Wireless | Testing VO2 Max
Cardiovascular tests during a self-paced maximal exercise protocol (SPV) continually scored high ratings of VO2 max when compared to more traditional procedures. Jenkins et. al sought to understand the underlying causes of this increase in VO2 max by testing SPV versus the more regimented RAMP method. They sought to explore the results through extensive physiological measurement, as well as testing difference in older and younger age groups, while participants completed physical experiments.
The SPV protocol was completed on an air-braked cycle ergometer, which allowed participants to continually vary their Power Output (PO) throughout the test. An electro-magnetically braked cycle ergometer was used for the RAMP protocol, so that PO was fixed for each stage of the incremental RAMP protocol.
VO2 Max is essentially the maximum amount of oxygen utilized during a workout. Forty-four (44) male and female participants completed the experiment, half aged between 18- 30 and half between 50-75. The participants completed each test over a multi-day period. The tests were exhaustive, requiring subjects to cycle in place until they couldn’t any longer.
Jenkins et. al recorded various physiological signals including NIRS, breathing/expired gases, cardiac output/ stroke volume, blood lactate, and electromyography (EMG). BIOPAC’s BioNomadix research acquisition system wirelessly transmitted EMG data using two electrodes placed on participants’ right leg while they completed physical tasks.
Researchers were able find differences in the interaction effects of EMG between the two test protocols in the older group. The results complied with previous research, in that SPV allowed a higher VO2 max compared RAMP. Through monitoring physiological measurement, the study results suggested increased oxygen delivery as to an increase in oxygen-muscle extraction. The researchers found that there wasn’t a significance difference between the two testing protocols with the older population, though it’s unclear why. Overall, the experiment provides greater understanding of what causes differences in VO2 max between the two experimental procedures.
Wearable | Pitch Perfect Analysis
Pitch determines the level of influence on listener perception, physiological arousal, attention, and memory, according to new research published in Human Communication Research (June 2017). Professors at the Communication Department and Department of Translation and Language Sciences at Universitat Pompeu Fabra and the Institute for Communication Research at Indiana University conducted the joint study to examine intonation’s impact on interpersonal influence with self-report analyses and memory tests.BIOPAC’s BioNomadix helped the researchers discover the psychophysiological signs of comprehension and autonomic arousal. Physiological data aided the researchers in understanding participant attention, offering an objective analysis of the participant’s experience. Each participant identified as female and listened to both narrative and informative commercials, with varying intonation, while wearing BIOPAC’s technology. The participants' retention and cognitive processing suggest that tone does affect interpersonal influence. Commercials, with a unique level of intonation (or the most varying), proved to have the highest standards of influence. The more varying in pitch or tone, the more likely participants were to process and recall information in the commercials. BIOPAC’s BioNomadix allowed the researchers to record wireless EDA from the participants, capturing electrical responses to communication within participants to improve understandings of effective communication. Specifically, BioNomadix wirelessly recorded response data from a wearable transmitter to measure the arousal and attention of participants by capturing their skin conductance response after exposure to stimuli. This type of research will continue evolving media communication and interpersonal influence systems for anyone interested in effective communication strategies. The study’s breakthrough research offers an incentive for further study into the cognitive processing of audio communication.
Facial EMG for Advertising Research
Facial electromyography (FEMG) was compared to the more commonly used EMG in an experimental context to indentify if there is a more accurate approach that can be taken by neurological researchers in the field of advertising. Authors Lajante et al. identified that there are short comings when utilizing EMG to provide insight on the emotional reactions of individuals to advertising content and that other methodological approaches could be beneficial. FEMG represents a closer analysis on subtle facial movements, through which there is the potential of signaling positive and negative emotions in very subtle facial motions or changes.
Comfortably seated in a laboratory setting, participants were fitted with electrodes and warned not to make unnecessary movements. EMG and FEMG were then concurrently monitored while advertisements by eight distinct brands were displayed on a flat screen TV in front of them. After being exposed to the advertisements, participants completed a 9-point self-assessment survey. BIOPAC’s wearable BioNomadix 2ch EMG transmitter was utilized for the purpose of collecting the FEMG signals. These signals were measured through observing specific, responsive muscle movements. Upward movements at the corners of the mouth indicated the Zygomaticus major, responsible for smiling or positive emotional response. Negative emotions were similarly identified through a frowning gesture indicated by eyebrow contractions.
The researchers concluded that while facial EMG provides benefits as a form of measurement, there are extenuating complications with recording. Though it does effectively measure the emotional valence of a participant, there are doubts in the confidence of reliability and validity of the data. Lajante et al. addressed the importance of abiding strictly by the technological and methodological guidelines if considering this new and relatively unexplored area of research. Ultimately this study represents baby steps in exploring an exciting new avenue of research. Facial EMG has the potential of being a more emotionally sensitive approach when further researching and understanding people.Wireless │Monitoring and Comparing Speech Rate Processing
Many factors remain unknown on how infants acquire language and speech information in their formative years. In a study, researchers Leong et al., addressed the question of what “neural mechanism” infants use when first being introduced to language that allows for their unique “boot-strap language learning” style (Leong et al, 2017). When identifying the neurological workings of language acquisition in adults, it’s believed adults focus on certain aspects of speech, specifically the syllables and phonemes of general speech. In understanding if infants use this same focus (known as multi-time oscillatory analysis) when speech is directed to them, researchers used and compared wireless electroencephalography (EEG) speech frequency measurements between infants and adults by calculating “Phase-locking values” (PLVs). The findings were categorized based on the different speech rates being received by participants.
The method consisted of 58 participants made up of 29 infants and their mothers, but when testing, 19 of the infant’s researched provided sufficient data. The stimuli participants were processing during the experiment consisted of seven nursery rhymes familiar to both the child and parent. Since this study was to understand if adults and infants use similar neurological mechanisms, the mothers’ and infants’ EEG were recorded simultaneously and later compared results would reflect infant language processing relative to that of adult.
It was recognized that wireless research systems would benefit the accuracy of the study by eliminating uncomfortable, potentially distracting wires around the infants. Utilizing BIOPAC’s BioNomadix dual-channel wireless EEG amplifier paired with MP Research Acquisition System, data from the wireless EEG transmitter was then gathered through AcqKnowledge software, allowing for measurement of the PLVs while participants were processing nursery rhymes.
The results found evidence that infants were actually able to neurologically entrain speech better than adults when the rate was 9.3 Hz and 4.5 Hz, almost equally at 1-2 Hz, and less accurately with lower speech rates 0.5 Hz. The researchers specified that due to the results, future findings could further the understanding of the relationship between neural entrainment and language processing in early infants.