<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >
This module builds the tools necessary for the frequency analysis of brain waves as recording by an electroencephalograph. We proceed from the Pythagorean Theorem to sine waves, the trapezoid rule and finally to Fourier decomposition.

Table of contents

0. Background

1. Sine and Cosine Waves

2. Trapezoid Rule for estimating area

3. Fourier Method for decomposing signals

4. Spectrogram application to analyzing brain waves

Background: brain waves and the eeg

Signals are sent through the brain using both chemical and electrical means. The synchronized electrical activity of individual neurons adds up to something big enough to detect on from outside the head. To measure it, we use a set of electrical nodes called an electroencephalogam (EEG). The measured activity reflects different states of the brain which in turn tell us something about the mindset of the person. Our goal in this module is to decompose an EEG signal into its different frequencies, which is intuitively the most meaningful piece of information.

Sine and cosine waves

Brainwaves have complex shapes that are not easily interpreted. In order to study these waves, we need to develop some mathematical tools that will tell us about different waves. To outline, we begin by talking about pure (sine or cosine) waves, then move to the trapezoid rule for estimating area under a curve. Next, we develop Fourier analysis for picking out the frequencies in a jumbled signal, and finally use these tools to create spectrograms, which allow us to track different frequencies over time.

Sine waves

The sine wave is a mathematical function. It describes many physical phenomena, including sound waves and oscillation. It looks just like a wave. MATLAB uses the sin function to make sin waves. For example, to make Figure 1, we use the code:

>>t = 0:.01:1;>>y = sin(2*pi*t);>>plot(t,y);

The sine wave is defined by the lengths and angles of a triangle. Run sincirc.m (copied below) to see how the sine and cosine values relate to the angle ϕ of the triangle. As you can see, if ϕ is the angle of a right triangle with hypotenuse 1 (illustrated by the circle) , sin ( ϕ ) is the height of the triangle and cos ( ϕ ) is the base of it:

A sin wave

An envelope with a blue page

The relation of sine and cosine to a triangle and unit circle

An envelope with a white page
Two illustrations of the sine function.
% sincirc.m %% sincirc.m illustrates the relation of the sin and cosine waves to the circle. %define parametersNturns = 2; steps_per_turn = 9;step_inc = 2*pi/steps_per_turn; %set up points for circlecirc_x = cos(0:.01:2*pi); circ_y = sin(0:.01:2*pi);axis equal %loop over triangles with different anglesfor n = 1:Nturns * steps_per_turn; phi = n * step_inc + pi/4;%plot circle, then triangle, then text plot(circ_x, circ_y);axis([-1 1 -1 1] * 1.5);line([0 cos(phi)], [0 sin(phi)]); line([1 1]* cos(phi), [0 sin(phi)]);line([0 cos(phi)], [0 0]); text(cos(phi)/2 , -.1*sign(sin(phi)),'cos(\varphi)')text(cos(phi) + .1*(sign(cos(phi))-.5), sin(phi)/2, 'sin(\varphi)') text(cos(phi)*.2, sin(phi)*.1,'\varphi');pause(.5); end

Characteristics of the sine wave

The sin wave has three primary characteristics:

Questions & Answers

what are components of cells
ofosola Reply
twugzfisfjxxkvdsifgfuy7 it
Sami
58214993
Sami
what is a salt
John
the difference between male and female reproduction
John
what is computed
IBRAHIM Reply
what is biology
IBRAHIM
what is the full meaning of biology
IBRAHIM
what is biology
Jeneba
what is cell
Kuot
425844168
Sami
what is biology
Inenevwo
what is cytoplasm
Emmanuel Reply
structure of an animal cell
Arrey Reply
what happens when the eustachian tube is blocked
Puseletso Reply
what's atoms
Achol Reply
discuss how the following factors such as predation risk, competition and habitat structure influence animal's foraging behavior in essay form
Burnet Reply
cell?
Kuot
location of cervical vertebra
KENNEDY Reply
What are acid
Sheriff Reply
define biology infour way
Happiness Reply
What are types of cell
Nansoh Reply
how can I get this book
Gatyin Reply
what is lump
Chineye Reply
what is cell
Maluak Reply
what is biology
Maluak
what is vertibrate
Jeneba
what's cornea?
Majak Reply
what are cell
Achol
Got questions? Join the online conversation and get instant answers!
Jobilize.com Reply

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, The art of the pfug. OpenStax CNX. Jun 05, 2013 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col10523/1.34
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'The art of the pfug' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask