Student Protocol

Electroencephalography
In this experiment, you will examine an electroencephalogram (EEG) and explore the
electrical activity of the brain !ou will record an electroencephalogram from a volunteer,
loo" at interfering signals, and examine the e#ects of visual activity on alpha brain waves
Written by staf of ADInstruments.
Background
$he cerebral cortex contains huge numbers of neurons %ctivity of these neurons is to some
extent synchroni&ed in regular 'ring rhythms $hese are referred to as brain waves
Electrodes placed in pairs on the scalp can pic" up variations in electrical potential that
derive from this underlying cortical activity $he recording of the electrical activity is called
an electroencephalogram (EEG) EEG signals are a#ected by the state of arousal of the
cerebral cortex and show characteristic changes in di#erent stages of sleep EEG signals are
also a#ected by stimulation from the external environment and brain waves can become
entrained to external stimuli Electroencephalography is used, among other things, in the
diagnosis of epilepsy and the diagnosis of brain death
Recording the EEG
EEG recording is technically di(cult, mainly because of the small si&e of the voltage signals,
which are typically )* +, pea"-to-pea" $he signals are small because the recording
electrodes are separated from the brain.s surface by the scalp, the s"ull, and a layer of
cerebrospinal /uid % specially designed ampli'er, such as the 0io %mp built into the
Power1ab, is essential to record EEGs It is also important to use electrodes made of the
right material and to connect them properly Even with these precautions, recordings may
be spoiled by a range of unwanted interfering in/uences, "nown as artifacts
In this laboratory you will record EEG activity with two electrodes2 a frontal electrode on the
forehead, and an occipital electrode on the scalp at the bac" of the head % third (ground or
earth) electrode is also attached, to reduce electrical interference In clinical EEG, it is usual
to record many channels of activity from multiple recording electrodes placed in an array
over the head
Origins of the EEG signals
$he EEG results from slow changes in the membrane potentials of cortical neurons,
especially the excitatory and inhibitory post-synaptic potentials (EPSPs and IPSPs) ,ery
little contribution normally comes from action potentials propagated along nerve axons %s
with the E3G, the EEG re/ects the algebraic sum of the electrical potential changes
occurring from large populations of cells $herefore, large amplitude waves re4uire the
synchronous activity of a large number of neurons $he rhythmic events that these waves
re/ect often arise in the thalamus whose activity is in turn a#ected by a variety of inputs
including structures in the brainstem reticular formation
Components of the EEG waveform
$he EEG waveform contains component waves of di#erent fre4uencies $hese can be
extracted and provide information about di#erent brain activities $he types of brain waves
are2
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
alpha (between 5 to 67 8&9 average amplitudes of 7* to )* +, pea"-to-pea") which
will be studied in this experiment %lpha rhythm is seen when the eyes are closed
and the volunteer relaxed It is abolished by eye opening and by mental e#ort such
as doing calculations or concentrating on an idea It is thus thought to indicate the
degree of cortical activation $he greater the activation, the lower the alpha activity
%lpha waves are strongest over the occipital (bac" of the head) cortex and also over
the frontal cortex
beta (67 to 7* 8&9 :;* +, pea"-to-pea") which are prominent in alert individuals
with their eyes open $he beta rhythm may be absent or reduced in areas of cortical
damage and can be accentuated by sedative-hypnotic drugs such as
ben&odia&epines and barbiturates
theta (< and 5 8&9 :7* +, pea"-to-pea") which are seen in awa"e children but not
adults $he theta rhythm is normal during sleep at all ages 8owever, some
researchers separate this fre4uency band into two components, low theta (< - )<)
8&) activity that they correlate with decreased arousal and increased drowsiness, and
high theta (= - ><) 8&) activity that it is claimed is enhanced during tas"s involving
wor"ing memory
delta (*) and < 8&9 up to 6** - ;** +, pea"-to-pea") which is the dominant rhythm
in sleep stages three and four but not seen in conscious adults $he delta rhythm
tends to have the highest amplitude of any of the component EEG waves EEG
artifacts caused by movements of ?aw and nec" muscles can produce waves in the
same fre4uency band
gamma (7* and )* 8&) @ost people recogni&e gamma rhythm, but its importance is
controversial It may be associated with higher mental activity, including perception
and consciousness and it disappears under general anesthesia Ane suggestion is
that the gamma rhythm re/ects the mental activity involved in integrating various
aspects of an ob?ect (color, shape, movement, etc) to form a coherent picture
Interestingly, recent research has shown that gamma waves are enhanced in
0uddhist mon"s during meditation and are absent in schi&ophrenics
It is not presently possible to relate the EEG waves to speci'c underlying neuronal activities
In general, the more active the brain the higher the fre4uency and the lower the amplitude
of the EEG 3onversely, the more inactive the brain the lower the fre4uency and the higher
the amplitude of the signal
Required Equipment
1ab3hart software
Power1ab Bata %c4uisition Cnit
) 1ead Shielded 0io %mp 3able
EEG Dlat Electrodes
Electrode Paste
%brasive Gel or %brasive Pad
%lcohol Swabs
0allpoint pen
@edical tape
Elastic bandage
Procedure
Equipment Setup and Electrode ttachment
6 @a"e sure the Power1ab is turned o# and the CS0 cable is connected to the computer
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
; 3onnect the ) 1ead Shielded 0io %mp 3able to the 0io %mp 3onnector on the front panel
of the Power1ab (Digure 6) $he hardware needs to be connected before you open the
settings 'le
7 %ttach the leads of the EEG Dlat Electrodes to the Earth, 386 EEG and PAS pins closest
to the labeled side on the 0io %mp 3able 3hannel 6 FpositiveG will lead to the inion (the
bump on the bac" of the head above the nec") and 3hannel 6 FnegativeG will lead to the
forehead 3hannel ; will be empty and the Earth will lead to the temple Hefer to Digure
6 for proper placement, but do not attach them to the volunteer Dollow the color
scheme on the 0io %mp 3able
< Hemove any ?ewelry from the volunteerIs face, ears, and nec" Cse a ballpoint pen to
mar" a small cross on the s"in on the bac" of the head, forehead, and temple Cse
Digure 6 as a guide %brade the s"in with %brasive Gel or Pad $his is important as
abrasion helps reduce the s"inIs resistance
) %fter abrasion, clean the area with an alcohol swab to remove the dead s"in cells Jhile
the s"in is drying, scoop Electrode Paste into the EEG Dlat Electrodes Jhen the s"in is
dry stic" the electrodes to the s"in (Digure 6) Immediately hold the electrodes and wires
in place with the medical tape @a"e sure the tape 'rmly holds the electrodes against
the head Cse the elastic bandage to wrap tightly around the head $his will help the
electrodes maintain good contact with the s"in
= 8ave the volunteer lie in a comfortable position on their bac", with their head turned so
that none of the electrodes are disturbed or compressed
> 3hec" that all three electrodes are properly connected to the volunteer and the 0io %mp
3able before proceeding $urn on the Power1ab
Figure 1. Equipment Setup for PowerLab 2!
E!ercise "# Recogni$ing rtifacts
In this exercise, you will learn to recogni&e some of the artifacts that can appear on an EEG
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
6 1aunch 1ab3hart and open the settings 'le FEEG SettingsG from the Experiments tab in
the Welcome Center It will be located in the folder for this experiment
; Select Bio Amp from the EEG 3hannel Dunction pop-up menu It should be the only
channel visible @a"e sure the settings are as follows2 Hange ;** +,, 8igh Pass *) 8&,
and 1ow Pass )* 8&
Figure 2. "io Amp Dia#og
7 Start recording %dd a comment Fblin"ing,G and have the volunteer blin" repeatedly
Stop recording after 6* seconds
< Hepeat step 7, this time, have the volunteer ma"e eye movements %dd a comment
Feye movementsG 8ave the volunteer ga&e up-and-down and left-and-right in a
repeated pattern @a"e sure the volunteerIs head is still and only the eyes move
) Hepeat step 7, this time, have the volunteer ma"e head movements %dd a comment
Fhead movementsG 8ave the volunteer gently move hisKher head in a repeated pattern
= Save your data, and open a new 'le with the same settings
E!ercise %# lpha &aves in the EEG
In this exercise, you will examine the e#ects of relaxation and eye movement on alpha
waves in the EEG
6 @a"e sure the volunteer is relaxed and comfortable 8ave the volunteer close hisKher
eyes and remain 4uiet Leep noise to a minimum and "eep all distractions away from
the volunteer
; Start recording Hecord for 7* seconds Prepare a comment with Fopen9G do not enter it
yet
7 $ell the volunteer to open both eyes Immediately press HeturnKEnter to add the
comment Hecord with the volunteerIs eyes open for 6* seconds Bo not stop
recording
< Prepare a comment with FshutG Jhen the 6* seconds are complete, tell the volunteer
to close both eyes Immediately press HeturnKEnter to add the comment
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
) Hepeat steps 7 and < twice, to give you three sets of results Save your data
nalysis
E!ercise "# Recogni$ing rtifacts
6 Examine the vertical scale at the left of the 3hart ,iew, and note the positions
corresponding to M)* +, and N)* +, $rue EEG signals rarely exceed these limits
; Examine the entire data trace and A!toscale, if necessary $here may be some large
signals outside the O>) +, range Such large signals are artifacts
E!ercise %# lpha &aves in the EEG
6 Examine the entire data trace Cse the "ie# B!ttons to change the hori&ontal
compression to see data with eyes open and shut @a"e a data selection that includes
some data from both eyes open and eyes shut conditions ,iew this selection in $oom
"ie# $his should ma"e it easier to see the alpha wave activity (Digure 7) Eow
A!toscale, if necessary
Figure $. EE% signa# wit& eyes s&ut an' open. (ote a#p&a wa)es 'uring eyes s&ut.
; In 3hart ,iew scroll through the parts of the recording that were made with the
volunteerIs eyes shut to loo" for alpha waves Cse the "ie# B!ttons to change the
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
hori&ontal compression if necessary $he alpha waves can be recogni&ed by their
amplitude (usually 7* to )* +, pea"-to-pea", although it can be 4uite variable) and their
fre4uency Each cycle of an alpha wave should last approximately *6 s
&ote' If you cannot 'nd brain activity that matches the alpha rhythm, re-attach the
electrodes and repeat this exercise
7 Cse the (ar)er and Wa*eform C!rsor to measure the amplitude of the alpha waves
Place the (ar)er at the lowest point of the wave and move the Wa*eform C!rsor to
the pea" of the wave @easure the amplitudes of 've waves from when the volunteerIs
eyes were closed Hecord the values in $able 6 of the Bata Eoteboo"
< Eow measure wave amplitudes when the volunteerIs eyes were open Hecord these
values in $able ; of the Bata Eoteboo"
$he amplitude of the waves is a#ected by the 4uality of the EEG signal $herefore, it is
useful to examine the fre4uency and power of the wave activity Spectral analysis can be
used to examine these features of a signal 0efore examining your EEG signal you will
complete a short tutorial on Spectral %nalysis
Spectral nalysis 'utorial
% spectrum is a representation of data based on the fre4uency distribution of its component
sine waves Spectra indicate the strength of the various fre4uencies in a time-varying
waveform Spectrum ,iew allows you to observe the fre4uency distribution of data that
might not otherwise be easily seen Dor example, it could be used to brea" down an EEG
waveform into its various components2 beta waves, alpha waves, theta waves and delta
waves % mathematical techni4ue "nown as the Dast Dourier $ransform is applied to the raw
data $he results of this analysis can be displayed as a plot of the power (vertical axis) of
di#erent fre4uencies (hori&ontal axis) relative to each other in the input signal $his is called
a Power Spectrum Bensity (PSB) plot $he data can also be displayed as 7-dimensional color
plot of spectral power, fre4uency, and time called a Spectrogram
6 Apen the Welcome Center and in the Experiments tab browse the FEEG Spectral
%nalysis $utorialG It will be in the Settings folder for this experiment Apen this 'le
; Examine the 3hart ,iew Cse the "ie# B!ttons to view each bloc" !ou should see 've
bloc"s of data $he 'rst record is a slowly oscillating sine wave
7 Apen Spectrum view by clic"ing on the Spectrum ,iew button in the $oolbar (Digure <)
Figure *. Spe+trum ,iew !oo#bar button
< 3lic" the Smart +ile button in the 1ab3hart $oolbar to display both windows in full
screen mode
) In 3hart ,iew Select the 'rst record by double clic"ing in the $ime axis $his will
perform a spectral analysis for this record and displays the result in the Spectrum view
%d?ust the hori&ontal scaling of plots to view the results2
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
Set the hori&ontal scaling for the Power Spectrum Bensity (PSB) plot to )* 8&
(Digure )) Cse the hori&ontal scroll bar to display the * 8& to )* 8& region of the
plot
Figure -. Spe+trum PSD S+a#e
Set the hori&ontal scaling for the Spectrogram to )*26
= Examine the PSB plot and then the 'rst section of the Spectrogram Expand the vertical
axes if necessary Cse the waveform cursor to identify the fre4uency in 8ert& (8&) of the
pea" in the PSB plot and the band in the Spectrogram ,alues are displayed at the top of
each plot
What is the fre-!enc. in /ert0 1/02 of this sine #a*e3

> Select the second record and again view the result in the Spectrum view
What is the fre-!enc. in /ert0 1/02 of this second sine #a*e3

5 Select the third record and again view the result in the Spectrum view !ou should now
see two prominent pea"s (PSB plot) and bands (Spectrogram) in the result
Are these t#o pea)s4bands the same as for the 5rst t#o records3

P Select the fourth record and again view the result in the Spectrum view
6s there an. reg!lar signal #ithin this record3

6* In 3hart ,iew compare the signal amplitudes of the fourth and 'fth records Eote that the
'fth record has lower amplitude compared with the fourth record
66 Select the fourth record again In the Spectrum view examine the PSB plot @ove the
Wa*eform C!rsor to the prominent pea"
What is the fre-!enc. 1/02 of this signal3

What is the po#er 1m"
2
2 of this signal3

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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
6; Select the 'fth record and examine the PSB plot @ove the Wa*eform C!rsor to the
pea"
What is the fre-!enc. 1/02 of this signal3

What is the po#er 1m"
2
2 of this signal3

67 Examine the Spectrogram Eote that the band corresponding to the signalIs fre4uency
appears to missing $his is because the power of the signal is small compared with the
previous four records Expand the scale on the right hand side of the Spectrogram by
setting the scale closer to the power of the signal (eg, * to ***< ,
;
) (Digure =) Eote
that the band is now visible at the expected fre4uency

Figure . Spe+trogram Drop.'own /enu an' Set S+a#e Dia#og
6< $he 'fth record is the same signal as the fourth record, except that the 4uality of the raw
signal has been a#ected 3ompare your features (amplitude, power, fre4uency) of the
fourth and 'fth record
/o# has the -!alit. of the signal a8ected the #a*e feat!res3

E!ercise %# lpha &aves in the EEG contd9
Eow you will use Spectral %nalysis to examine the EEG you recorded
) Cse the "ie# B!ttons to change the hori&ontal compression to 6*26 (Digure >)
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
Figure 0. A#p&a Wa)es wit& 1121 3ompression
= Dind the part of the recording when the volunteer had hisKher eyes shut 3lic"-and-drag
across this part of the data trace to select it Drom the Windo# menu, select
Spectr!m In the Spectrum ,iew choose Selected (Digure 5)
Figure 4. Spe+trum of an EE%
> %lpha activity shows up in the PSB plot as a clear pea" in the 5-6; 8& range $hen print
the PSB plot
5 %lpha activity shows up in the Spectrogram as a band of color in the 5-6; 8& range If
you cannot see the alpha activity as a clear pea" in the 5-6; 8& range, scale the
hori&ontal and vertical axes Eote that Spectrogram displays all the recorded data and
that the selection you have made is highlighted in a dar"er blue color
P @a"e a data selection of several seconds from when the volunteer had their eyes open
Select Spectr!m Eote that in the PSB plot the pea" in the alpha activity range of 5-6;
8& is small or absent and in the Spectrogram the band of color in the alpha activity range
of 5-6; 8& is wea" or absent Print the PSB plot
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
6* In the Spectrogram scale the hori&ontal axis so that all the data is visible Eote the
presence and absence of the band of color in the alpha activity range of 5-6; 8& which
correspond with the eyes shut and eyes open conditions Print the Spectrogram
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
(ata )ote*ook
'a*le "+ lpha &aves
Amplit!de
Wa*e
<1
Wa*e
<2
Wa*e
<3
Wa*e
<
Wa*e
<%
'a*le %+ *sence of lpha &aves
Amplit!de
Wa*e
<1
Wa*e
<2
Wa*e
<3
Wa*e
<
Wa*e
<%
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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
Study ,uestions
19 /o# does the h!man anatom. ma)e it di=c!lt to record an
electroencephalogram> or EE?3





29 What are common ca!ses of the artifacts .o! recorded in Exercise 13 &ame
at least three ca!ses9





39 6n Exercise 2> !nder #hat conditions did .o! see alpha #a*es more clearl.3





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Electroencephalography Student Protocol
9 What are alpha #a*es tho!ght to indicate3





%9 @oo) at .o!r Spectral Anal.sis from #hen the *ol!nteer had their e.es
closed9 At #hat range do .o! ha*e the greatest pea)3 What t.pe of brain
#a*es does the Spectral Anal.sis s!ggest is acti*e3





,9 @oo) at .o!r Spectral Anal.sis from #hen the *ol!nteer had their e.es
open9 At #hat range do .o! ha*e the greatest pea)3 What t.pe of brain
#a*es does the Spectral Anal.sis s!ggest is acti*e3





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