Context:
Electroencephalography has recently garnered attention due to the centenary year of the first human EEG, pioneered by German physiologist Hans Berger. While Vladimir Pravdich-Neminsky achieved the first mammalian EEG in 1912 using a dog’s brain, Hans Berger followed in 1924 with the first human EEG, marking a significant milestone in neurological research.
Relevance:
GS III: Science and Technology
Dimensions of the Article:
- Electroencephalography (EEG)
Electroencephalography (EEG)
Definition and Working:
- Definition: EEG stands for electroencephalography, where ‘electro-‘ relates to electricity, ‘encephalo-‘ to the brain, and ‘-graphy’ signifies showing or representing.
- Tool Description: EEG is a non-invasive tool used in physics and neurobiology to monitor electrical activity in the brain, offering insights into brain function without invasive procedures.
- Setup: Simple, cost-effective, non-invasive, portable, space-efficient, and emits no high-energy radiation or sounds, unlike MRI.
- Working Principle: Neurons in the brain generate electrical impulses that create waves of electrical activity. Electrodes placed on the scalp detect these signals, which are recorded as an electroencephalogram (EEG).
Applications:
- Diagnosis: Primary tool for diagnosing epilepsy by detecting abnormal brain activity associated with seizures.
- Medical Monitoring: Assessing effects of anesthesia, monitoring sleeping patterns, and evaluating neurological activity during coma or brain death.
- Research: Used in neuroscience, cognitive psychology, neurolinguistics, and neuromarketing to study brain function and develop brain-computer interfaces.
Challenges:
- Spatial Resolution: Primarily captures activity from the brain’s surface and dendrites, making precise localization of brain activity challenging.
- Integration with Other Methods: Often combined with MRI and advanced techniques to improve spatial resolution and accuracy in pinpointing brain activity origins.
-Source: The Hindu
