Module 0 — Setup

Let’s get your tools ready so you can learn smoothly and share your work.

Step A

Create GitHub

Make an account and enable 2FA for security.

Step B

Fork the course

You’ll work in your own copy and submit changes via PR.

Step C

Learner Card

Add a short intro page under docs/learners/.

A Summer Story: Maps, Pulses, and “Whoa!”

You push open the lab door and see a glowing 3D brain on screen—smooth folds, crisp shadows.

Structural MRI with fMRI overlay and tES/TMS concept

Figure 1. Structural MRI (the map) with an fMRI overlay (activity patterns). Right side, two types of noninvasive brain stimulation: Transcranial magnetic (TMS) and electrical (tES) stimulation.

“Structural MRI,” someone says. “It’s the map.” You scroll through slices like pages in a book—top to bottom, left to right—and suddenly anatomy feels navigable.

Next comes a color overlay: fMRI. Warm reds bloom over cortex during a simple task. “These aren’t thoughts,” your mentor smiles, “they’re oxygen changes when networks work.”

By week two, you’re planning tDCS like a flight path—electrode positions, currents, and safety rules—then visualizing how the electric field spreads across a head model. No sparks, no sci-fi—just careful parameters and good questions.

Finally: TMS. You hear the coil’s click, see a crosshair on the brain map, and watch how precise targeting works. It’s methodical and surprisingly beautiful: maps, models, and measurable effects.

On demo day, your team presents a clean figure that tells a tiny, true story about the brain. You came for a summer program. You leave speaking “brain maps.” 🧠✨

What you need
  • A computer with a modern browser (Chrome/Edge/Safari)
  • An email address (for your GitHub account)
  • No installs required—we’ll use the GitHub website
Step 1 — Create (or sign in to) a GitHub account
  1. Go to github.com → Sign up (or Sign in).
  2. Set your display name and add a friendly profile picture.
  3. (Recommended) Turn on 2-factor authentication: Settings → Password and authentication → Enable 2FA.
Step 2 — Fork this course repository
  1. Open the course repo in your browser (the link your mentor provided).
  2. Click Fork (top right). This makes your copy under your account.
You’ll do your work in your fork and submit it back via a Pull Request.
Step 3 — Add a “Learner Card” via the web editor

We’ll add a tiny Markdown page with your info.

  1. In your fork, open: docs/ → learners/ (create it if missing).
  2. Add a new file: Add file → Create new file.
  3. Name it exactly: docs/learners/<your-github-username>.md
    Example: docs/learners/brainstudent123.md
  4. Paste and fill this template:
---
title: Learner Card — <Your Name>
layout: default
---

# Hi, I’m <Your Name> 👋

- **School / Grade:** <e.g., Central HS, Grade 11>
- **Why I’m here:** <one or two sentences>
- **Interests:** <e.g., neuroscience, coding, design, sports>
- **Fun fact:** <optional>

_I agree to be kind, curious, and careful with data._

At the bottom, choose Create a new branch → name it module0-<your-username> → Propose changes.

Step 4 — Open a Pull Request (PR)
  1. After proposing changes, click Compare & pull request.
  2. Title your PR: [M0] Add learner card for <your-username>.
  3. In the PR description, include a one-sentence summary and this checklist:
- [ ] I created/updated my GitHub account
- [ ] I added docs/learners/<my-username>.md
- [ ] I opened a PR for Module 0

Your mentor will review and leave comments. You’ll make edits until it’s approved and merged.

Step 5 — Say hello (Issues)
  1. Go to the Issues tab (in your fork or the main course repo—follow mentor preference).
  2. Click New issue and title it: [M0] Hello from <your-username>.
  3. Write 1–2 sentences about what you hope to learn. Submit.
(Optional) Enable Pages on your fork
  1. In your fork, go to Settings → Pages.
  2. Source: Deploy from a branch.
  3. Branch: main, Folder: /docs → Save.
  4. Your site: https://<your-username>.github.io/<your-fork-name>/
What to turn in (Module 0) + Rubric

Turn in:

  • A Pull Request that adds docs/learners/<your-username>.md with the template filled in.
  • A “Hello” Issue titled [M0] Hello from <your-username>.

Rubric:

  • Complete (✓) — Learner card via PR (correct path/name), intro filled, PR opened, and hello Issue posted.
  • Needs revision (△) — Missing path/PR, or template incomplete.
  • Try again (✗) — No PR and no Issue.

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