Dr. Berger's "Memory Chip" approach lauded by National Academy of Engineering
March 4, 2008

With knowledge of the proper signaling patterns in healthy brains, engineers have begun to design computer chips that mimic the brain’s own communication skills. Such chips could be useful in cases where healthy brain tissue is starved for information because of the barrier imposed by damaged tissue. In principle, signals from the healthy tissue could be recorded by an implantable chip, which would then generate new signals to bypass the damage.

doc: Reverse-Engineer The Brain - Engineering Challenges MAR 2008.pdf

Dr. Berger's "Memory Chip" featured in Business Week
August 27, 2007

Doctors treating stroke patients who suffer from memory loss would like to replace damaged brain tissue with semi-conductors. Working with rats, a team of scientists led by University of Southern California's Theodore W. Berger learned how neurons responsible for memory react to varying patterns of electrical stimulation. They've turned those reactions into equations on chips, which will soon be implanted in a rat's hippocampus.

doc: Boosting Our Gray Matter - Business Week Sep 2007 150DPI.pdf

The Biomedical Simulations Resource Center organizes short course entitled "Modeling nonlinear synaptic dynamics using EONS"
June 18, 2007

Neuroscientists from all over the US with different backgrounds and expertise in terms of experimental work, electrophysiology and modeling were invited to attend, joined by several USC graduate students. The EONS synaptic modeling platform was presented and a round table organized to discuss the current status and future extensions to the platform. The consensus outlined the successful research and development strategy chosen by Dr. Berger’s laboratory as well as the utilization of the platform, not only in research, but also in educational settings.

EONS [Elementary Objects of the Nervous System] is a modeling platform developed in Dr. Berger’s lab dedicated to studying the complex dynamics occurring in glutamatergic synapses, essential elements in the transmission of information in the nervous system. For further details on the modeling platform, a more thorough description is available on the EONS website. EONS is being licensed by Rhenovia Pharma for in-silico drug discovery studies in the central nervous system.

link: EONS website

Dr. Berger featured in David Ignatius' Washington Post column "The Ideas Engine Needs A Tuneup."
June 3, 2007

David Ignatius reports from the Highlands Conference, a Pentagon-funded group that brings together defense officials and scientists for regular discussions. Dr. Berger's presentation and the Center for Neural Engineering research was particularly noted as "most impressive."

doc: The Ideas Engine Needs A Tuneup - Washington Post Jun 2007.pdf

KVOA NBC-TV broadcasts feature on SENTRI gunshot recognition developed by the Laboratory for Neural Dynamics
April 19, 2007

Safety Dynamics of Tucson, AZ commercializes the gunshot recognition developed by the Theodore W. Berger Labs at USC. The local NBC-affiliate ran a feature story on how gunshot recognition developed by the USC Neural Labs might have helped police during the Virginia Tech shootings.

doc: High-tech Tucson System Could Have Helped Police - KVOA-NBC Apr 2007.pdf

Popular Science publishes feature article on Berger Labs research on brain implants
April 1, 2007

Ted Berger has spent the past decade engineering a brain implant that can recreate thoughts. The chip would remedy everything from Alzheimer's to absent-mindedness — and reduce memory loss to nothing more than a computer glitch.

doc: The Memory Hacker - Popular Science Apr 2007.pdf

Dr. Berger contributes two chapters to new Michel Baudry book, Advances in Network Electrophysiology
February 25, 2007

The new book Advances in Network Electrophysiology explores methods for using electrophysiological techniques for monitoring the concurrent activity of ensembles of single neurons and reviews the recent progress in both electronics and computational tools developed to analyze the functional operations of large ensembles of neurons using multi-electrode arrays and in vitro preparations. Dr. Berger's research is featured in Chapters 6 and 12.

doc: Mapping Spatio-Temporal Electrophysiological Activity - Advances In Network Electrophysiology - Chapter 6 - 600 dpi.pdf

doc: A Hippocampal-Based Biosensor for Neurotoxins Detection - Advances In Network Electrophysiology - Chapter 12 - 600 dpi.pdf

Scientific American publishes article on brain chip progress at Berger Labs
January 22, 2007

Supplanting the human brain with computer power has been a staple of science fiction. Scientific American looks at the replacement of damaged brain tissue in rats with a neural prosthesis at the Neural Engineering Labs at USC.

doc: Chipping In - SciAmerican Feb 2007.pdf

Dr. Berger to serve as panelist for Neurotech Leaders Forum
September 29-30, 2006

This two-day conference offers an exclusive forum for neurotechnology executives and entrepreneurs to interact with investors, technologists, and potential partners who are actively working to grow this new and exciting industry. The schedule of presentations and panel discussions features a host of experts with a wealth of information on the neurotechnology industry and the investment community.

link: http://www.neurotechreports.com/pages/leadersforum.html

Expert Panel to Report on Brain-to-Computer Interface (BCI) Research Abroad in Free One-Day Workshop
July 21, 2006

This summer, an expert panel, sponsored by the National Science Foundation and other agencies, chaired by Dr. Theodore W. Berger, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at USC, is visiting the leading labs in Europe.

This study is intended to gather information on the worldwide status and trends in brain-computer interface research for the benefit of government decision makers and the research community. The study panelists will gather hands-on information on BCI research abroad that will be useful to the U.S. Government in its own programs.

Findings of this study will be presented at a free one-day workshop to be held at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, Virginia on July 21, 2006.

link: http://www.wtec.org/bci/workshop/

Dr. Berger to speak at ICDR Conference on Improving Cognitive Performance
June 29-30, 2006

The Federal Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) and its Subcommittee on Technology (IST), is hosting conference on "Technology for Improving Cognitive Performance," scheduled to take place Thursday and Friday, June 29-30, 2006 at the Holiday Inn Capitol, 550 C Street, SW, Washington, D.C.

The purpose of this two-day event is to create a national forum for clinicians, researchers, consumers, providers, advocates and industry to share information and innovative ideas about this developing field.

link: http://www.icdr.us/cognitive/

Dr. Berger featured in N. Carolina News14 "Tech Talk" television program
May 30, 2006

A neuroscientist has developed the first artificial brain part, a hippocampus that helps people with Alzheimer’s disease. "There's no reason why we can't think in terms of artificial brain parts in the same way we can think in terms of artificial eyes and artificial ears," said Theodore Berger, who does research at the University of Southern California.

link: http://www.news14charlotte.com

Dr. Berger speaks at the Almaden Institute conference on Cognitive Computing
May 10, 2006

The Almaden Institute is held annually at IBM's Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California. The Institute brings together eminent, innovative thinkers from academia, government, industry, research labs and the media for an intellectually charged, stimulating and vigorous dialogue that addresses fundamental challenges at the very edge of science and technology.

The 2006 Almaden Institute focused on the theme of "Cognitive Computing" and will examine scientific and technological issues around the quest to understand how the human brain works.

link: http://www.almaden.ibm.com/institute

Cognitive Prosthesis research and Dr. Berger are mentioned in The New Atlantis Winter 2006 edition
Winter, 2006

Adam Keiper, managing editor of The New Atlantis, "A Journal of Technology and Society," writes in his article "The Age of Neuroelectronics" of the "only serious effort to create a ‘cognitive prosthesis’" referring to the work of Dr. Berger's team of researchers at the University of Southern California.

link: http://www.thenewatlantis.com/archive/11/TNA11-Keiper.pdf