The Investigation of EEG Responses for Design Tasks Using Traditional and Digital Tools
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Abstract
With the emergence of computers and modern technology, the way professionals do architecture has drastically change over the recent decades and schools have been faced with the task of how they want to guide the next generation of architects. Will the use of technology be taught as a fundamental skill? Or do the traditional techniques take precedent? This has raised the question of how digital technology has affected the minds of architecture students – and more specifically – in the area of design thinking. This research report will take a preliminary look at the neural responses in the brain when using traditional tools and digital tools. The goal of this research project is to compare the brain’s activity when using traditional tools versus digital tools. The document will go over the process of collecting electroencephalogram (EEG) data from human participants while they were using traditional and digital tools. This was made possible using the Ultracortex Headset from OpenBCI. Afterwards, the raw data was analyzed using a statistical analysis program called Igor Pro. Within the program, the waves data was transformed into Lomb Periodograms and then were compared using the Wilcoxon test and the T-test. Finally, those results were organized onto an Excel Spreadsheet.