From early brainwave research to ANSA today

Key moments

Developments in the field are marked in gold and ANSA's own milestones in navy. Use the buttons to show one or both.

1. 1875
   The field

   Brain electricity is discovered

   Richard Caton records electrical activity from the exposed brains of animals, the first evidence that the brain produces electrical signals.

2. 1924
   The field

   The first human EEG

   Hans Berger records electrical activity from the human scalp. When he publishes in 1929, he names the alpha rhythm.

3. 1958
   The field

   A standard map of the scalp

   Herbert Jasper publishes the International 10-20 system for placing EEG electrodes, the standard still used for QEEG today.

4. 1962
   The field

   Neurofeedback is demonstrated

   Joe Kamiya reports that people can learn to recognise and control their own alpha rhythm.

5. 1964
   The field

   The first event-related potential

   Grey Walter and colleagues describe the contingent negative variation, a slow brain wave that builds as a person anticipates an event. It is one of the first event-related potential (ERP) components identified.

6. 1965
   The field

   The P300 is discovered

   Sutton, Braren, Zubin and John report the P300, the ERP peak linked to attention and evaluating stimuli. It becomes one of the most studied measures in clinical ERP work.

7. 1967
   The field

   SMR training and light therapy begin

   Barry Sterman trains cats to increase their sensorimotor rhythm (SMR), and later finds they resist chemically induced seizures. The same year, Endre Mester reports that low-power laser light stimulates hair regrowth in mice, the origin of photobiomodulation.

8. 1969
   The field

   Biofeedback gets its name

   The Biofeedback Research Society forms in the United States, coining the term biofeedback. It later becomes the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB).

9. 1972
   The field

   First human epilepsy report

   Sterman and Friar publish the first report of SMR neurofeedback reducing seizures in a person with epilepsy. The same year, Jay Gunkelman begins his career in a state hospital biofeedback laboratory.

10. 1976
    The field

    Research into attention begins

    Lubar and Shouse report SMR neurofeedback with a hyperactive child, the start of decades of research into attention.

11. 1977
    The field

    Foundations of quantitative EEG

    E. Roy John and colleagues publish Neurometrics, laying the groundwork for quantitative EEG and normative databases.

12. 1978
    The field

    Mismatch negativity

    Näätänen, Gaillard and Mäntysalo describe mismatch negativity, an ERP that shows the brain automatically detecting a change in sound.

13. 1981
    The field

    Certification begins

    The Biofeedback Certification Institute of America, now BCIA, is founded to certify practitioners.

14. 1985
    The field

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation

    Anthony Barker's team in Sheffield introduces modern transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).

15. 1989
    The field

    Alpha-theta training

    Peniston and Kulkosky publish alpha-theta neurofeedback research with people recovering from alcohol dependence.

16. 1994
    The field

    Locating brain activity

    Roberto Pascual-Marqui introduces LORETA, a method for estimating where in the brain EEG activity arises.

17. 1995
    ANSA

    A network forms

    At the Australian Psychological Society conference in Cairns, Dr Del Sherlock, a psychologist whose Monash University PhD studied brain asymmetry, is encouraged by the potential of biofeedback for self-regulation. A network of interested psychologists begins meeting at workshops and later joins the US-based Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB).

18. 1996
    The field

    QEEG certification for technologists

    Jay Gunkelman becomes the first EEG technologist certified in quantitative EEG. He goes on to review hundreds of thousands of EEGs and to serve as President of ISNR.

19. 1997
    ANSA

    AAAPB is incorporated

    The Australian Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAAPB) is incorporated, with Dr Rob Apathy as President and Don Brinkworth as Secretary. Its inaugural conference is held at the John Curtin School of Medical Research, ANU Canberra, on 25 May.

20. 1999
    ANSA

    A neurofeedback chapter in Brisbane

    The Australia Pacific Rim Chapter of the International Society for Neurofeedback and Research (iSNR) is established in Brisbane, bringing together people from many disciplines working in neurotherapy training and research.

21. 2000
    The field

    Modern tDCS

    Nitsche and Paulus show that a weak direct current applied through the scalp changes motor cortex excitability, renewing interest in tDCS.

22. 2000
    The field

    Resonance frequency breathing

    Lehrer, Vaschillo and Vaschillo describe resonance frequency training, the basis of most heart rate variability biofeedback used today.

23. 2004
    The field

    ICA becomes widely available

    Delorme and Makeig release EEGLAB, open software that makes independent component analysis (ICA) widely available for cleaning and analysing EEG.

24. 2005
    The field

    EEG phenotypes

    Johnstone, Gunkelman and Lunt publish their framework of EEG phenotypes, recognisable EEG patterns that help guide treatment planning.

25. 2006
    ANSA

    ANSA is formed

    In November, the AAAPB and the Pacific Rim Chapter of iSNR amalgamate to form the Applied Neuroscience Society of Australasia.

26. 2008
    ANSA

    International teachers in Sydney

    ANSA's annual conference in Sydney includes workshops with Dr Tom Collura, Dr Donald Moss and Dr Rien Breteler.

27. 2008
    The field

    rTMS cleared for depression

    The US Food and Drug Administration clears the first rTMS device for treating depression.

28. 2009
    The field

    ERPs in neurotherapy

    Yuri Kropotov publishes Quantitative EEG, Event-Related Potentials and Neurotherapy, bringing ERP assessment into neurotherapy practice.

29. 2010
    ANSA

    Workshops and the Q-Club

    ANSA hosts workshops with Sebern Fisher on trauma and neurofeedback, and with Drs Roger and Mary deBeus on functional QEEG. Members also begin meeting as the Q-Club, a study group for quantitative EEG.

30. 2011
    ANSA

    QEEG and LORETA training

    Dr Leslie Sherlin teaches a four-day QEEG and LORETA workshop alongside the annual conference.

31. 2013
    ANSA

    ERPs as biomarkers

    ANSA hosts workshops on event-related potentials as biomarkers in clinical assessment.

32. 2020
    ANSA

    A virtual conference and a new name

    ANSA holds its first virtual conference, Building Clinical Excellence. iSNR becomes the International Society for Neuroregulation and Research (ISNR), and ANSA continues as an affiliate.

33. 2021
    The field

    rTMS on Medicare

    From 1 November, rTMS for depression is funded under Medicare in Australia.

34. 2025
    ANSA

    Mentoring for members

    The Neurofeedback mentoring series begins, offering members free online group mentoring.

35. 2026
    ANSA

    Neurotherapy Across the Lifespan

    ANSA holds its 19th annual conference at the QT Gold Coast in September, with keynotes from Jay Gunkelman, Dr Siegfried Othmer, Dr Tiff Thompson and Dr Nicholas Dogris.