Error-related Potential Variability: Exploring the Effects on Classification and Transferability

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI) have allowed for direct communication from the brain to external applications for the automatic detection of cognitive processes such as error recognition. Error-related potentials (ErrPs) are a particular brain signal elicited when one commits or observes an erroneous event. However, due to the noisy properties of the brain and recording devices, ErrPs vary from instance to instance as they are combined with an assortment of other brain signals, biological noise, and external noise, making the classification of ErrPs a non-trivial problem. Recent works have revealed particular cognitive processes such as awareness, embodiment, and predictability that contribute to ErrP variations. In this paper, we explore the performance of classifier transferability when trained on different ErrP variation datasets generated by varying the levels of awareness and embodiment for a given task. In particular, we look at transference between observational and interactive ErrP categories when elicited by similar and differing tasks. Our empirical results provide an exploratory analysis into the ErrP transferability problem from a data perspective.

Towards Intrinsic Interactive Reinforcement Learning: A Survey

Reinforcement learning (RL) and brain-computer interfaces (BCI) are two fields that have been growing over the past decade. Until recently, these fields have operated independently of one another. With the rising interest in human-in-the-loop (HITL) applications, RL algorithms have been adapted to account for human guidance giving rise to the sub-field of interactive reinforcement learning (IRL). Adjacently, BCI applications have been long interested in extracting intrinsic feedback from neural activity during human-computer interactions. These two ideas have set RL and BCI on a collision course for one another through the integration of BCI into the IRL framework where intrinsic feedback can be utilized to help train an agent. This intersection has been denoted as intrinsic IRL. To further help facilitate deeper ingratiation of BCI and IRL, we provide a review of intrinsic IRL with an emphasis on its parent field of feedback-driven IRL while also providing discussions concerning the validity, challenges, and future research directions.