Maryland Neuroimaging Center

The Maryland Neuroimaging Center (MNC) is a state-of-the-art 8000 sq ft facility, opened in 2011. It contains a 3T Siemens Trio MRI scanner and a 160-channel whole-head MEG scanner, and ample space for meetings, data analysis, and more. The center is designed with the needs of child participants in mind, and includes a child-friendly mock scanner and family reception area.

The MNC is located at the northern edge of the University of Maryland campus, adjacent to the open fields of the National Agricultural Research Center. This makes a difference. The MEG scanner is an exquisitely sensitive device that passively records the magnetic fields generated by electrical activity in the brain. These are on the scale of pico- to femto-Tesla, around 100 billion times weaker than earth’s steady magnetic field. This means that a magnetically ‘quiet’ environment is valuable. At one point it looked like the new light rail line that is slated to cross the UMD campus (great!) might run very close to the former MEG lab site (not great!). This gave me occasion to learn a lot about (i) electromagnetic and vibration footprints of rail cars, and (ii) politics of transportation planning. The MNC location makes this moot.

MNC was the result of 5 years of work. We secured a $2M NSF major instrumentation grant. We secured a site for the center, designed the facility and built out the operations, and coordinated the move of the MEG facility (completed in summer 2014).

mnc site | map | nsf grant | mnc plans

MNC Opening (click to enlarge)