Nicholas tomer
Pronouns: he/him/his
Research Mentor(s): Omar Ahmed
Co-Presenter:
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Psychology / LSA
Presentation Date: April 20
Presentation Type: Disp/Demo
Session: Session 4 – 2:40pm – 3:30 pm
Room: Michigan
Authors: Nicholas Antony, Omar Ahmed
Presenter: Table 2
Abstract
The development of new neuroscience research tools show great promise in their potential to advance the field and allow for more innovative and creative experimentation. Closed-loop systems, which run continuously and in real-time, take their own output as input. These systems are particularly useful in neuroscience research; researchers can gather immediate feedback and trigger events based on activity observed in the brain and other parameters of interest. Open-Ephys, a popular piece of open-source software for neuroscience research, is a prime example of the benefits of closed-loop systems and the flexibility of open-source software in the context of research. It allows users to link together different plugins, each of which serves a single purpose but together can form complex procedures. This project details the design, development, testing, and integration of a new Open-Ephys plugin. The plugin takes as input the two output signals from a rotary encoder and repeatedly determines the speed at which the encoder is rotating over a user-determined time interval. The calculated speed value, in this context, can trigger reward delivery to lab mice running on a ball via Pulse Pal hardware for reward delivery. First, source code for the Open-Ephys Graphical User Interface (GUI) and plugins was thoroughly studied to understand underlying program structure, procedures, and common plugin development methods. Existing Matlab scripts used to calculate speed post-data acquisition were used as a starting point for the logic. Developer guides and forums were regularly referenced to clarify specific implementation details. A GUI was developed to allow the user to adjust plugin input parameters. Currently, the plugin is being tested for calculation accuracy against current laboratory methods, and is also undergoing integration testing to confirm correct functionality in laboratory experiments.
Biomedical Sciences, Interdisciplinary, Social Sciences
