• http://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/~rhodri/aa/aa_topbar.gif

• Summary

The system automates the analysis of neuroimaging data using SPM.

Two versions are available: one for Siemens data (e.g., CBU 3T Tim Trio), SPM 5 and NIFTI; and one for Bruker data (e.g., WBIC Medspec 3T), SPM 2 and Analyze. It is written in Matlab.

• Main Features

• Automatic. Almost completely automatic analysis, currently up to the end of normalisation.

• Flexible control. Users that are new to neuroimaging don't get bombarded with options, but are directed to what is essential, while all other settings take sensible defaults. More experienced users can easily change a range of settings, and advanced users can add or replace modules to the system to change any behaviour

• Restartable. If the users stops the script, or if it crashes (e.g., because of a machine fault, or because the right data aren't there) then when restarted it will begin at the stage where it left off.

• Modular. The system is modular at two levels, to make it easy to switch in or out relevant parts.

• Automatic good citizen behaviour. Field maps and structurals are automatically detected. Structurals are copied to /imaging/local/structurals/cbu automatically by default.

• Easy to maintain. The code components are stored in a central repository (/imaging/local/spm/aa) which means that new components can be made available, or existing ones changed in new releases

• Record keeping. Unlike SPM used from the GUI, the system records exactly which parameters were used, and allows easy recreation of a dataset from the raw data at a later date.

• Simple interface for new modules. It is easy for Matlab programmers to write new modules and incorporate them into the processing stream.