Intel wants a chip implant in your brain
November 23, 2009 by Lin Edwards
(PhysOrg.com) -- Computer chip maker Intel wants to implant a brain-sensing chip directly into the brains of its customers to allow them to operate computers and other devices without moving a muscle.
Intel believes its customers would be willing to have a chip implanted in their brains so they could operate computers without the need for a keyboard or mouse using thoughts alone. The implant could also be used to operate devices such as cell phones, TVs and DVDs.
The chip is being developed at Intel's laboratory in Pittsburgh, USA. It would sense brain activity using technology based on FMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging). The brain sensing chips are not yet available, but Intel research scientist Dean Pomerleau thinks they are close.
Theoretically, different people thinking of the same word or image would have the same activity in their brains, but since no one really knows exactly how the brain works, this is not certain. Pomerleau and his team have used FMRI to scan the brains of volunteers to see if brain patterns match when they are thinking of similar things, and so far the results look promising.
Pomerleau said that with human beings and machines converging in many ways, people will want to give up the need for an interface such as a keyboard, mouse or remote control and operate the devices using their brain waves. Pomerleau believes that some time within the next decade or so people will be "more committed" to the idea of the brain implants.
Pomerleau said a headset incorporating brain sensing technology to operate a computer is close, and the next step is to develop the tiny brain implant, which would be much less cumbersome for the user.
Associate Professor Charles Higgins of the University of Arizona predicts people will be using hybrid computers using a combination of living tissue and technology within 10 to 15 years. Researchers at his University have successfully built a robot guided by the eyes and brain of a moth. Researchers with Toyota are also working in the area, have developed a wheelchair controlled by brain waves.
While it seems unlikely many people would volunteer for the Intel chip implant at present, it could have applications for people who are unable to move, such as quadriplegics.
© 2009 PhysOrg.com
1hour ago
The following line is "But it's all right Ma; it's life and life only."
First, to be clear, I don't think it's a bad idea. It has many positve applications from the therapuetic, to exploring the intellect of other species, to finally making torture obsolete.
But, it takes very little imagination to see the vast potential for abuse. And as mvg said "on so many levels."
I for one intend to preserve my full freedom of thought. In fact, it seems time that we initiate a Constitutional amendment that preserves it for all of us. It is worth bearing in mind as we face this new technological frontier that this freedom is not currently gauanteed.
And Intel, please be careful. If you have it, others will definitely want it. And judging from what I read in the news, they may not play nice.
Take care.
Seriously, do they really think that you get the implant once, and you're good? Shouldn't it be obvious that (especially this being a new area) implants will improve every year, and you need the last version to get the most functionality?
Their mistake is to think of the implant as a keyboard or a mouse, which have been essentially the same since their inception. Rather, the implant is like the mobile phone, or a game console. New models coming out every year with new functionality, and applications popping up demanding even more functionality.
A dead-end, if I ever saw one. In the meantime, I'd expect Apple or Creative to develop that functionality into mp3 earphones. Then you could upgrade every year, try out your friend's newer earphones -- all without the risk of MRSA infection at installation.
With this, Intel looks like a Dinosaur facing extinction.
And if you fall behind on your payments, they have ways of making you pay.
The choice will be yours.
Then we will all be on Facebook ALL THE TIME! Even in our dreams. :-)
Just think what it could do for FPS games, though! Virtual reality, even. =)
They are likely talking about the premises that fMRI is based on, i.e. the BOLD effect. The BOLD effect is an increase in blood flow in response to an area of your brain having more neural activations. This would be difficult, but not impossible to detect with a chip or chips implanted close to the region(s) of interest.
What they don't mention is the big time-delay problem: the BOLD effect only occurs ~6 seconds after your neurons fire! This means that EVERY action would be so slow, no one would want it. So, the technology would have to be based on EEG technology, not fMRI. This is not only faster (almost instantaneous), but more easily done because EEG relies on electricity. Then the only problem would be getting the signal to the computer...
Still not sold on putting one in *my* brain, but it's totally doable.
getting electric signals directly from neurons seems much more realistic to me. till now most experiments (monkey / moth controlling a robot) work on this base. on eeg relies that charming orange mind-set, doesn't it?
in all cases, the devices measure impulses emitted by the brain. for fmri, the device itself emits some strong magnetic field (or pulses) and measures echoes. basically.
besides, scanning is done slice-wise (though I know that fMRI collect in fact volume data; slicing is done in a post-processing phase, because doctors can read only 2D sections of the brain).
i see collecting such data from a single point as quite challenging. instead of a many parallel "sightings" of the brain, there will be a sheaf of "line-views", pointing to the chip.
anyway, what they propose is a one-way communication. looking forward for ideas on two-way comm. :D
Implanting something inside brain can lead to cancer, madness and eventually to death!
but, you know, there's another phenomenon that can lead to cancer, madness and eventually to death: life.
Trojan.
Anyone heard about the zombie legions of computers in the internet , awaiting a remote signal to perform DOS attacks on websites and such? Well , that put the fear of god in any soul.
I didn't realize God was doing all that. What a jerk.
These chips won't be directly altering thoughts anytime soon. All they can do for now is basically make crude judgments of what the user wants to do based on patterns of electrical activity. It's more a sensor that the *user* learns to talk to.
So for those people who are always looking for an argument: is this MORE or LESS ethical than using stem cells to repair the spinal cord?
I guess im the one to point out that we only have the freedom to think about that we are offered, from news and the media to what our self-perceptions lead us to on the internet. There is already very little on our minds that hasnt been put there by intent. What difference does the interface make? I'm tired of earbuds- I want cochlear implants along with visual input via contacts or direct visual cortex stimulation. AND I want a pleasure center feed because im, you know, a little depressed. I think the healthcare bill should include provisions for these things. They should be available to everybody.
It was a form of speech , not intended to imply that any supposed divinity could take over.
Nothing like broadcasting your thoughts when that sexy blond walks past your station and glances at the screen.
Once implanted you can't turn it off.
If the only goal is remote control of devices are medical implants even necessary? If a toy can do it using passively snooped EM (Tempest for the mind?) why can't the same method be improved and perfected by a serious organization with a lot of R&D to throw at the problem?
The number of people willing to use such an interface would obviously be quite a bit higher than if surgical procedures are required.
Now in the distant future having data INPUT into the brain from a remote source in a more effective manner than a TV screen may require such interface technologies. Needless to say noone is anywhere near the capability where they could even approach such feats.
A thought, does the chip work both ways? if so then close range telepathy is possible.
Also, what happens when a nearby lightning strike or a voltage spike trashes your comp, does it trash you too?
One concern I see repeated here in the comments is that of exposure to disease from replacement implants, and this is a valid concern. However, I feel the readers are thinking inside the box. =)
Consider an implant the user can "feel" in order to be able to "talk" to it. The researchers at Intel theorize that everyone should have mostly the same electro-chemical experience from which the device could glean the user's intent. What if, instead, the device is programmable by the user? For example, I want my implant to be able to turn on/off the lights in my house (which have been wired to a signal receiver for thsi device). First, I prime the device to "Lights on/off", then I calibrate the signal to, for example, the electro-chemical impulse associated with me jumping straight up from a standing position. Now, I can turn the lights on by concentrating on a "jump" or whatever action I have set the device to recognize for that action.
Just imagine a world where people have mind-over-matter ability; walk into your home, the lights come on, the air conditioning is set to a comfortable level, you turn on the television and flip through the channels, place an order with your local pizza delivery and send a telepathic message to your friend asking if he's watching the game... all just by using your mind. It will be so ubiquitous that a hypothetical alien visitor would think you command some kind of "magic".
If any replacement of chips is required, it would be to extend the signal range.
But if you can do that then you could image the PC screen too!
Loss of profits there, can't see that happening in a hurry.
This kind of procedure places most of the danger in the skull cap IT. Eventually, no invasive techniques would be needed to lay the infrastructure. Swallowing the appropriate nanobot pill would suffice.
Skullcaps and shaved heads.
I have never met anyone who owns a quantum computer, Doh, I am not sure if one will fit inside my head as I usually keep my brain there.
So I'll pass on this one and stick with the 'traditional' input/output features I'm born with.
I'm not sticking anything in my brain I don't have full control over. Seeing that I don't even fully understand how a chip in my computer works I can't see how I'll feel safe with one of those things sticking in my gray/white matter
As a writer, this would be an enormous boon to output. Even if in parrallel it did nothing more than proofread!!
And the increased calories usage would help with weight control. :-)
Resistance is futile! :-)
This is really neat stuff, I know soooooo many people who'd claim this to be the Mark of the Beast :P
For standard applications this might be OK (e.g. helping a debilitated person regain an ability. The load of that ability will not increase over time and thus not necessitate an upgrade)...but for 'fun' applications? I doubt that anyone who thinks about this for a few seconds would go for it.
You don't even know what you are eating. Read one book "Brave New World".