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Introduction to Neurotech

Fall 25 | Workshop 1 | Week 2

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Overview

These slides, the schedule, and other workshop resources are available on:

cruxucla.github.io

  • Week 1: Info Sessions
  • Week 2: WS1 Introduction to Neurotech
  • Week 3: WS2 Understanding EEG Signals
  • Week 4: WS3 Preprocessing I
  • Week 5: WS4 Preprocessing II
  • Week 6: WS5 Feature Extraction
  • Week 7: WS6 Classification Models
  • Week 8: WS7 Evaluation + Visualization
  • Week 9: WS8 Final Showcase
  • Week 10: Break for finals

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Workshop Structure

THEORY PRIMER

WALKTHROUGH

DEVELOPMENT

RECAP

Introduce key concepts in a digestible and intuitive way

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Objective: Provide an overview of the concepts and tools that will be used in workshop

Guide members through the P300 speller project step-by-step

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Objective: Show how a real-world BCI project is developed using clear, scaffolded code and real data

Members work in groups to implement the same concept from the walkthrough—but for the Eyes Open vs. Closed project (Alpha Band)

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Objective: Reinforce learning through hands-on application in a beginner-friendly pipeline

Tie everything together and preview next steps

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NEUROTECHNOLOGY = BRAIN + TECH

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NEUROTECH

NEURO

PROSTHESES

BRAIN COMPUTER INTERFACE

NEURO

MODULATION

BRAIN COMPUTER INTERFACE

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Neuralink

  • neurotechnology company developing brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) with the goal of establishing a direct communication link between the human brain and external machines
  • initial focus is on helping individuals with paralysis regain control over devices
  • uses surgically implanted electrodes to read brain activity directly

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DBS for Parkinson’s

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Controlling Robotic Arm

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NEUROSCIENCE!

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Major Lobes of the Brain

  • Frontal Lobe
    • Executive functioning
    • Motor movement
  • Temporal Lobe
    • Language
    • Sound/music
    • Emotion
    • Memory
  • Parietal Lobe
    • Sensory perception
    • Spatial reasoning
  • Occipital Lobe
    • Visual processing

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Neurons

  • fundamental units of the brain and nervous system
  • information messengers that transmit signals throughout the body
  • use electrical and chemical signals to communicate with each other and other cells

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Electrical signals (action potentials) travel down the axon. When an action potential reaches the synapse, it triggers the release of neurotransmitters, which then transmit the signal to the next neuron or target cell

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Brain-Computer Interface (BCI)

  • Definition: a system that allows the brain to communicate with or control external devices

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BCI Paradigms

  • P300 (event-related potentials)
    • "oddball" paradigm
  • SSVEP (steady-state visually evoked potential)
    • when a person is exposed to a flickering visual stimulus
  • Motor Imagery
    • the mental simulation of a movement without actually performing it
  • Resting State / Affective BCIs
    • utilizes the brain's intrinsic activity, measured during a state of rest

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WALKTHROUGH

P300 Speller

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DEVELOPMENT

Introduction to Python

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Python!

  • beginner-friendly programming language known for its simplicity and readability
  • one of the most widely used languages in science, engineering, and tech today
  • has an extremely powerful ecosystem including many libraries that offer a wide array of functionalities
    • libraries like MNE, SciPy, NumPy, scikit-learn, and PyTorch make EEG analysis, signal processing, and classification much easier

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Google Colab

  • a free, cloud-based platform that allows users to write and execute Python code

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Today’s Notebook:

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Attendance Form

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Applications

General Member Application

**NEW AND RETURNING

Due Friday Oct 10th

Advanced Projects Application

Due Friday Oct 10th