Multiband topographic EEG analysis of a simulated visuomotor aviation task

Abstract

Topographic EEG spectral magnitudes from 19 cortical sites were compared in 15 adult male subjects during performance of a simulated flight task and during control conditions which attempted to separately evaluate functional components of this task. Four conditions were studied, including eyes closed, a visual control, a motor control and a simulated landing task requiring integration of both visual and motor components. Each condition was repeated twice in a counterbalanced replicated measures design. A linked-ear EEG reference was used and spectral magnitudes calculated for 6 frequency bands. Decisions concerning band width and spectral transform were empirically determined. Findings indicated no significant differences between replications. A broad posterior cortical suppression of all frequencies was observed in the visual control condition. Anterior sites were affected only in the 7–12 Hz range. Additional suppression was seen during the motor control condition but limited to frontocentral sites in the 11–13 Hz band. The flight task, however, produced a further suppression at centroparietal cortex in the 9–13 Hz range. The extraction of both attentional and motor components from this task suggests that the parietal EEG activation was specific to cognitive processing.