Brain Research In the Neuroengineering Group, we work on the localisation of seizure-generating spikes in patients with focal epilepsy. We record the electroencephalogram (EEG) and a functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) concurrently and compare the spike locations found in both modalities with each other. At the Biomagnetic Center, I am involved in studies on high frequency oscillations (600 Hz) in the somatosensory system of the human brain based on the magnetoencephalogram (MEG) and the concurrent EEG. We are interested in the information transfer between associated areas and differences in processing.
Sensor System Optimization I am investigating how the spatial arrangement of sensors, such as magnetometers and electrodes, influences the robustness and accuracy of the source reconstruction. To optimize sensor setups I customized a particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO). When applied to the arrangement of magnetometers on the torso surface to capture cardiac sources, a significant gain in constrast to common regular grids can be achieved. I am now interested in goal functions to quantify reconstruction robustness and information content.
Cardiological Research I have been studying the heart rate variability (HRV) in healthy persons and patients after myocardial infarction. I implemented different entropy measures to quantify the HRV. Currently, I am investigating the suitability of the heart rate entropy to stratify the post-infarction risk of cardiac events.
Computer Science Both my university degrees are in computer science. At Friedrich Schiller University in Jena I specialized in pattern recognition and in medical computer science. In Melbourne (Australia) I specialized in object-oriented design and software development. At Monash University I have been a tutor for object-oriented design subjects at the Masters level. Currently, I am a developer of SimBio, a free C++ toolbox for electromagnetic source reconstruction based on BEM and FEM models.
