Ann Arbor's Backyard Brains is making waves with its Spiker Box, an affordable neuroscience kit. Founder Greg Gage's interview and article appear on
CNN.
Excerpt:
"...While most everyone is fascinated by the brain, very few get the chance to peer into the world of neurons. Because, until now, there wasn’t a way for amateurs to get involved.
In neuroscience, for example, equipment to read out the brain activity can cost over $10,000. But this is beginning to change. With the DIY revolution, people can now have similar high-tech gear in their own homes and garages for under $100.
When I was a grad student studying neuroscience my labmate, Tim Marzullo, proposed an interesting idea: Can we record from the brain for less than 100 dollars, just using everyday electronics? We set off on a self-imposed engineering challenge to see if we could replicate our expensive lab equipment with something affordable by consumers.
We ended up with the SpikerBox: a small kit (which you can build yourself, if you like) that can listen to the living brain cells from insects."
More
here.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.