This newsletter from ADInstruments provides information on their products and research using those products. It discusses a faculty member who received a grant to study the effects of meditation on physiology using PowerLab equipment. It also discusses research using PowerLab to study the effects of microgravity on the cardiovascular system aboard the International Space Station. The newsletter announces new software updates for LabChart and Peak Analysis that include new analysis features. It also provides information on a new blended learning approach using LabTutor Online for life science and medical courses.

1. THE ADINSTRUMENTS NEWSLETTER
INSIGHT
making science easier
ADINSTRUMENTS
31I S S U E
2 0 1 2
More inside...
n FUN grant
recipient
delves into
spirituality and
physiology
n PowerLab and space:
Exploring microgravity and
heart function
n Software tip: quantitative
EMG analysis.
New product guide
The new
ADInstruments
Product Guide
for Research
contains over
150 pages of the latest
information on products for
diverse applications.
To browse pages online or
download your copy, go to
www.adinstruments.com/catalog
Software updates!
New LabChart
and Peak
Analysis updates
are available to
enhance your
research experience.
LabChart v7.3.4 includes new
options for macros, calculations
and analyses. Peak Analysis v1.4
provides new features and fast
data processing capabilities.
Blended learning for free in your
life science and medical courses!
ADInstruments is offering educators who use LabTutor software the
opportunity to try one of the fastest-growing trends in education, blended
learning: the combination of face-to-face classroom instruction, online study
and reduced classroom hours.
Every customer who upgrades to LabTutor 4 Teaching Suite or purchases a
LabTutor teaching system is supplied with a LabTutor Online Starter Pack for
fast, easy setup of LabTutor Online, and 12 months complimentary access.
Once LabTutor is installed, educators can reduce classroom hours by
assigning activities previously performed in the lab as homework. Before
class, students can learn about experiments, interact with multimedia files
and answer multiple choice questions. After class, students can review their
own data, submit reports and watch related documentaries on LabTutor TV.
The all-in-one approach offered by the addition of LabTutor Online gives
students a strong learning advantage, as they can easily connect theories
and concepts with hands-on laboratory investigation — at any time or
anywhere that fits their active lifestyle.
Introduce blended learning into your teaching lab by activating your
complimentary 12 month access to LabTutor Online. The LabTutor
Online Starter Kit includes everything you need to get started.
Find out how to get your complimentary copy of the LabTutor
Online Starter Pack on page 3.
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2. 2 • I N S I G H T
Download LabChart
and LabChart Pro
updates at www.
adinstruments.com/
updates
Top: New calculations in Peak Analysis Settings. Bottom: Set a new
baseline manually with new Peak Analysis Module options.
Baseline Settings
A new tab has been added to the Settings dialog, shown
as Baseline (or Resting Membrane Potential/RMP for
Action Potential and Cardiac Action Potential analysis
modes). This allows researchers
to set a baseline value, or use
the minimum value between
peaks, in addition to the existing
automatic baseline calculation.
Adding Peak Analysis
values to Data Pad
Researchers can export unlimited rows of data* (and
a summary) from the Peak Analysis Table View to the
Data Pad.
LabChart Pro software update: Peak Analysis Module v1.4
LabChart v7.3.4: Event-driven scripting, enhanced DVMs
and more to enhance your research experience!
LabChart v7.3.4 features an enhanced DVM window,
added device support, new macro options, recent
updates to arithmetic functions and much more.
LabChart 7 users can download the update for free.
Monitor data with DVM windows, now with a trending graph.
DVM calculation and display options
DVM windows can now display raw or calculated data
(Average, Max. and Min.) as text, as well as display a
history graph showing trending of calculated data.
Event-driven scripting
Macros can now be set up to operate continuously in
real time, efficiently responding to events as they occur
in LabChart — until explicitly stopped by the user.
When a new macro is classified as an “Event Script”,
a new Events Pane is shown by default in the editor.
Dragging events from the pane into the editor creates
skeleton script code to handle the event.
Supported events include:
n On sampling start
n On sampling finish
n On samples arrive
n On event data arrives
n On guide line crossed
n On key pressed
n On LabChart Selection changed
n On external trigger
n On Data Pad cell selection
changes... and more!
New arithmetic features
The new Arithmetic preview panel provides a quick way
to see how your calculations will affect the raw signal.
The new Arithmetic functions listed below can be applied
to any signal, online or offline, without losing raw data.
n StepSize(): A cumulative measure of any step in the
source data.
n Min(), Max(): Calculates the cumulative minimum or
maximum values over samples in a window.
n MinSec(), MaxSec(), MedianSec(): Specify window
size in seconds (not samples).
n Covariance(): Provides a measure of the strength of
the correlation between two channels.
n RMS(): Root Mean Square of a channel.
Cyclic Measurements in Data Pad
Apply new Cyclic Measurements in the Data Pad:
Maximum Derivative and Minimum Derivative.
*Limited only by available RAM.
The scripting Events Pane

3. w w w . a d i n s t r u m e n t s . c o m / n e w s l e t t e r • I N S I G H T • 3
Students using LabTutor
Online have exclusive
access to educational TV
shows, streamed from
ADInstruments’ high-speed
Content Delivery Network.
The LabTutor TV interface is available to all students licensed to use
LabTutor Online.
LabTutor Online Starter Pack and exclusive LabTutor TV
With 5 comprehensive sections,
the ADInstruments Product Guide
provides detailed information
on the latest range of products
that will fast track life science
research.
The Hardware section features
the high performance 35 series
PowerLab and Front End units,
plus a range of complete
solutions that include gold standard products from
industry leaders such as Warner, Millar and Radnoti.
The Applications section provides a range of equipment
options for 12 key areas of study including:
n Isolated tissue
n Psychophysiology
n Blood pressure
n Respiratory & airway investigation
Other sections include Software, PowerLab in Education
and Product List.
View it online today or register for a printed Product
Guide at www.ADInstruments.com/catalog
(Available mid-2012)
New ADInstruments Research Product Guide
The LabTutor Online Starter Pack
is the easiest way to broaden your
students’ learning outside the
laboratory classroom.
Am I eligible? Yes!
The LabTutor Online Starter Pack
is compatible with PowerLab
Teaching Systems with LabTutor 4.
If you’re using an earlier version of
LabTutor, ask us for a free upgrade
which includes the complimentary
Starter Pack. Educators using
LabChart are also eligible.
Contents:
n LabTutor 4 Teaching Suite DVD &
experiments
n LabTutor Online activation card—
for one year of free access
n ‘Getting Started’ booklet with
easy to follow instructions.
Get your copy at www.
adinstruments.com/starterpack
LabTutor TV
LabTutor Online users have
exclusive free access to LabTutor
TV: a collection of educationally
relevant high-definition scientific
and medical programs including
drama, history and comedy.
LabTutor TV is hosted by
ADInstruments, so there is no
need to download
or install any new
software. It is available
to all students with
LabTutor Online
licenses — as soon as
they log in.
In addition, the
HD videos can be
streamed from our
high-speed content
delivery network to
home computers,
laptops, iPads or
other Internet
connected devices.
LabTutor TV titles include:
n Diabetes: In Search of a Miracle
n Kill or Cure: 6 part series
n Donated to Science
n The Curse of the Elephant Man
n Medicine at the Edge
n The Death Gene
n Xeno: Of Diabetes, Pigs & People
n Parkinson’s: Stopping the
Tremors
n Cystic fibrosis: The Curse of Salt.
Use the activation card to give an unlimited
number of students 12 months access to
their lab material anywhere, any time.

4. 4 • I N S I G H T
Software tip – quantitative EMG analysis
PowerLab, MacLab, LabChart and LabTutor are registered trademarks and Chart, Scope and Lab Author are trademarks of ADInstruments Pty Ltd. All other trademarks are the
property of their respective owners.
North America
Tel: +1 888 965 6040
info@adinstruments.com
South America
Tel: +56 2 356 6749
info.cl@adinstruments.com
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 1865 891 623
info.uk@adinstruments.com
Brazil
Tel: +55 11 2959 0353
info.br@adinstruments.com
Germany
Tel: +49 6226 970105
info.de@adinstruments.com
Indian Subcontinent
Tel: +91 11 2693 3930
info.in@adinstruments.com
North Asia
Tel: +86 21 5830 5639
info.cn@adinstruments.com
Australia
Tel: +61 2 8818 3400
info.au@adinstruments.com
South East Asia
Tel: +60 3 8023 6305
info.sea@adinstruments.com
New Zealand
Tel: +64 3 477 4646
info.nz@adinstruments.com
Japan
Tel: +81 52 932 6462
info.jp@adinstruments.com
International
Tel: +61 2 8818 3400
info.au@adinstruments.com
The preset detector ‘General —
Peak After Threshold’ works best
for EMG.
4. To optimize the detector, select
‘Customize’ from below the preset
menu so that sustained EMG
activity can be represented as a
single peak event.
5. In Peak Analysis Settings Table
Options, select Height and
Peak Area.
6. Open Table View and peak
amplitudes will be displayed, as
well as the area under the curve.
The Peak Analysis Settings dialog.
To view LabChart video tutorials, visit
www.youtube.com/adinstruments
Where to see us
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
2 Jul Physiology 2012
Paris, France
03 Jul LabAuthor SoftwareTraining
Course – series start
03 Jul LabChart SoftwareTraining
Course – series start
Ontario, Canada
27 Jul 17th World Congress on
Heart Disease
Helsinki, Finland
24 Aug Scandinavian Physiological
Society Annual Meeting
Cambridge, United Kingdom
04 Sep Networking for Healthcare
Education Conference
Aachen, Germany
27 Sep Annual Meeting of the
Society for Medical Education
AZ, USA
04 Oct Safety Pharmacology
Society
Saskatchewan Canada
10 Oct Canadian Society for
Exercise Physiology
Chengdu, China
24 Oct The 2nd China Annual
Meeting of DrugToxicology
www.adinstruments.com/events
To measure the area under a rectified
EMG waveform, use the Peak Analysis
Module on smoothed EMG data.
1. Create a new channel from Setup
and rename it ‘Smoothed EMG’.
2. Apply a Triangular smoother with
a window width of 301 samples (if
sampling at 1 kHz). The smoothed
data will appear in the new channel.
3. In Peak Analysis Settings
Analysis Type, choose ‘General —
Unstimulated’ for voluntary muscle
activity or ‘Evoked Response’ for
stimulated muscle.
PowerLab in the news
FUN Grant: Neuroscience,
meditation and health
Congratulations to Dr. Glena
Andrews, who was awarded
a two-year ADInstruments
equipment loan by the Faculty for
Undergraduate Neuroscience (FUN)
for her proposal entitled “Exploring
Cardiovascular Functioning in
Students Engaged in Behavior
Changes”.
Dr. Andrews, a clinical
psychologist with a background
in neuropsychology, will use the
equipment at Norwest Nazarene
University to launch a research
project studying changes in
students’ physiological parameters
as they engage in meditation,
contemplation and other behaviors
associated with religious/spiritual
practice and psychotherapeutic
treatment.
ECG, heart rate and pulse will be
measured using an ADInstruments
teaching system that includes a
PowerLab 4/26T.
PowerLab and space
A team of researchers at the
Canadian Space Agency are using
PowerLab systems to study the
effect of space travel on human
physiology.
Recent investigations of 6 astronauts
living on the International Space
Station indicate the cardiovascular
system adapts to microgravity
during space flight.
You can read the full text article
for free, in the Journal of Applied
Physiology 2012 Mar;112(5):719–27.