Engage and Enable Blog

The aim of this blog is to show what’s happening at the Center for Neurotechnology among its faculty, student and staff members. To learn more about the center and its work, visit our Feature Stories page.

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Jesse Woodbury, REU program participant, working in the labWhen Jesse Woodbury was a sophomore at Morehouse College he was already interested in becoming a neurologist. Because most of the coursework in his biology major was textbook-oriented, he looked for ways to get some hands-on experience in neuroscience. One of his professors told him about the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering’s (CSNE’s) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. After some investigation, Woodbury became very intrigued by what it had to offer.

When Todd Stabelfeldt, affectionately dubbed “The Quadfather” by the group of friends he rolls with, visited the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE) to speak at the Aug. 2 practitioner and end-user roundtable, he quickly commanded the room’s attention with disarming honesty, a no-nonsense attitude and down-to-earth humor. “I roll in the coolest-ass wheelchair in this world. It’s a Permobil F5. Black-on-black, murdered-out. West Coast style,” Stabelfeldt quipped, as he demonstrated the high-tech features of his ride with flair.

Over 40 high school and college students with disabilities recently visited the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE) from the Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking and Technology (DO-IT) Center at the University of Washington (UW). The students were part of the DO-IT Scholars Summer Study program at the UW, and their visit to the CSNE happened to coincide with DO-IT's 25th Anniversary Celebration.

Although most people are somewhat familiar with the concept of ethics, which describes fundamental principles of decent human conduct, the idea of ethics as applied to neural engineering, or “neuroethics,” might be less familiar. As neural engineering technology becomes increasingly prolific, it is imperative that future engineers, researchers and ethicists recognize how these devices can impact current and future users of neurotechnology.

A new type of wireless transceiver is on its way to making data transmitted by brain-computer interfaces more secure.

Photo: Chip layouts of the secure CSR-UWB transmitter and receiver in a 32nm CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) technology.

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