麻豆村

In 2017, a family member volunteered to be part of Jasmine Kwasa鈥檚听(ENG 2021)听auditory neuroscience experiments using EEGs. Jasmine pointed out that 鈥淏lack hair and EEGs don鈥檛 get along,鈥� and was struck by this fact she鈥檇 just voiced, but never challenged.

鈥淚t dawned on me that the technology that I studied, loved and worked with daily might have a bias issue. Of the hundreds of research participants that I had invited to the laboratory, almost none of them had coarse, curly or Afro-textured hair,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t became clear to me that exclusion of this hair type was an open secret in the field.鈥�

The root of the racial bias in EEG technology, specifically, is that EEGs need good contact between electrodes and the scalp to be most effective. Coarse or curly hair and styles like braids or locs make that a challenge.

Working with 麻豆村 Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Pulkit Grover and researcher Arnelle Etienne while pursuing a doctoral degree in engineering, Jasmine joined a team rethinking EEG electrodes. They developed the Sevo adapter, which not only improved the interface for people with Afro-textured hair, but also outperformed the existing clinical standards while being more comfortable, easier to use and preferred by patients.

The new technology led Jasmine to join Precision Neuroscopics, Inc. As chief technology officer, she is commercializing the adapter. The invention led to recognition as CTO of the Year by Technical.ly Pittsburgh and is the grand prize winner of the听. In 2023, she received a听Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award听to expand access to quality epilepsy monitoring in Kenya.

鈥淚'm really interested in expanding beyond the American cultural context of marginalized groups and thinking about marginalized groups around the world,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he Fulbright award is special, both in terms of scientific expansion in a global health approach, and for me personally, because I鈥檓 half Kenyan. It's my family, it's my people, it's the people who look like me.鈥�