and software settings, and mistakes can be frustrating. The good news is most users become proficient at these detailed configurations, but wouldn’t it be a welcome change if these setups were easier? Think about how helpful it would be if the hardware and software were “smarter” and actively worked on your behalf. This is now a reality with the smart technology offered by BIOPAC’s newly-released line of 100D Smart Amplifiers.

What is smart technology and what makes Smart Amplifiers smarter? To begin with, these amplifiers are significantly smaller than standard amplifiers (only 4.6 mm in length) and have no buttons or switches. The convenient lightweight design is a powerful benefit, enabling these amplifiers to be attached closer to the participant’s body. Because the amp itself is positioned near the signal source(via a lightweight 3-meter cable), the resulting data is of superbly high quality, with less noise and artifact than conventional amplifiers. But let’s get to the smart part. The smart technology in Smart Amplifiers enables them to do the setup work for you. Each Smart Amplifier, regardless of signal type, self-configures to the optimally recommended settings, negating the need for user-defined adjustments or monitoring of physical switch positions. Simply plug the amplifier into the new AMI100D Input Module now included with every BIOPAC MP160 System, launch the AcqKnowledge software, and begin recording data.

To minimize setup time and errors in the lab, Smart Amplifiers utilize auto-detection and auto-identification technology. Not only do they self-configure, they also alert you (via a software dialog) whether the amplifier is connected to the correct channel. So basically, using Smart Amplifiers right out of the box is a three step process. 1) connect the amplifiers, 2) select any desired calculation channels for derived signals, 3) click Record. That’s it.

Frequently-used calculation channels or transformations are pre-configured for all signals and can be enabled by simply checking a box in the amplifier’s software UI. (For example, the ECG100D Smart Amplifier offers options to add heart rate and/or R-R interval, and will automatically place these derived signals in a separate calculation channel in the AcqKnowledge graph.)

Smart Amplifiers are available for the following signals: ECG, EEG, EGG, EDA, RSP, PPG, ERS, EOG, SKT, EMG and new fEMG (facial and small muscle).

Significantly smaller footprint, simple setup, unparalleled user comfort, superlative data quality, compatible with previous-generation BIOPAC amplifiers (such as 100C and BioNomadix Series), portable and lightweight, Smart Amplifiers will be an epiphany for your research.

To see Smart Amplifiers in action, we invite you to watch our free on-demand webinar New Smart Technology for the Lab.

Synchronize Participant Video with Physiological Data

AcqKnowledge software includes a Media feature that allows you to record and link participant video with physiological data. A common issue that crops up when analyzing physiological data with linked participant video is a lack of synchronization between the resulting video playback and onscreen data. This most often occurs when a USB webcam-type video camera is used. These types of cameras typically support a 30 frame-per-second rate whereas AcqKnowledge and the MP System can sample at rates up to 200,000 Hz. These factors can introduce an unwanted delay or misalignment between the video playback and data in the resulting AcqKnowledge graph.

So how do we synchronize these disparate signals to dovetail perfectly before recording our data and video? Fortunately, AcqKnowledge provides adjustment tools for addressing this common issue. This simple procedure requires the use of the AcqKnowledge software’s powerful Stimulator feature and a BIOPAC OUT103 LED Video Sync Cable.

Here is the sync method in a nutshell: With the OUT103 LED connected to the Analog Output of the MP160 unit’s HLT100C module, the AcqKnowledge software’s Stimulator is used to output a 5-volt square wave pulse into an AcqKnowledge graph, Using this setup, the LED illuminates when the 5-volt pulse is applied. The trick now is to use the AcqKnowledge Media feature and webcam to record a short video of the LED illuminating while the 5-volt pulse is being applied.

In the resulting graph, it’s easy to see in the Media playback screen when the light comes on by slowly advancing the AcqKnowledge software’s I-beam cursor through the graph data. Does the LED in the recorded video illuminate before the cursor reaches the 5-volt pulse? After? Or at the same time? Chances are, the recorded light will pop on slightly before or after the cursor reaches the pulse.

To compensate for this, the AcqKnowledge Delta-T measurement is used to determine the time interval between the pulse and when the recorded LED illuminates. For example, if the recorded LED lights up an indicated 185 ms before the onset of the pulse, then this discrepancy can be removed by setting a delay of 185 ms in the Media setup tools. If the LED lights up after the pulse onset, a negative delay must be set (ex. -185 ms). Once the playback delay is eradicated, the experiment can continue with confidence that all video and physiological data will be properly aligned.

It’s features such as this that enhance the usability AcqKnowledge Media feature, making it a powerful tool for recording and synchronizing participant video and audio during experiments. After a bit of practice, dialing in the playback video for linked Media acquisitions becomes second nature.

To see AcqKnowledge Media Synchronization in action, we invite you to view a free on-demand webinar covering this procedure in detail.