Blog: William McKnight

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Using the brain the control the computer

Tired of having to move that mouse, type on that keyboard, use a pen computer or even speak to operate your computer? How about just think about what you want entered?

Scientists at the New York State Department of Health in Albany, NY have demonstrated a brain-computer interface (BCI) that send signals through electrode-laden caps which interpret the brain's rhythms and can move a computer cursor in any direction.

In "NEUROPROSTHETICS: Brain-Computer Interface Adds a New Dimension" (Link: fee required), Ingrid Wickelgren states "This fall, surgeons implanted 100 electrodes into the brain of a 25-year-old quadriplegic man and connected them to a computer that enables him to check his e-mail and choose a television channel with his thoughts alone. And monkeys with similarly implanted electrodes have used brain signals to move cursors or robotic arms in two dimensions (Science, 24 January 2003, p. 496). Now, in a groundbreaking development, two neuroscientists from the Wadsworth Center, part of the New York State Department of Health in Albany, have shown that similar feats may be possible without the dangers of inserting electrodes into the brain."

The article goes on to list different early-stage possibilities, including operating a wheelchair, chess-playing, moving a computer mouse and moving a limb.

Not only can brain signals could be used to control a computer, but now we learn it can be done without surgically implanting large numbers of tiny electrodes. The detector is called an electroencephalogram or EEG.

The implications are enormous, almost beyond belief, for future generations. Can you imagine business intelligence at the speed of.... thought?!

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