Brain-computer interface (BCI) research focuses on developing and analyzing direct communication between the brain and an external device. The application of such research is found in efforts to restore damaged hearing, sight, and movement. As such, BCI research is an active and exciting field with a wide range of methods and application areas. The annual BCI research award aims to highlight the trends and development of BCI technology, as well as recognize outstanding and innovative research within the field. This book details the work of the ten nominees for the 2011 BCI research award.

Lacking a background in BCI research, I was slightly apprehensive when I started reading this book, as I wasn’t sure how many of the concepts would be familiar. To a certain extent, my apprehensions were well founded. To an outsider, this book is not easily accessible. I say this not as a criticism, because I know that providing all the background needed to make this book accessible to all would push the length far beyond the Springer Briefs standard. Rather, I say this to indicate that the intended audience must be those with a strong background in BCI research. This is not to say that the book would be of no interest to those outside the field. I found it fascinating to peer into this world and see some of the remarkable achievements being made to help those with degenerative diseases. It was also interesting to read without knowing who won the 2011 award (as in any good book, the winner isn’t revealed until the end).

The introductory section includes trends in the field with respect to popular control signals and application areas. It was interesting to see the comparison between the 2010 and 2011 award submissions. The comparison revealed a shift in focus in the space of a year, but the reason for this shift is left tantalizingly unanswered. Exploring possible reasons driving this shift in research direction could have drastically improved this chapter.

It is difficult to summarize a book such as this due to its specific focus. There is no doubt that for those with an active interest in the field of BCI research, it will prove useful for catching up with some state-of-the art research trends. However, due to the large amount of topic-specific terminology, it is perhaps not suitable for a wider audience. This book is not easily accessible to one outside the research area. There are an increasing number of titles introductory to the research area [1,2], however it is difficult to compare them.