[anonymouse008]

Mary Lou Jepsen's Open Water was looking at something similar -

I'm going to say something stupid simple: Any technique imaging the brain outside the skull is hard. Much of these IR technologies are noble in terms of their general science and engineering learnings, but in terms of practicality, sub-optimal.

Curious to know if you've experimented with other modalities? My base is fNIR and EEG device manufacturing, while just being exposed to (f)MRIs, MEGs and the like.

[cknizek]

I currently do research in MRI.

I'm not entirely sure what you mean about IR technologies. Almost all medical imaging done today is done outside the skull. The only exception is ECoG, which is only medically used for patients with severe epilepsy. This is because open-brain surgery is an extraordinarily risky and expensive proposition.

Every single imaging modality has strengths and weaknesses. It is the goal of the physician, and of the radiologist, to choose the appropriate imaging modality for the patient.

NIRS is not always the best choice, especially not for medical imaging. But it's a good choice if you are looking for a portable modality that can image neuronal activation in the cortex.

EEG is already difficult because you can't just add probes to increase spatial resolution. There is a fundamental limit the information that can be reliably gathered solely based upon the sodium-ion voltage potentials of neurons.

[anonymouse008]

I love these technologies, thanks for engaging with me about them.

IR roughly meant NIRS - was just playing fast and loose with the modality for 'things that suffer from extreme scatter that I believe will prove impossible (for the intended use) for the foreseeable future'

MRIs as I understand it align then flip water molecules that are a super easy signal to read, it comes down to stitching techniques and the hardware affordances to make that easier.

So, now I'm more curious, you believe you solved the scatter issue but were supply chain constrained?

Your assessment is also mine: spatial and temporal resolution requirements drive which sensing techniques one would use.

My aims were consumer based, so much less concerned about precision, more analysis turn around time. EEG was torture, yet rewarding in that realm - though to many techie's dismay, it only offered a single bit of resolution > I still think that's enough.

Edit: If it's still not clear what I mean (I am not a grad student in any respect), I think that anything one has to 'inject' then read the reflection is a suboptimal approach to reading the naturally emitted (albeit amplified) signal.

[suifbwish]

Why not try a micro approach, 1024 pin sized probes that make an end point connection to the scalp. Most EEGs I have seen have probes the size of a coin. Is there a reason for this? From what I know of electronics the size of the electrode only matters if you are passing high amounts of current through them.