Positive Technology Journal

New evaluation techniques that monitor user experiences while working with computers are increasingly necessary," said Robert Jacob, computer science professor and researcher. "One moment a user may be bored, and the next moment, the same user may be overwhelmed. Measuring mental workload, frustration and distraction is typically limited to qualitatively observing computer users or to administering surveys after completion of a task, potentially missing valuable insight into the users' changing experiences."

We saw 77-year-old Jerry Pope getting a workout playing a virtual tennis game. He suffered a debilitating stroke in June. Pope said that the Wii has enabled him to regain his balance, and the use of his arms.

"Not only am I moving the hand, my feet are moving, I am jumping around, it is as if I am really playing the game. It is motivational, makes you feel like you are progressing, even if you are not and that helps you," he said.

Before his stroke, Pope was a semi-pro tennis player. He initially tried the traditional exercises recommended by physical therapists, but found them repetitive and boring.

He says the Wii is fun and it is helping him make progress. His therapists agree.

Right now just a few hospitals around the nation are trying this, but the Army has also jumped on board. Injured soldiers in Landstuhl, Germany are also regaining their strength by playing virtual games on the Wii.

MIT researchers have developed an algorithmic framework for building prosthetic devices that are controlled by neural signal detectors such as EEG.

 

From the MIT news release:

 

Neural prosthetic devices represent an engineer's approach to treating paralysis and amputation. Here, electronics are used to monitor the neural signals that reflect an individual's intentions for the prosthesis or computer they are trying to use. Algorithms form the link between neural signals that are recorded, and the user's intentions that are decoded to drive the prosthetic device.

Over the past decade, efforts at prototyping these devices have divided along various boundaries related to brain regions, recording modalities, and applications. The MIT technique provides a common framework that underlies all these various efforts.

The research uses a method called graphical models that has been widely applied to problems in computer science like speech-to-text or automated video analysis. The graphical models used by the MIT team are diagrams composed of circles and arrows that represent how neural activity results from a person's intentions for the prosthetic device they are using.

The diagrams represent the mathematical relationship between the person's intentions and the neural manifestation of that intention, whether the intention is measured by an electoencephalography (EEG), intracranial electrode arrays or optical imaging. These signals could come from a number of brain regions, including cortical or subcortical structures.

Until now, researchers working on brain prosthetics have used different algorithms depending on what method they were using to measure brain activity. The new model is applicable no matter what measurement technique is used, according to Srinivasan. "We don't need to reinvent a new paradigm for each modality or brain region," he said.