A paralyzed patient implanted with a brain-computer interface device has allowed University of Chicago scientists to determine the relationship between brain waves and attention.

Using a small chip containing nearly 100 microelectrodes that was previously implanted in a patient’s primary motor cortex, they found that beta waves indicate how much attention a subject is paying to the task at hand, while slower delta waves act as an internal metronome, allowing the brain to anticipate moments when attention is most needed.

This new understanding of the relationship between brain activity and attention may have relevance in the field of neuropsychology. A diagnostic and therapeutic tool could possibly be developed that uses such recordings to assess a person’s attention from moment to moment, with the signal fed back to the person to improve their attention.

The rhythmic patterns of oscillations may also be useful in developing better brain-machine interface technology for quadriplegic individuals to operate prosthetics.