ELEC4810 midterm solutions

Q1.
(i)
Electromyography (EMG) is an experimental technique concerned with the development, recording
and analysis of myoelectric signals. Myoelectric signals are formed by physiological variations in the
state of muscle fiber membranes. (1’)
The circuit for EMG measurement is shown below. (refer to lab 1) The band pass filter is for “5Hz to
250Hz” (1’)

(ii) Any reasonable is acceptable(2, each 0.5) (reference: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/50599)

Q2.
(i) Ca2+ ions play an important role in muscle contraction by creating interactions between the
proteins, myosin and actin. (1)
(ii) Calcium in cardiac muscle (1)

(iii) (1)
Transfer of nerve impulse from the neuron to the post-synaptic cell is achieved by means of
release of a chemical. The chemical is stored in vesicles in the pre-synaptic nerve ending.

Ca2+ triggers synaptic vesicle exocytosis, thereby releasing the neurotransmitters contained in
the vesicles and initiating synaptic transmission

(iv) (1)
An excitatory synapse is a synapse in which an action potential in a presynaptic neuron increases
the probability of an action potential occurring in a postsynaptic cell.
While inhibitory synapse activity is that a presynaptic neuron emit inhibitory neurotransmitter to
block or prevent the chemical message from being passed along any farther.

Q3.
(i) (2’) (1’ for figure (0.5 for wave, 0.5’ for interval), 1’ for explanation)
A typical lead II ECG with waves and intervals (P. 48 lecture note 3)

(ii) (0.5’)
𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑑 2 = (𝑉𝐹 − 𝑉𝑅 ) = 1𝑚𝑉
𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑑 3 = (𝑉𝐹 − 𝑉𝐿 ) = 0.5𝑚𝑉
𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑑 1 = 𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑑 2 − 𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑑 3 = (𝑉𝐿 − 𝑉𝑅 ) = 0.5𝑚𝑉
(iii) (1.5’)
ECG monitoring electrodes must make very good electrical contact with the patient in order that
adequate ECG waveforms can be obtained. However, this very characteristic poses potential
problems in that the electrical contact could provide a pathway for harmful external electrical
currents to enter the body and then the heart, causing severe reactions or even death. (1’) Some
methods can achieve insulation circuitry to ECG measurement such as using capacitive
(insulated) electrodes which can register ECG signals without conductive contact to the body.
(0.5’)

(iiii) (1’)
Biological signal amplifiers such as ECG (electrocardiogram) EEG (electroencephalogram) or
EMG circuits measure very small electrical signals emitted by the body, often as small as several
micro-volts (millionths of a volt). However, the patient's body can also act as an antenna which
picks up electromagnetic interference, especially 50/60 Hz noise from electrical power lines.
This interference can obscure the biological signals, making them very hard to measure. (0.5’)
Right leg driver circuitry is used to average the lead voltage at DC output, inverts it and feeds it
back to the human body. This circuit drives the common-mode voltage on the body to a low
value to reduce common-mode noise. (0.5’)

Q4
The nurse has removed all gel.

Q5.
(i) (1’)
EEG transforms the potential signal arising from synaptic activity in the brain into waveforms
that map this activity over the surface of the skull.
(0.5’)
Evoked potentials or evoked response, which map conduction of neuronal activity along the
pathways in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS) in response
to stimuli, provide information that complements the EEG. The common stimulation site: visual,
auditory, somatosensory.
(0.5’)
Together, EEGs and EPs provide an expanding window on brain function.

5.(ii) (1’)
Longitudinal montage, Transverse montage, Referential montage. Therefore, there are three
ways of forming EEG signal.

Longitudinal Transversal Referential

5.(iii) (1’)
The frequency spectra of one or more channels of EEG are calculated periodically over
consecutive epochs of time, such as every five minutes (length of the segment), using FFT. The
resulting spectra are displayed in a cascaded format vertically. This allows easy identification of
change in frequency components over time.
5.(iv) (2’)
From this CSV curve, we can extract information about the brain information as below. At the
start of the measurement, the EEG is mainly Alpha wave (8-13Hz), showing that the person at
the test is awake in a quiet resting state. As time goes further, the EEG becomes mainly theta
wave (4-7Hz), showing that the brain is suffering some emotional stress. At last, the EEG
becomes mainly delta wave (<3.5Hz), indicating that the brain is in very deep sleep.