Electroencephalogram (EEG) Project
TEAM:
Adelajda Turku- aturku@me.bergen.edu
Andry S. Lupuche Rodriguez- andrysofia_10@outlook.es
Erika Marshyti- emarshyti118686@me.bergen.edu
MENTOR:
Dr. Coleen Dilauro- cdilauro@bergen.edu
BLOG:
January 2nd- Adelajda Turku
The first day, along with our mentor Dr. Dilauro, we decided to focus on the EEG project to study the effects of sugar on brain-wave activity patterns. After that, we set the following goals for the project:
Day 1
- Discuss the experimental design to show the effect of sugar in the brainwave activity pattern
- Explore the literature review on similar studies conducted with sugar
- Update the consent form for participants
Day 2
- Test for equipment functionality and run a test case
- Have access to S.A.R.A software to analyze data (email the Netherlands at the headquarters)
Day 3/ Day 4
- Research literature review on addiction
- Finalize experimental design
- Enroll participants and collect data
Day 5/ Day 6
- Enroll more participants to collect data
- Set future goals
In addition to that, we discussed the possible experimental design to conduct the study. We researched the food with the highest content of sugar and that could be purchased in the vicinity of the campus. Based on the research conducted, we agreed that Boston cream doughnut with a fruit juice was the perfect option and could have been purchased at the cafeteria of the campus at Dunkin Donut. In fact, this exceeded the limit of 27g of sugar per day. Additionally, we researched the ingredients in the main website of Dunkin Donut to include them in the Consent form for any food allergy. We updated the Consent form to the following one:
STEM Student Union
Psychophysiology and Neurophysiology Experimentation and Research
Research Director
Dr. Coleen C. Di Lauro
cdilauro@bergen.edu
(201) 926-9000
Consent Form
The purpose of this study is to allow participants to learn about the human brain and nervous system. Participants will learn to use test equipment and perform laboratory exercises to monitor the nervous system. In addition, participants will learn to develop their own devices with which the nervous system interacts.
You are invited to participate in this study on a voluntary basis by signing up for and satisfactorily completing training for use of each piece of test equipment and implementation of laboratory techniques therein. All training shall be conducted by a Research Director.
Some equipment and laboratory exercises involve attaching multiple electrodes directly to your body at various locations on your head and/or on your skin at locations of key muscles using an adhesive meant for that purpose. In addition, a conductive gel may be applied between the electrode and your skin. This gel may feel cold. Also, to hold the electrodes in place on your head, a head cap holding multiple electrodes might be worn. The head cap covers the top of the head and wraps tightly around the chin so as to be held securely in place. In some instances, in the course of implementing laboratory exercises, electrodes or a head cap may be worn for more than an hour.
The instrument utilized is the Electroencephalogram (EEG) Brain Master Technology Discovery, which is a non-invasive tool to collect data on brain activity. The project aims to study the effects of sugar on the human brain. For this, doughnuts from Dunkin Donut and juice from the cafeteria will be purchased and available to the participants for the course of the study. The ingredient of the purchased doughnuts and juice is available to check for food allergies.
During each experiment that involves data collection, data pertaining to you will be stored on the Alienware laptop accessible only with a secured password. Your information on the Alienware laptop will be encoded with an alpha-numerical identification system. This practice ensures privacy. The Alienware laptop will be secure in the STEM Center and accessible only upon request to the faculty mentor Dr. Coleen DiLauro.
You will receive no additional compensation for participation in this study other than compensation you might normally be receiving as part of an ongoing internship.
If you feel that you have been injured as a result of participating in the demonstration, notify the person administering the test immediately. The person administering the test must escort any injured participant to Public Safety, document the incident and injury, and as soon as circumstances permit, notify a Research Director.
Your signature on this form means that you understand the information presented and that you want to participate in the study. You understand that participation is voluntary and you may withdraw from the study at any time. Your signature is an acknowledgment that you do not have any physical or mental condition that may be aggravated by participation in this study or that if an exacerbation of such a condition occurs, you would cease participation indefinitely. You also acknowledge that you are over 18 years of age.
Ingredients of doughnut retrieved from:
Hereby I have read the ingredients’ list and I certify I have no known food allergies on these.
________________________________ _______________________________
Signature of Participant Printed Name of Participant
January 3rd- Adelajda Turku
The second day of the winter internship was more practical: in the morning we discussed the project idea with Dr. Dilauro showing her the Consent Form for approval. Later during the day, we checked the equipment and run a test trial. The RedCap and the Brain Master Technology Discovery, the instruments utilized to record brain wave activity, showed some issues. The RedCap was properly worn. However, the Brain Master Technology platform on the computer screen was not recording information on the two frontal electrodes. After cleaning the RedCap carefully and putting more gel on the electrodes, we managed to fix only one electrode. Since the other electrode is not recording information, we will eliminate this error with the S.A.R.A software which erases all artifacts. We discussed with Dr. Dilauro to take care of this inconvenience and contact assistance.
(Picture taken by Andry/ Adele volunteering for the test trail to check the equipment)
(Picture taken by Adelajda/ Sample of brainwave-activity pattern recorded during the session)
After recording and saving the data, we logged into S.A.R.A. software to clear all the artifacts. We were not able to proceed because of the contract expiration. We contacted the headquarters in the Netherlands after discussing with Dr. Dilauro on the plan of action on this setback.
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