An international research team has uncovered the next frontier in monitoring brain health, and the key is in technology that millions of people are already using every day – earbuds.
The world-first study found that commercially available earbuds have the capability to detect and classify brain activity, simply by measuring subtle changes in users’ hearing. The team used acoustic sensors in earphones to assess cognitive load – the mental effort that shapes learning, task performance and early cognitive decline.
The finding could lead to new ways to improve performance in sectors such as education, aviation, healthcare, user experience design or the armed forces by identifying when people are overwhelmed, or when they have capacity to learn more.
The project was co-led…