BIOPAC Blog

A Heartbeat Away: HRV Unlocks Autonomic Insights

The beating of the heart holds the key to a myriad of physiological questions that are of interest to researchers. The measured variation in time intervals between consecutive heartbeats, otherwise known as Heart Rate Variability (HRV), provides valuable insights into the activity of the autonomic nervous system, reflecting the balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic influences on the heart.

HRV allows researchers to assess cardiac health, stress levels, and overall autonomic function, making it an invaluable component of physiological studies to investigate numerous areas such as cardiovascular health, mental health, stress, and exercise physiology to name just a few.

A recent study applied HRV to examine the effectiveness of yoga and Ayurveda, a form of alternative medicine traditionally practiced in India and Nepal, to regulate and treat lymphedema. Lymphedema is tissue swelling caused by an accumulation of protein-rich fluid that’s usually drained through the body’s lymphatic system. Because lymph drainage has been connected to autonomic function, researchers postulated that HRV would provide meaningful insight into the effectiveness of yoga and Ayurveda programs in treating lymphedema. A BIOPAC two-channel BSL data acquisition system was employed to gather HRV and respiration data of participants who underwent an intensive regimen of yoga exercise, limb soaking, herbal baths, and manual lymph drainage. Initial comparisons of HRV data between both the test and control groups showed significant improvement in the lymphedema patients following treatment.

In many cases, researchers choose to combine HRV with other signals to provide a more detailed picture of a participant’s autonomic response to stimuli. A 2020 study sought to identify an effective noninvasive measure of how the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) responds to stimuli. Typically, such measurements involve the invasive recording of muscle sympathetic neural activity at the peroneal nerve. This study examined HRV and electrodermal activity (EDA), both separately and in combination, to see which provided the most effective measurement of SNS activity. Researchers measured participants’ SNS response to both a cold-pressor test (submerging hand in ice water) and while viewing emotionally challenging video images. Throughout both tests, continuous ECG and EDA signals were acquired and analyzed using a BIOPAC four-channel data acquisition system. An ECG100C and EDA100C were used to acquire the ECG and EDA signals, respectively. From their results, researchers concluded that the combination of HRV and EDA provided a better metric for SNS activity than HRV alone.

Whether alone or in combination with other signals, HRV offers researchers a powerful tool for measuring how the autonomic nervous system responds to a wide range of stimuli and conditions with applications across a broad spectrum of fields. Visit our Webinars page for multiple examples of how HRV is being used in research and check our HRV citations as well.

Are you designing a study that features HRV? BIOPAC’s regional sales reps can help you access the right tools for the job to ensure the best possible results. Contact us today!

Faster, Stronger, Further—Unlocking the Body’s Potential with Exercise Physiology

Every athlete seeks the winning formula that will make them more competitive. Add coaches, trainers, weekend warriors, and everyday health enthusiasts to the mix, all looking for an edge to improve fitness, shorten recovery times, and avoid injuries. Exercise physiology plays a key role in gaining such advantages and insights.

Exercise physiology encompasses the scientific study of how the body responds and adapts to exercise and physical activity. It covers a wide spectrum of systems including the cardiovascular, respiratory, and musculoskeletal as well as metabolic function and overall performance. Today’s exercise physiologists benefit from a range of tools and techniques to measure, collect, and analyze such responses and acquire a better understanding of the ways in which exercise affects both humans and other animals, including solutions that integrate the latest virtual reality and eye tracking technology.

This type of research is not without its challenges. Study participants are often required to be physically active during data acquisition. The tools employed in such instances must allow participants to move freely without introducing signal artifacts or noise into the data. A 2021 study into the physiological progression of fatigue shows how researchers can resolve such problems by employing wireless devices such as BIOPAC mobile EMG amplifiers, used in this case to measure strain to the biceps and triceps during exercise. Researchers successfully gathered a range of EMG data with no negative effects from the physical exertion of the study participants.

Exercise physiology research has also been applied to the treatment and management of exercise- and sports-related injuries, both acute and chronic. Additionally, studies have investigated the connection between physical activity and pathology, revealing new ways to prevent or reduce the progress of certain diseases.

A 2020 study by researchers at the University of Udine examined the effects of both exercise alone and exercise combined with a high-protein diet on patients with late-onset Pompe disease, a neuromuscular disorder that degrades a person’s tolerance to physical activity. The study explored which routine had the greatest impact, if any, on a patient’s exercise tolerance, muscle and pulmonary functions, and quality of life. A BIOPAC isometric dynamometer measured muscle force generated by the right leg and arm during flex and extension tests. Data gathered with a BIOPAC data acquisition and analysis system running AcqKnowledge software demonstrated that the combination of exercise and a high-protein diet did improve exercise tolerance, muscle enzymes, pulmonary function, and quality of life for the patients.

Exercise physiology research also sheds light on the ways in which exercise impacts mental and physical wellness. A study published at the Ho Chi Minh University of Technology used heart rate variability (HRV) to evaluate the influence of stress, both physical and mental, on the performance of stationary bike trainees. During the experiment, electrocardiogram (ECG) signal data was gathered from participants using an MP36 data acquisition unit running Biopac Student Lab (BSL) software over a two-month exercise regimen. Based on the results of the study, researchers concluded that HRV provided a useful window into how stress impacts performance and that HRV data could be used as a management tool to monitor stress levels during training.

The techniques and tools available to today’s exercise physiology researchers are as diverse and varied as the areas in which they are being employed, from athletic performance monitoring and enhancement to wellness studies. For more information on how such tools can benefit your exercise physiology research, watch BIOPAC’s webinar on Recording Great Data from Exercising and Mobile Subjects.

Our regional BIOPAC sales reps are ready to help you find the right tools to design your next exercise physiology study. Contact them today to learn more.

Body Electric: Bioimpedance in Physiology Research

With nearly 70 percent of our bodies made up of water as well as a variety of dissolved salts, humans are natural conductors of electrical current. However, various elements of the human body restrict or impede the flow of electrical current, a phenomenon termed “bioimpedance.” Variations in restrictiveness to the flow of electrical current through an organism can provide researchers with a wealth of information on a range of physiological conditions.

Bioimpedance can be defined as the response of an organism to an externally applied electrical current. For more than a century, researchers have used bioimpedance as a safe and noninvasive metric for a range of physiological data, from measuring body composition through bioimpedance analysis (BIA) to investigating various biological systems such as cardiovascular function via impedance cardiography.

While not new, breakthroughs in technology and techniques for recording and analyzing bioimpedance have made it increasingly accessible to researchers. Through impedance cardiography and cardiac output, researchers gain access to a wide range of cardiovascular and hemodynamic data, including heart rate (HR), cardiac output (CO), acceleration index (AI), mean blood pressure (MBP), stroke index (IA), stroke volume (SV), and systemic vascular resistance, to name just a few.

The recent development of trans-radial electrical bioimpedance velocimetry (TREV) has provided researchers with a heightened level of accessibility when attempting to record high-quality data. Unlike traditional transthoracic methods of recording impedance cardiography signals, TREV measures blood movement through the radial and ulnar arteries of the forearm. The approach streamlines electrode placement, making it less prone to complications associated with other impedance cardiography methods.

One example of the practical application of impedance cardiography is in research on stress as it relates to coronary health. A 2019 study published by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign compared the stress response of a group of young participants to that of participants over the age of 55 who had been diagnosed with coronary artery disease (CAD). Researchers recorded physiological signals, including electrocardiogram (ECG), impedance cardiogram (ICG), and continuous BP during rest, stress, and recovery. ECG and ICG signals were collected using BIOPAC BN-NICO wireless amplifiers and BN-EL50-LEAD4 leads. Researchers found ICG provided a reliable metric for stress response.

Recently, a team from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) employed TREV to demonstrate how this newer bioimpedance metric can be used to track event-related contractility in a maximal grip force experiment. The experiment employed TREV electrodes attached to the participant’s forearm and amplified by a NICO100D smart amplifier. Additionally, ECG electrodes were amplified by an ECG100D while the respiration cycle was recorded via a TSD221-MRI respiration belt. All data signals were acquired and analyzed using an MP160 system running AcqKnowledge software. The experiment confirmed the effectiveness of TREV as a reliable metric for connecting the cardio-sympathetic drive to other physiological conditions, such as force production.

While not new to physiological research, the application of bioimpedance continues to flourish and evolve. To learn more about how bioimpedance is being applied in the research setting as well as new techniques, check out BIOPAC’s webinar on bioimpedance and cardiac output focusing on TREV.

To learn more about incorporating impedance cardiography and TREV in your study, contact your regional BIOPAC sales representative today.

Effort Rewarded: Tools for Measuring Motivation

A job well done may be its own reward, but the mechanisms that drive humans to produce better results are far more complex. Much research has been devoted to the study of motivation and the psychophysiological processes that drive our behavior in pursuit of a goal, whether in relationships, on the job, or in education.

The nature of motivation is controversial, and a variety of competing theories have been put forward regarding what a motivational state comprises. Some researchers have argued that motivation is driven by specific human needs, like food, safety, or respect from one’s peers. Motivation may be categorized as intrinsic, meaning an individual pursues an activity because the activity itself is enjoyable or interesting, or extrinsic, which is when the pursuit offers some external reward.

Research into motivation has drawn interest across a wide range of fields, particularly in the areas of business and education. In the realm of business, corporations are especially focused on the motivation to work, which impacts productivity. In an era where buzzwords such as “quiet quitting” and “bare minimum Mondays” have entered the lexicon, companies are keen to know what motivates workers. Similarly, educators are looking to what types of intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors are most effective in helping students achieve their learning goals. A key metric for measuring motivation is effort, which can be measured with a range of tools readily available to researchers.

A 2020 Harvard University study published by the American Psychological Association investigated the differences in how adolescents and adults translated motivation into action based on the physical effort exerted for financial reward. Participants age 12 to 23 exerted force by squeezing a BIOPAC hand dynamometer in response to visual cues indicating monetary rewards from $.05 to $.75. The dynamometer, connected to a DA100C amplifier, measured grip force, which the participant saw displayed on a screen as a vertical bar. These tools provided the research team with a means of accurately demonstrating quantitative variations in motivational behavior across various age groups in pursuit of effort-based rewards.

A similar approach was used in a 2019 study from the Netherlands that examined eating behavior by “quantifying the dynamic aspects of appetitive motivation.” As with the above example, researchers relied on a BIOPAC device to measure grip effort, in this case, a bulb transducer connected to an MP36 data acquisition system running Biopac Student Lab software. By squeezing the bulb, participants were able to self-administer sips of chocolate milk via a tube in response to stimuli while experiencing various states of hunger and satiation. The process developed for this study, termed the “Grab-to-Eat Task”, or GET, successfully showed that handgrip effort provided an accurate metric for “evaluating motivational aspects of food consumption” with implications for further research into eating behavior and weight control.

Techniques for measuring motivation are not limited to grip effort. A 2019 study published by the National Institute of Health relied on cardiovascular signals to measure the willingness of older adults to engage in cognitively demanding tasks. Blood pressure and heart rate data were collected using a CNAP monitor connected to a BIOPAC MP150 system, which provided a detailed measure of effort exerted through the participants’ physiological response to each task.

These examples just begin to touch on the ways various psychophysiological measures are being applied to the study of motivation and effort. For additional insight, view the BIOPAC webinar on tools for measuring effort and motivation in the lab.

For more information on how to gather and integrate effort-related data into your motivation study, contact your regional BIOPAC sales representative.

Eye-Catching: Mobile Tech Enhances Immersive Experiments

Freed from the limitations of stationary eye tracking technology, mobile eye tracking enables researchers to study their subjects while they perform a wide range of immersive tasks in natural settings.

Sixteenth-century pediatrician Thomas Phaer mused that “the eyes are the windows to the soul.” These sensory organs and their movements certainly provide a wealth of information to researchers studying the interaction of mind and body. Eye tracking has long been a key tool of physiological and psychophysiological research, and recent developments in mobile eye tracking take this valuable data resource out of the confines of the lab and into the real world.

Freed from the limitations of stationary eye tracking technology, mobile eye tracking enables researchers to study participants while they perform a wide range of immersive tasks in natural settings. These self-contained devices come in a variety of form factors including wearable glasses that provide untethered eye tracking data acquisition in real time that can be combined with other physiological data collected during live experiments.

Today’s lightweight mobile devices can record a broad spectrum of eye tracking data, including pupil size and position, gaze path, vergence angle, and areas of interest (AOI). The latter connects stimuli to eye-movement metrics, providing data on the participant’s psychophysiological response to stimuli within their field of vision. In previous blog posts and webinars, we have explored how mobile eye tracking technology gathers this data. Numerous studies have been published that demonstrate its potential in physiological and psychophysiological research. Settings and applications include user experience, sports and physical therapy, public safety and law enforcement, driving and equipment operation, and work environments from the office to the factory floor.

Mobile eye tracking technology allowed researchers at The University of Sheffield to take their experiments to the city streets for a 2020 study into how different lighting affects cyclists navigating urban environments at night. Mobile eye tracking provided data on the gaze behavior of nocturnal cyclists in parallel with skin conductance response (SCR) to better understand how obstacle detection is influenced by variations in type, location, and level of lighting. Bicycles and their riders were equipped with a BIOPAC data acquisition unit and audio stimulation units along with a BioNomadix EDA transmitter and electrodes to record the participants’ SCR. Eye tracking data, including AOI, were synchronized with SCR data and analyzed using AcqKnowledge software to determine how the riders reacted to a variety of lighting conditions. Researchers concluded that lighting plays a significant role in riders’ comfort levels at night and that improved lighting could increase urban bicycle use.

Less intrusive by design, mobile eye tracking can provide indoor experiments with a heightened degree of immersion. A study at the University of British Columbia used mobile eye tracking glasses to create a more natural environment to investigate how the immersive effects of electronic gaming machines (EGM) impact gambling addiction. The study looked at how machine design triggered psychophysiological responses in participants by assigning various AOI to EGM screens. ECG data were recorded along with respiration effort via a BIOPAC respiration effort transducer and amplifier, which were fed to a data acquisition unit and synchronized with AOI data recorded via mobile eye tracking glasses. The study was able to successfully identify several key markers for game immersion using AOI that suggest behavioral links between immersion and gambling addiction.

Possible applications for mobile eye tracking in research continue to expand with the evolution of the technology. To learn more about recent developments in mobile eye tracking, check out our latest webinar on mobile eye tracking glasses with AcqKnowledge integration.

Learn more about how to integrate mobile eye tracking into your next research project by contacting your local BIOPAC sales representative.

Mind and Body: Signals to Enhance Your Psychophysiology Research

The human body and mind share an intrinsic link, both influencing and reflecting the health and general well-being of the other. Within the field of psychophysiology, researchers gain a wealth of insight into mental processes and disorders by studying physiological signals recorded from both the brain and body. Signals such as electrodermal activity (EDA), skin temperature (SKT), electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate variability (HRV), and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) provide just a few of the tools helping us to better understand these mind-body interactions.

A wide range of research technologies has made these signals increasingly accessible in the lab as well as in everyday environments, allowing studies to place participants in increasingly naturalistic settings while gathering critical physiological data. In this way, researchers can provide a more accurate picture of how study participants react to stress and arousal, experience emotion, or interact within group environments.

One recent study used EDA and heart rate (HR) to examine the role of emotion in student success within computer-based learning environments (CBLE). As discussed in previous posts, a range of signals can be used to measure the body’s physiological response to emotion, otherwise known as “affect.” By gaining a better understanding of learners’ emotional responses to CBLE stimuli, researchers in this study hope to apply their data to improvements in CBLE design. EDA data was gathered from participants via SS57LA EDA leads while HR signals were collected with SS2LB shielded lead sets, both of which were connected to a BSL MP36 data acquisition and analysis system. Participants were shown imagery designed to evoke a negative emotional reaction before being asked to read a complex academic paper. The study was able to establish a link between the participants’ emotions and their comprehension of the reading material.

In another study, researchers used EDA and skin conductance response (SCR) to measure participants’ reactions to conditioned stimuli (CS) and unconditioned stimuli (US). The goal was to determine if fear-inducing memories could be modified either pharmacologically or through behavior modification to overcome fear. An MP36R System with AcqKnowledge software allowed analysis of SCR signals gathered via SS3LA finger transducers across a range of experiments designed to trigger fear-inducing memories. While the overall results were inconclusive, the SCR signals provided valuable feedback regarding the participants’ response to stimuli.

While EDA is a common thread through many of these psychophysiology studies, other signals provide researchers with a more complete and nuanced data set from which to draw their conclusions. Researchers exploring the factors influencing musical preferences combined EDA data with ECG and facial electromyography (fEMG) signals to assess how listeners reacted to familiar and unfamiliar musical stimuli. Data from all three signals were fed to an MP36 data acquisition and analysis system. The study found a strong correlation between musical preferences and familiarity with material as reflected by the subjects’ emotional responses.

These examples only scratch the surface of how psychophysiological research is being aided by an array of signals, all made accessible with available technology. To learn more about how to implement these signals in your next study, see BIOPAC’s Psychophysiology Applications webpage.

Contact your BIOPAC sales representative to learn more about the wide range of data-gathering tools available to help you construct your next psychophysiology study.

The Year in Review: Top Physiology and Neuroscience Research Stories 2022

Another calendar year has come and gone. COVID-19 remains a reality, but we continue to adapt to the ongoing pandemic and find new ways to overcome the challenges it poses at work, at school, at home, and in the lab. And speaking of research, 2022 proved to be a banner year for innovation and breakthroughs in the sciences, particularly in the physiological and neurological fields. Here is a quick round-up of some of the research stories that caught our attention.

Brain Implant Allows Locked-in Patient to Communicate

A man in his late 30s has been given the ability to communicate for the first time since being left in a completely locked-in state by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The patient, who was unable to move or even open his eyes, can communicate again thanks to a brain-computer interface (BCI) comprising two microelectrode arrays implanted in his motor cortex. The procedure was carried out by a team of researchers at the University of Tübingen in Germany. “This study answers a long-standing question about whether people with complete locked-in syndrome (CLIS) – who have lost all voluntary muscle control, including movement of the eyes or mouth – also lose the ability of their brain to generate commands for communication,” wrote Dr. Jonas Zimmermann, one of the co-authors of the study resulting from the procedure.

First Scan of Dying Human Brain Provides Insight into Near-death Experience

An EEG recording from a dying 87-year-old patient has provided researchers with the first glimpse of the neurophysiological phenomena that occur shortly after cardiac arrest. While survivors of so-called near-death experiences have anecdotally reported intense and surreal experiences that include panoramic memory review, out-of-body experiences, and other hallucinatory phenomena, little is understood about what causes such occurrences. While experiments have been carried out on animal subjects showing a hypoactive state of brain activity under such conditions, this new data provided researchers with the first evidence “that the human brain may possess the capability to generate coordinated activity during the near-death period.”

Biomembrane Research May Advance Understanding of Memory in Computers and Humans

Drawing inspiration from the living realm, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Lab are applying biological concepts to next-generation computers with implications for both human health and cutting-edge computing. Researchers were able to demonstrate that an artificial cell membrane could imitate one of the hallmarks of biological memory and learning—long-term potentiation (LTP). The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows for the first time that a cell membrane by itself, without the benefit of proteins or other embedded biomolecules, can carry out LPT over several hours. The pure lipid membrane, which was formed using lipid-covered water droplets, represents the first nanoscale structure in which memory can be encoded. The discovery opens the door to neuromorphic computing, which imitates the way the human brain stores and processes information and is more efficient than traditional computing.

This is just a sampling of the exciting developments catching our attention in the sciences this year. For more explorations of the intersection of cutting-edge technology, physiology, and neuroscience, join BIOPAC at the T4 Human Physiology Conference in summer 2023. And have a happy New Year!

To learn more about BIOPAC’s role in exciting breakthroughs in neuroscience and physiology, and how we can assist you in achieving your research and teaching goals, contact your local sales representative today.

Human Factors: Physiological Signals Enhance Ergonomics Research

Ergonomics plays a role in almost every aspect of human interaction with the world around us—how we work, entertain ourselves, rest, and relax. Simply put, ergonomics (sometimes termed “human factors and ergonomics” or simply “human factors”) refers to the way in which physiological and psychological principles are applied to design, particularly in ways that benefit a user’s physical and psychological well-being and productivity.

In practice, ergonomics addresses more than our physical interactions but also encompasses our mental, emotional, and interpersonal states. What unites these different applications of ergonomic theory is that they can be studied and better understood with many of the same tools and signals applied in other areas of physiological and psychophysiological research. These can include ECG, EOG, fNIRS, EEG, and EMG, to name just a few.

Ergonomics can be broken down into three primary domains. Physical ergonomics relates to how the body interacts with the physical environment, from the design of tools we use every day to the physical environments in which we live and work. Cognitive ergonomics focuses on how our mental abilities are influenced by the systems and tasks with which we are presented. Organizational ergonomics (also known as macroergonomics) explores how to optimize organizational structures, policies, and processes within various social settings, including work environments.

One example of how physiological signals are being applied in physical ergonomics research involves the application of electrooculogram (EOG) signals to analyze eye movements, particularly saccades, as a measurement of eye fatigue caused by exposure to digital screens. The ubiquity of such screens in both our work and recreational environments makes such research critical to maintaining user well-being and productivity. This 2018 study utilized EOG electrodes connected via SS2LB leads to an MP36 data acquisition unit running BSL software to record and analyze EOG signals. Researchers were able to determine the optimal reading and viewing distance to minimize eye fatigue and discomfort, improving user health and productivity.

Cognitive ergonomics come into play when discussing the ease-of-use for a product. This is particularly important when dealing with how less technologically savvy groups interact with new technology, a challenge is explored in a 2019 study into how to develop a home heart monitor that would be easy for older users to operate. The study compared user interaction with device hardware, a mobile app, and a cloud-based software platform while using a BIOPAC research-level system as a control. Researchers created the signal baseline with an ECG amplifier connected to a data acquisition and analysis unit, comparing these results to the quality of the signal the user was able to obtain using the self-administered home devices and applications. This approach accurately assesses both the user-friendliness and quality of data obtained by several telemedicine systems.

These examples offer just a small sample of the ways in which physiological signals are being applied in the study of ergonomics. For an in-depth exploration of the topic, watch our webinar series on Ergonomics and Fatigue.

To learn more about using BIOPAC hardware and software to enhance your ergonomics study or design research, contact your local sales representative.

Evoked Potentials: Low-amplitude Signals for High-value Data

Researchers studying the nervous system have a host of physiological signals at their disposal to provide critical data on neurological function. Various signals present advantages and disadvantages, depending on the demands of the research being conducted. Evoked potentials offer a particularly effective means of measuring the nervous system’s response to certain stimuli, notably visual and auditory cues.

Evoked potentials are employed in both research and clinical settings to measure electrical activity in the central nervous system. Stimulation of specific sensory neural pathways produces this electrical activity, allowing researchers to see the speed and thoroughness with which these signals reach the brain. Evoked potentials provide researchers with heightened precision when isolating and localizing a participant’s response to stimuli.

Because evoked potential amplitudes tend to be low, from less than one to just a few microvolts, these signals can be difficult to differentiate from other higher amplitude signals and background noise. This is resolved by using signal averaging to separate the low-amplitude signals from the noise. Multiple readings are taken with evoked potential signals time-locked to the stimulus. Averaging these measurements allows the evoked potential to be filtered from the random signal noise.

Along with providing useful data for research, evoked potential tests are commonly used in clinical settings to diagnose and explore treatments for a range of disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), epilepsy, glaucoma, neuropathies, Alzheimer’s, and others. In both research and clinical applications, evoked potential tests provide several advantages over using other approaches since they are noninvasive, painless, and provide results more quickly than other neurological scans, such as MRI. Types of evoked potentials can be categorized by the stimuli with which they are associated. Visual evoked potentials (VEP) are triggered by visual stimuli such as light flashes or by participants viewing certain patterns. Auditory evoked potentials (AEP) measure responses to sound stimuli such as clicks. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SEP) are triggered by electrical stimulation of peripheral nerves.

A 2022 study by researchers at the Autonomous University of Aguascalientes in Mexico evaluated the effectiveness of using VEP waveforms embedded in electroencephalographic (EEG) signals to determine the health of the optic nerve. The team employed an MP36 data acquisition system connected to an SS2LB lead set to record EEG signals from study participants. The signal data were used to create a database of VEPs that could be processed with analysis software for the early detection of glaucoma and other optic nerve-related illnesses.

A similar study combined the use of EEG signals with VEP to examine how participants recognize em otion in others. Researchers from two universities in China relied on a variation of VEP known as steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP), which exhibits distinctive frequency and phase properties. EEG signals were recorded via a BIOPAC data acquisition unit while participants were shown flickering images representing three emotional states—delight, sadness, and anger. The study found a positive correlation between SSVEP amplitude, alpha-frequency entrainment, and accurate identification of emotion.

These are just a few examples of how evoked potentials provide researchers with valuable insight into the central nervous system’s response to stimuli and its relationship to a wide range of physiological states. For additional information on how to use BIOPAC hardware and AcqKnowledge to stimulate a range of senses using electrical, auditory, visual, haptic, scent, and thermal stimuli and record evoked potentials, check out our webinar on Exogenous and Stimulus-related Evoked Potentials.

To learn more about how your study can benefit from using BIOPAC hardware and software to record and analyze evoked potential data, contact your local sales representative.

Workflow: Research Smarter with Automated Routines

You have probably heard the saying “why work harder when you can work smarter?” While this may seem like a cliché, there is no denying that smart work, or what might be more accurately termed “efficient effort,” not only alleviates worker stress but in doing so minimizes human error while creating opportunities for increased productivity and creativity.

In an earlier post on lab automation, we discussed how increased workloads and human error have contributed to a crisis of reproducibility and repeatability in the research community. To summarize, repeatability and reproducibility provide the foundation upon which the scientific method is built. The results of academic research only retain value for the wider scientific community when the conditions that produce such results can be repeated and shared amongst other researchers.

There are several best practices that can contribute to ensuring repeatability and reproducibility of research by maintaining the conditions under which lab work is conducted. These include, among other factors, consistency in the location or research environments, the tools used for measurement as well as other equipment used in experiments, and the routines and processes used to gather and analyze data.

As discussed in the previous blog post, automation of data gathering and analysis has been one of the best ways to ensure consistency and repeatability while helping to eliminate human error, as outlined in a 2019 article on improving reproducibility in synthetic biology through automation:

“The successful implementation of automation technology can help to improve both the throughput and reproducibility of experiments, although the high cost and lack of flexibility of traditional lab automation has so far hindered their wide-spread adoption in academia. Recently though, there have been advances in automation technology that, when combined with new protocol sharing methods and protocol management systems, may allow for researchers to gain the benefits of automation.”

—Jessop-Fabre and Sonnenschein

Before when discussing how to automate routines for data acquisition and analysis, the focus has been on the use of scripts to string together processes. While this achieves the goal of creating laboratory conditions that are more readily repeatable, scripting requires a specific skill set. This brings us back to the notion of working smarter, not harder.

Previous versions of BIOPAC’s own AcqKnowledge data gathering and analysis software offered a powerful Scripting tool as an add-on licensed feature. The latest version of AcqKnowledge supports a new licensed feature with Scripting called Workflow. Workflow takes all the functionality of scripts and places it in an easy-to-use, drag-and-drop interface that requires no prior scripting knowledge.

Workflow is the embodiment of the “work smarter, not harder” philosophy, allowing users to create automated routines to process and analyze data under consistent and repeatable conditions. By speeding signal conditioning and preparation for analysis, Workflow boosts efficiency. The ability to save and share workflows makes it easier for colleagues and reviewers to replicate research conditions. BIOPAC CEO, Frazer Findlay hosted a recent webinar in which he provided a detailed introduction to creating automated routines with Workflow.

For additional information on the latest version of BIOPAC’s AcqKnowledge software as well as other research tools and how they can help streamline your lab work, contact your local sales representative.