As part of the masters program in cognitive science, Umeå center for Functional Brain Imaging (UFBI) runs an advanced-level course in functional brain imaging (formally under the regime of the Department of Integrative Medical Biology). While also addressing other neuroimaging techniques such as PET, the focus of the course is on fMRI from a theoretical and practical perspective.
As the course covers fMRI from research question to data analysis and interpretation, it is of great value that we have people that can address the different steps with appropriate knowledge, with Lars Nyberg and Johan Eriksson on research design, Greger Orädd on MR physics, and Alireza Salami on data analyses.
Often-appreciated parts of the course are the practical exercises. The students are visiting our MR research facilities at Norrland's University Hospital for demonstration of experimental setup and data collection, and are also working through examples of fMRI data analyses.
As PET becomes more and more an integrated modality within UFBI, for the future it may become of interest to expand the part on PET or introduce a separate PET course.
