February 22, 2023
The Smart Structure of the Mind
Abstract
We present our most recent research in the development of a Modal Approach to the Space Time Dynamics of Cognitive Biomarkers. The use of canonical engineering dynamics tools for the analysis of brain waves is introduced and motivated. A novel approach to modeling these dynamics is presented which leads to a general hypothesis the work seeks to address. More specifically we apply well known “black box” output only system identification techniques to the biomarker of electroencephalogram (EEG) data. The result is a Linear Time Invariant model that admits brain wave modes of human cognitive states, thus revealing the space-time dynamics of brain waves. The weak non-linearities and stochasticity present in the data is accommodated using an adaptive feedback scheme that adjust the model in near real-time to yield less than 1 % error with the concomitant data stream. The brain wave “modes” are linearly independent and can be likened to the keys on a piano. Weighted linear combinations can produce “chords” which can be combined to produce music and reveal the symphony of the brain. The space-time modal patterns of the brain have the potential for widespread application in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, seizures, human emotions and the like.
Bio
Dr. Hubbard began his engineering career as an engineering officer in the U.S. Merchant Marine. In this role he served in Vietnam from 1970-1971 under contract to the Military Sea Transport Service (MSTS). He received his B.S., M.S. and Phd from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and upon graduation joined the Mechanical Engineering faculty there. He is currently the Oscar S. Wyatt, Jr. ’45 Chair I professor at the Texas A&M University.
He is internationally known for his innovative work in the control of adaptive structures, and spatially distributed systems for the real-time control. He is widely viewed as a founding father of the field of Smart or Adaptive Structures. He is the recipient of the ASME Adaptive Structures and Material Systems Award, the SPIE Lifetime Achievement Award, the SPIE Innovative Product of the Year Award, and is a Permanent Fellow of the Hagler Institute for Advanced Studies. He holds 24 patents and is the founder of 4 companies. He has published 4 books and more than 100 technical articles in peer reviewed journals. Hubbard is also a Fellow of the AIAA, SPIE, ASME, the National Academy of Inventors and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He has a passion for teaching, mentoring and the generation, and motivation of scholarship in his students.