Beckman Institute Initiates Study Using Soterix Medical HD-tDCS for Fluid Intelligence: $12.7million in Funding Through IARPA

Online, March 24, 2014 (Newswire.com) - The Beckman Institute project, named INSIGHT ("An integrative system for enhancing fluid intelligence (Gf) through human cognitive activity, fitness, high-definition transcranial direct-current brain stimulation, and nutritional intervention") received $12.7 million in funding over 42 months from the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), under the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Headed by Aron K. Barbey, in Cognitive Neuroscience at the Beckman Institute, the INSIGHT clinical trial is designed to establish a comprehensive and rigorous brain training protocol that incorporates the best available cognitive, physical fitness, neuromodulation, and nutritional interventions for the enhancement of fluid intelligence. The INSIGHT trial will be one of the largest scientific studies investigating fluid intelligence conducted to date: nearly 2,000 individuals organized into four cohorts over a three-and-a-half year period, for more than 100,000 hours of planned data collection. In one study arm, High-Definition tDCS will be integrated with cognitive training to investigate increased learning and performance.

Dr. Abhishek Datta, CTO of Soterix Medical Inc. summarizes "The deployment of our HD-tDCS into potentially the largest international trial on fluid intelligence is a historical milestone in the investigation of neuromodulation to enhance human brain performance. The use of Soterix Medical HD-tDCS technology is critical to allow targeting of specific brain structures. Soterix Medical engineers and scientists continue to work closely with the Beckman Institute to facilitate safe and reliable high-throughput testing in this large clinical trial. The results of this trial may profoundly influence the development of device-based neuro-enhacement relevant to medical and non-medical applications."