Foreword
The International Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) Meeting Series occupies a unique place among conferences for BCI research by bringing together researchers and stakeholders from diverse disciplines. Neurologists, computer scientists, rehabilitation engineers, physicians, sensor engineers, psychologists, speech-language pathologists, ethicists, and actual BCI users are all active participants in the BCI Meeting Series. Further, the inclusive, retreat-like atmosphere of the BCI Meeting Series provides extensive opportunities for interaction anddevelopment of collaborations.Growing interest expressed in discussions over the course of the BCI Meeting Series (1999, 2002, 2005, 2010, and 2013) led to the establishment of the BCI Society in 2015. The purpose of this international society (http://bcisociety.org/) is “to foster research and development leading to technologies that enable people to interact with the world through brain signals.” To further this purpose, the BCI Society is organizing the SixthInternational BCI Meeting from May 30th– June 3rd, 2016 at the Asilomar Conference Grounds in Pacific Grove, California, United States. The 2016 BCI meeting has a theme of BCI: Past, Present, and Future. The diversity of BCI researchers represented in the planning of the 2016 BCI meeting has resulted in a vibrant, exciting Meeting with more collaborative, interactive activities and increased involvement from the many sectors that make up BCI research.The papers in these Proceedings show the diversity of applications for which BCIs are developed and the diversity of data and analyses that contribute to progress in BCI research and the development of BCI products. Intended applications for people with impairments include control of assistive devices, communication, and therapeutic effects for rehabilitation. Applications also extend beyond user groups of people with physical impairments. BCIs are being used for basic research to discover more about brain function, neural feedback and brain-training, and a variety of entertainment applications, both for people with impairments and for the general population.Together, the 2016 BCI Meeting and its Proceedings represent the breadth of BCI research and help us to build on the rich past of BCI research, leverage the diverse and exciting present, and create a future of BCIs as successful, beneficial tools both for people with disabilities and for the general populace. On behalf of the BCI Society and the Program Committee for the 2016 BCI meeting, I thank you for your interest in the BCI Meeting and hope to see you at this and future installments in the BCI Meeting Series.
