WIP Special

Integrating Eye Tracking And OPM-MEG For Human Research On Vision And Spatial Attention

Presented by: 

This project aims to use Optically Pumped Magnetometer-based Magnetoencephalography (OPM-MEG) system to study the neural mechanisms of human vision and spatial attention. Building on the recently installed wearable OPM-MEG system at the Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity, we will combine the system with eye-tracking technology to create a neuroimaging environment that allows for high-quality brain recordings and eye tracking during visual and attentional tasks. This will provide a powerful platform for advancing the cognitive neuroscience of human vision and spatial attention.
Through these studies, we aim to understand the neural dynamics that support visual processing and attention. Specifically, we will investigate gaze decoding, retinotopic mapping, and mechanisms of spatial attention, and examine how these are supported by neural systems. For vision-related experiments, we will employ Rapid Invisible Frequency Tagging (RIFT) sources operating at approximately 60 Hz and for spatial attention paradigms, we will use moving gratings combined with a dot-detection task to probe attentional allocation. Ultimately, the project will deliver both a validated OPM-MEG platform for studying vision and spatial attention, and novel insights into the neuronal basis of how brain processes vision and spatial attention. We will use the OPM-MEG system as recent research has demonstrated superior performance in multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) compared to conventional MEG, strengthening its value for decoding complex neural signals.

Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and by sharing paradigms and data where appropriate, ensuring broad impact across the neuroscience and education communities.
The project will also contribute to the development of OPM-FLUX, a standardised open-source analysis pipeline for OPM-MEG data. By incorporating the paradigms and analysis strategies developed in this project, OPM-FLUX will ensure transparency, reproducibility, and accessibility, enabling the wider research community to benefit from robust tools for analysing OPM-MEG data.

Reasoning during natural language comprehension

Presented by: Jiaqi Li

This project will use Optically Pumped Magnetometer-based Magnetoencephalography (OPM-MEG) system to address a core scientific question in natural language comprehension: how reasoning processes will support real-time interpretation of speech. We will test whether pronoun resolution will rely on rapid reactivation of recently encoded representations, and how prefrontal regions will contribute to controlling or coordinating this reactivation within a dynamic neural system.
To enable these experiments, we will adapt the OPM-MEG setup at the Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity for naturalistic listening by integrating a customized helmet, eye tracking, and an audio delivery system to obtain high-quality, motion-tolerant brain recordings. The outcome will be both a validated methodological platform and mechanistic evidence about the neural dynamics of reasoning in online language understanding.

Investigating Parafoveal Processing in Natural Reading Using OPM-MEG System

Presented by: Evgeniya Anisimova

Parafoveal previewing—extracting information from the word neighbouring the one currently fixated—is thought to underlie the precision and efficiency of skilled reading. In this project, we are optimising the OPM-MEG setup and combining it with eye-tracking to study parafoveal previewing during natural reading.
Specifically, we will: (1) use Rapid Invisible Frequency Tagging (RIFT) to track visual information processing; (2) apply Representational Similarity Analysis to dissociate orthographic from semantic processing during parafoveal preview; and (3) employ a novel auditory frequency tagging method to track auditory processing and examine auditory–visual interaction during reading. Furthermore, we will adapt the system for developmental studies in children aged 7–11, aiming to explore how and when parafoveal previewing emerges, and whether its development impacts reading efficiency.