RTXI 2015 Conference
Thanks to all who came out to the conference in Atlanta. It was wonderful to see what our current users have been doing and also meet some potential new ones. Moving forward, we'd like to expand RTXI in terms of both function and usage. When the next conference comes around, we want to see even more people there!
- When
- May 7-8, 2015
- Where
The Georgia Academy of Medicine
- conveniently located close to hotels, public transportation, and the airport.- Why
RTXI 2015 is a small meeting to discuss ongoing efforts in applying real-time methods to experiments in biology and physiology. While this conference is targeting and highlighting users of our RTXI software (http://www.rtxi.org), all are welcome! This meeting builds upon the success of two meetings we hosted approximately a decade ago in Atlanta (GT Real 2005) and Boston (BU Real 2006).
Much has changed in ten years, both in terms of hardware and the increasing number of experimental techniques using real-time methods. This conference features a single track session for two days, along with workshops. Ample time in structured and open sessions will give us all a chance to share ideas, software, and technical knowledge.
The Real-time Experiment Interface (RTXI) is an open source software platform for hard real-time data acquisition and closed-loop experimental control in biological experiments. Its power and flexibility have enabled users over the years to implement complex protocols in a variety of experiment types. Currently, RTXI is used to provide real-time, closed-loop control of single cell, cell network, animal, and human electrophysiology studies.
RTXI 2015's topics will focus on recent applications of RTXI. If you'd like a sense of what RTXI has done for experimentalists over the past 15 years, look through our list of publications.
- Topics
Dynamic clamp and similar methods
Cardiac control
Closed-loop neural stimulation
Applications to neurological disease (Parkinson's, epilepsy, etc.)
Open-source software development
Events
We're excited to have the following people come to talk with us about their research and/or real-time applications.
We will have time dedicated for attendees who want to host talks about their own uses for RTXI. You can specify whether you'd like to present anything when you register. Once the details of this event are finalized, look here for session details and a schedule.
Our current RTXI developers will hold workshops to help new users get started using it and demonstrate v2.0 to current ones. Emphasis will be given to benchmarking RTXI and real-time performance, troubleshooting, and module development.
Day 1
| Time | Event | Host(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 0800-0900 | Registration, Breakfast | |
| 0900-0930 | Introduction - What have we learned in 20 years of dynamic clamp experiments that is useful to in vivo closed-loop studies? | R. Butera |
| 0930-1015 | Challenges in clinical neuromodulation: transitioning from open-loop to active-sensing and closed-loop methods | S. Stanslaski |
| 1015-1035 | LFP power as potential biomarker for TRD closed-loop DBS | O. Smart |
| 1035-1050 | Coffee Break | |
| 1050-1135 | Closed-loop neuromodulation - exposing pitfall and promises of preclinical trials via RTXI | C. Dorval |
| 1135-1155 | EnerCage: A smart wireless homecage for longitudinal behavioral neuroscience experiments | M. Ghovanloo |
| 1155-1215 | Cochlear implant magnetic stimulation | S. Mukesh |
| 1215-1330 | LUNCH | |
| 1330-1350 | Real-time feedback in neuromechanical models of locomotion | D. Edwards |
| 1350-1410 | Analysis of feedback dynamics governing motor output from a crayfish locomotor circuit | B. Chung |
| 1410-1430 | Comparative studies and dynamic clamp analyses reveal diverse neural circuit mechanisms underlying analogous behaviors. | A. Sakurai |
| 1430-1445 | Coffee Break | |
| 1445-1530 | Rational design of non-invasive (feedback) brain stimulation | F. Frolich |
| 1530-1600 | Workshop Part 1: Architecture of RTXI We will go over the hardware (processors, DAQs, graphics cards) and software (threading architecture, RT and non-RT threads) components of RTXI and then explain how they provide hard real-time performance. We will show the basic code structure and explain how to run real-time code within the RTXI framework. This section will also include a brief demonstration of each system module (e.g. the oscilloscope, data recorder, etc.) within the context of RTXI's software architecture diagram. | Y. Patel A. George |
| 1600-1625 | Workshop Part 2: RTXI Live Demos (and Coffee Break) We will setup stations running RTXI for everyone to try out while getting coffee. RTXI users at each station will help explain what the workspace is doing and how it's working. This will be a pre-defined set of workspaces that we walk through setting up and testing, with the purpose of familiarizing attendees with the interface. Stations will be left running for people to use during the reception. | Y. Patel A. George |
| 1625-1700 | Workshop Part 3: Profiling and Troubleshooting RT performance This session will focus on how each workspace set up could fail and considerations for dealing with problems in each. Special attention will be given to hardware matters (graphics cards, DAQs), proper driver and kernel configurations, and benchmarking real-time performance with our built-in tests. Mention will also be given to all the new resources we have put into place, such as GitHub, our website, numerous modules, and our contact information so we can help or even make arrangements for us to come to you and get you set up. | A. George |
| 1700-1900 | Reception |
Day 2
| Time | Event | Host |
|---|---|---|
| 0800-0900 | Breakfast | |
| 0900-0945 | Synaptic feedback strategies that minimize neuronal oscillator variability | A. Prinz |
| 0945-1005 | Use of dynamic clamp to supply human induced pluripotent stem cell derived cardiomyocytes with an IK1 boost | R. Wilders |
| 1005-1025 | Beta1-adrenergic regulation of ionic dynamics in mouse ventricular Myocytes: A Mathematical Model | V. Bondarenko |
| 1025-1040 | Coffee Break | |
| 1040-1100 | Functional analysis of cardiac transient outward potassium currents in human ventricular myocytes; A dynamic clamp study | S. Springer |
| 1100-1120 | Simultaneous real-time measurement of trans-membrane potential and intracellular calcium concentration in isolated hearts | I. Uzelac |
| 1120-1205 | Real-time interactions with the mouse motor thalamus in vitro and in vivo | D. Jaeger |
| 1205-1230 | A roadmap for the future of RTXI (hardware and software) | Y. Patel |
Housing
We have a block of rooms reserved at the Renaissance Atlanta Midtown Hotel for people to sign up and register. The rooms are $151/night, and the deadline for booking is April 15th. The hotel is conveniently situated across the street from the Georgia Academy of Medicine, and it has many restaurants nearby.
Sponsor
