This is an excellent demonstration of the steady advance towards brain-controlled devices. But keep in mind that the robotic arm here is not really the point. It could just as easily be a computer game, a record in a database, or just a simple on/off switch. The robotic arm gives the story national interest, however, due to its innate drama. "Wow! Robotic arms controlled by monkey brains!"
I don't mean to belittle this advance, by the way. Except for the ethical issues of opening up the brains of monkeys and inserting electrode sensors as part of a robotics experiment, this is noble stuff. The interesting part is, really, that scientists have managed to "decode" brain impulses and convert them into something useful. Or perhaps the monkey had to learn how to control the arm by rewiring his own brain neurons -- similar to the way a stroke victim might need to relearn how to tie his own shoes.
The implications are enormous: brain-controlled computers, brain-controlled surgical instruments, brain-controlled military machines, biofeedback learning systems, and so on. This technology, when advanced enough, will eliminate the clunky interface that now exists between humans and computers: peoples' fingers.
That's right: fingers are a poor way to get your point across to a computer. What if you could just THINK the words instead of typing them? What if you could just move the mouse with brain power alone?
These are the important questions, because once this technology is mature, you can attach anything to it you want: a robotic arm, a car factory
machine, a medical laser, a virtual world, you name it.
About the author: Mike Adams is an award-winning journalist and holistic nutritionist with a passion for sharing empowering information to help improve personal and planetary health He is a prolific writer and has published thousands of articles, interviews, reports and consumer guides, and he has created several downloadable courses on survival and preparedness, including his widely-downloaded course on personal safety and self-defense. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2010, Adams created TV.NaturalNews.com, a natural living video sharing site featuring thousands of user videos on foods, fitness, green living and more. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also a noted technology pioneer and founded a software company in 1993 that developed the HTML email newsletter software currently powering the NaturalNews subscriptions. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and pursues hobbies such as martial arts, Capoeira, nature macrophotography and organic gardening. He's also author of numerous health books published by Truth Publishing and is the creator of several consumer-oriented grassroots campaigns, including the Spam. Don't Buy It! campaign, and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. He also created the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the ending of corporate control over medicines, genes and seeds. Known on the 'net as 'the Health Ranger,' Adams shares his ethics, mission statements and personal health statistics at www.HealthRanger.org
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Monday, October 13, 2003
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