BCIA Test Prep - Technical Foundations of Neurofeedback - Tom Collura

BCIA Test Prep - Technical Foundations of Neurofeedback - Tom Collura EEG - Correct Answer Electroencephalography - Technique by which the brain's electrical activity is recorded by the use of sensors and amplifiers. - First used by Hans Berger in 1932. Quantitative EEG - Correct Answer - Technique in which EEG recordings are computer-analyzed to produce numbers referred to as "metrics" used to guide decision-making and therapeutic planning. - Typically involves raw numbers, statistics in the form of z-scores, and/or topographic or connectivity maps. - QEEG systems currently lack strong standardization, so multiple methods exist in the field. Difference between Clinical EEG/QEEG and Neurofeedback? - Correct Answer - Clinical EEG/QEEG practitioners must first be a neurologist or psychiatrist and complete board certification to interpret clinical EEGs. - Neurofeedback can be ethically practiced by a wide range of practitioners with various backgrounds. There is no strict educational or licensing requirement. Pyramidal Cells - Correct Answer - Large cells in the upper layers of the cerebral cortex which produce the predominant EEG signals. - 5% of the pyramidal cells can be responsible for 90% of the EEG recordings. - Analogy: Small numbers of voters in swing states can determine an election, as other voters cancel each other out. This is similar to when local groups of pyramidal cells polarize in unison, rather the vast majority of cells operating asynchronously. Dipole - Correct Answer - Charged entity that has a positive "plus" side and an opposing negative "minus" side. - Analogy: A battery immersed in a bath of salt water is a dipole residing in a conducting medium. - Pyramidal cells encourage the production of measurable surface potentials (which are measured in microvoltages). Synchrony - Correct Answer - The sum of many small electrical potentials caused by the depolarization of many cells in a similar location in unison (i.e., several neurons firing together). - Measurable EEG signals only occur when a population of cortical cells fire in unison. - If cells act independently and fire