While we are not ready for the Vulcan Mind Meld (yet), researchers are already making great leaps in brain-to-computer interfaces. Now scientists are beginning to play with brain-to-brain communications. Recent experiments include:
- fitting a human with an EEG cap that sends signals to a rat’s brain, stimulating it to move its tail (Harvard University)
- a video game that can only be played by two neurologically linked players–one who can see the game screen and, by thinking really hard, “tells” the other, holding the game controller, to push a button (University of Washington)
And in the future? Perhaps technology that enables people without speech to transmit thoughts and feelings directly to the minds of other people. Or, brain-to-brain training from someone who has already mastered a skill.
Your Futurist Friday assignment: watch this video [5 min 11 sec] to find out more about the technology behind this evolving technology, and think about some of the questions posed by the narrator (Jonathon Strickland): How would you use brain-to-brain communication? What would art look like in a future in which we communicate directly with our brains?
If you enjoyed this video is from fwthinking, I recommend their website (where you can find more videos) and blog, You can also follow them on Twitter @fwthinking
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