(NOTE to reader: An edited version of this article was first published in the newsletter What We Now Know, see www.caseyresearch.com, in September, 2004

MIND OVER MATTER (AT LAST)
By Michael Ricciardi

Successful experiments on monkeys with 'neural implants' showed that the primates could learn to control a screen cursor and robotic arm with only their thoughts. Experiments with human subjects are currently underway.

The day when humans will be able to control a computer or robot by just thinking is not far off. Monkeys are already doing it!

In October of 2003, researchers at Duke University trained rhesus monkeys to manipulate a computer screen cursor, and later, a robotic arm, by first using a joystick wired to a computer. The monkeys received a reward of juice for moving the cursor correctly. A 'microwire' probe implanted in the monkey's brains monitored the patterns of neural impulses in the monkey's motor cortex--the region of our outer brains responsible for muscle movement and control. The patterns were then matched with their corresponding motor action, such as grasping, pushing, or pulling in a certain direction, and these were programmed into the system. Later, the joystick was taken away. The monkeys at first continued to perform grasping movements with their hands as the system transferred joystick control to its own brain-monitoring program. What followed, according to lead researcher Dr. Miguel Nicolelis, was "an incredible moment" in the course of this training when the monkeys realized that they could move the cursor on the screen simply by thinking.

A robotic 'arm' was later substituted for the screen cursor. This robot was designed to execute more complex grasping and reaching movements. It took two days for the monkeys to master effective control over the robotic arm--not much different than any human learning to use a new tool or skill. Learning to use a new tool takes considerable time, as the brain must assimilate the tool's mechanical properties into its motor 'neuronal space'. At the end of the training, the monkeys seemed to have thoroughly assimilated control of the robotic arm, that is, they acted as if it were their own limb performing the actions, no different than when we perform any number of hand and arm movements. "As we develop new tools, we reshape out brains", says Dr. Nicolelis.

Its all an ingenious bit of technological 'mind-reading' that holds quite real and practical application possibilities for completely paralyzed patients, as well as those with Lou Gehrig's disease, spinal cord injuries, and prosthetic limbs.

Indeed, the success of the Duke University monkey experiments has inspired a Massachusetts company called Cyberkinetics Inc. to begin experiments with brain implants--called the 'BrainGate System'--in paralyzed humans. The trials, which commenced in May of 2004 with FDA approval, hope to make thought-controlled computers a practical reality for a spectrum of disabled people.

Implants in the brains of Parkinson's patients that deliver electrical impulses to reduce tremors and rigidity have been in use for many years. The BrainGate implants, however, do not provide current, but instead continuously monitor the patient's motor cortex regions to detect brain activity associated with physical movement. The challenge, of course, is that paralyzed patients cannot move their limbs (like the monkeys could) and so must visualize the desired motion based upon memory.

Despite the revolutionary promise of these experiments, there are a few critics. Such an invasive procedure (implanting a chip in a patients brain) is not necessary, they say, and there are other technologies, such as speech recognition and computer mouse 'emulators' (which convert eye/head movement into computer commands), which can work fine in most cases. Further, these latter technologies do not pose a risk of dislocation (of the implant), scarring (of tissue),  or infection. Adding additional support to the non-invasive camp is the electro-encephalography system developed by Dr. Jonathan R. Wolpaw, which detects brain waves via sensors attached to the scalp. Unique brain waves associated with a particular movement can still be discerned this way, obviating the need for implants and wires sticking out of the brain. 

But doctors Gerhard Friehs and John P. Donoghue, co-founders of Cyberkinetics Inc., assert that these risks have been successfully dealt with in the monkey experiments and that their system will perform better than previously tested systems. According to the company's researchers, external sensor devices do not detect signals as clearly as electrode implants. Further, the BrainGate microchip has one hundred electrodes--allowing for more precise information collecting, and presumably, more dynamic 'thought control'. 

Critics have also noted that the selected paralyzed subjects will also be required to speak--an ability that provides other options for computer control (such as interactive voice recognition). But the Cyberkinetics team asserts that using patients who can give verbal feedback will aid the development of the device, since doctors will know what the patient was imagining when the system works, or doesn't work. They also believe that their system will be faster than any previous ones--enabling someone to 'type' up to thirty words per minute--which is comparable to most peoples' email typing speed.

The brain implant camp also asserts that achieving advanced control--the ability to direct or control three-dimensional movements (such as with a robotic prosthesis), is too complex a skill to do without brain implantation.

Other researcher's have developed and are testing similar devices. One unique device, created by Dr. Philip Kennedy of Neural Signals Inc., eliminates the risk of infection all together. Unlike previous and current 'hard-wired' experiments (which leave a wire sticking out of the subject's brain), Dr. Kennedy's device is wireless. Neural firing patterns are relayed via radio signals to the computer control system, similar to how a wi-fi card allows your laptop to access the Internet. Perhaps unintentionally, this feature also makes the paranormal effect of 'thought control' more real, more dramatic.

Looking beyond these important, therapeutic applications, many technology observers foresee the inevitable convergence of brain implants and wi-fi communications--with perhaps even a collaboration between Cyberkinetics Inc. and Neural Signals Inc.--permitting a true revolution in thought-controlled machines. 

Further Reading: 'Neural Control of Movement' <http://www.plos.org/news/pr_2003_pbio.html>

Michael Ricciardi
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