The development of perception, cognition and action and the development of the brain are intricately interwoven. In order to gain a more complete understanding of development we measure neural activity of infants as they observe or interact with their surroundings.

One method of investigating the developing brain involves record the amount of oxygen in the blood within the cortex. The amount of oxygen in an area of the brain is informative of the activation within that area. In order to accomplish this, a small amount of near infrared light is applied to the head and the reflection of this light is analyzed. The method is completely non-invasive and salient. In addition, participants can move during the recording, making this brain measuring technique a promising tool for baby reach.