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<< Tighter Borders- More Undocumented Stay | Main | Union Democracy in Carpenters >> October 13, 2003The Next InternetThis could be the next technology breakthrough with the equivalent social impact of the Internet: Monkeys can control a robot arm as naturally as their own limbs using only brain signals, a pioneering experiment has shown. The macaque monkeys could reach and grasp with the same precision as their own hand.The most immediate impact will be to give the disabled control of artifical limbs with much of the seamlessness they would have from natural body parts. But the possibilities beyond that are unimaginable. De facto, people could be given the equivalent of additional arms to coordinate multiple tasks that they could never have done before. Or combine this mental manipulation of objects with a computer interface and suddenly "virtual" action could be as seemless as day-to-day manipulation. Imagine if that computer interface is wired directly to the brain and both perception and action could completely bypass the physical body-- shades of The Matrix. Posted by Nathan at October 13, 2003 02:34 PM Related posts:
Trackback PingsTrackBack URL for this entry: CommentsAs I recall, the research funding for this is coming from DARPA. Posted by: Benedict@Large at October 14, 2003 02:28 AM Arnold gets elected, then a few days later they announce that monkeys can move robot arms with their minds. Coincidence? I think not. If Arnold's budget includes money for Skynet, it's time to get worried... Posted by: RAS at October 14, 2003 08:31 AM The relevant movie tie-in is to the fifties sci-fi classic FORBIDDEN PLANET. Remember that the planet had previously been inhabited by a highly advanced race known as the Kral. The Kral had developed a means of controlling technology by thought alone, allowing them to live as gods who could create anything they desired by simply imagining it. Unfortunately, the Kral were destoyed by "monsters from the id" when their subconscious hatreds turned into reality. Posted by: wvmcl at October 14, 2003 02:44 PM Perhaps the result of additional artificial limbs and thought-controlled virtual reality would be that people would simply become more confused than they already are. Posted by: John c. halasz at October 15, 2003 04:44 PM Post a comment
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