Today is the end of Week 2 of our IndieGoGo campaign for Muse, InteraXon’s new brainwave sensing headband, and to date we’ve reached over 60% of our funding goal. We’re more excited than ever at the reality of being able to bring Muse to the world in mid-2013! Believe us, for the few weeks leading up to our launch on IndieGoGo we had a hard time keeping this thing quiet, and it was wonderful to be able to finally share it with the world on Saturday, October 20th.
InteraXon has received amazing support and emails from people around the world, as well as great reviews by media that covered our launch:
“The slim, fashion-forward device, which even Anna Wintour would conceivably wear” (Huffington Post)
“The world just got a little better.” (Trend Hunter Tech)
“The uses for a device like the Muse in the future are even more intriguing” (CNET)
“Today is an important milestone both in the history of the consumer BCI market and in wearable computing as well” (Neurogadget)
“It’s like a mood ring, but for your forehand” (MIT Technology Review)
There’s still a lot happening in the world of BCI which we’re following, and have reported on here in our weekly industry roundup. This week: neurofeedback as a way to strengthen brain function in mental disorders; ways of using brain computer interfaces as a forensics tool at crime scenes; NASA conducting hands-on demonstrations of the P300 speller for staff
1// Neurofeedback to Strengthen Brain Function
A study conducted at University of Western Ontario, and Lawson Health Research Institute, has found that training the alpha rhythm can help to further enhance the cognitive control network in the human brain. The study describes neurofeedback as the primary training technique, used to restore brain function.
The study was comprised of 30-minute sessions of noninvasive neural based training. Over a period of time, the study showed that functional changes can occur in this cognitive control network of the brain after these 30-minute sessions. You’re able to read more on the research here
2// BCI as a Forensic Tool
Some of the most popular television shows today are crime dramas, like CSI: Miama, Dexter, or Criminal Minds. The lead characters work in Forensics, who help solve tough crime cases using science, computers, and math. So what’s that have to do with brain computer interfacing?
A lot. A paper from a team of researchers at American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates investigates the use of ERP (Event Related Potential) as a forensics tool. ERP is the brains response to a specific stimuli. The researchers studied 10 participants, who volunteered without any motivational catch, and were shown different sets of stimuli over the course of 51 trial events. The researchers concluded that this could be an effective tool for crime scene and Forensics in the future.
3// Just For Fun: NASA Does a Hands-On BCI Seminar
Recently, NASA did a fun hands-on demonstration (video) of the brain computer interface enabled P300 speller at their Hampton Virginia headquarters. The workshop was sponsored by g.tec (Guger Technologies), the Austrian biomedical engineering company.
—-
The InteraXon news roundup is published weekly, every Sunday night, to recap trends and breaking news in the world of brain computer interfaces and thought controlled computing. Do you have a story you’d like to submit or share? Contact us at info@interaxon.ca (subject line “News Story”) or leave a comment here.
