Understanding Scanning Technology: When and Where in the Brain – Education & Teacher Conferences Skip to main content

Understanding Scanning Technology: When and Where in the Brain

brain scanning technology

The good folks over at TedEd have produced another helpful brain video — this one exploring different brain-scanning techniques.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B10pc0Kizsc

This video does a particularly good job exploring both the strengths and the weaknesses of each technology.

Location, Location…oh, and Timing

In particular, EEG is very good at measuring timing precisely. Sadly, it can’t pinpoint location very accurately.

brain scanning technology

On the other hand, fMRI can zoom in on location within a few millimeters. However, its timing measurements are only rough-n-ready: within a few seconds or so.

Surprisingly, the video doesn’t discuss magnetoencephalography (MEG) — which does with magnetic waves what EEG does with electrical waves.

For fun: this video shows the MEG image when the brain reads the single word “dog.”


Recent Blogs

The Teach Like a Champion: Guide to the Science of Reading by Lemov, Driggs, and Woolway
Erik Jahner, PhD
Erik Jahner, PhD

It’s not often that a podcast reshapes classrooms across the...

Are Science Videos Really the Answer for Struggling Readers?
Andrew Watson
Andrew Watson

Obviously, we want our students to learn science. But: what...

The Shelf-Life of Research: When Education Theories Evolve…
Andrew Watson
Andrew Watson

To most of us, research conclusions have an air of...