The Internet Meets the Neural Net

orangesquid writes "OpenEEG is a system for getting data from your brain to your computer. Recently, work was resumed on scEEG, a soundcard-based system which may one day make home EEG systems very cheap (they currently cost a few hundred US$ to put together; there are, though, some potential cheaper alternatives). But, what research is being done into getting data from your computer to your brain? There have been some systems that inject optical signals into your eyes, but, what about direct neural interfacing? It seems EMF and light are one option; playing with neurotransmitters may be another. What do /.'ers foresee coming in this field? What research have you seen being done? Particularly, is any of this to the point where homemade, low-cost systems are feasible? Where can I find out how to inject signals into my head? Combining this with openEEG might lead to some exciting new levels of Internet addiction."

Comments

Excellent

[Anonymous Coward]

The sooner I can get that Google extension for my brain, the better.

Critical that it stays Open Source

[mfh]

Gaming will benefit from this technology -- that much is true. But what else is true is that the use of brainwaves in an Open Source setting will help us all to better understand the vulnerabilities of our brains over time (and there are likely plenty). Technology can therefore be developed to ensure our safety, without any future Dieboldesque security/functionality problems. Not to mention what we can learn about piles of different minds, perhaps even working together in unison.

While gaming will prosper from this tech, it's important to note that gaming will also lead this technology further than any other field, because of the fierce competition in the global gaming market. The rest of the world is going to play catch-up to gamers.

Controlling rendered environs in space using our brain, must be the first step towards perfecting the human-computer links we'll need to explore the deepest parts of space. I believe that Einstein predicted that we will need to eventually embrace a future where computers and human beings coexist and evolve together (and we're already doing that), but what Alan Watts, the famed Buddhist, said was that we should be utilizing the systems at our disposal to make our lives easier. Watts said that fears be damned -- we must find a way to free every human being from the slavery of the 9-5 grind. Don't think Watts was a fringe guy -- he was very insightful and grounded. If you haven't read anything by him, I suggest picking up

This kind of technology, if kept in the Open Source realm, can lead to greatness, in time.

Re:Critical that it stays Open Source

[cujo_1111]

While gaming will prosper from this tech, it's important to note that gaming will also lead this technology further than any other field, because of the fierce competition in the global gaming market. The rest of the world is going to play catch-up to gamers.

On this point, I think you are wrong. Porn will lead the development of this technology whether you like it or not.

Imagine inputting porn signals directly into the brain, you could take porn from being an audio and visual experience into a full body experience. The possibilities are enormous (hopefully).

Just like the porn industry took up online credit card transactions faster than anyone else, the porn industry will lead the way in this field too.

Re:Critical that it stays Open Source

[alienw]

Whatever. As someone who has some experience with neurobiology, it is very unlikely you can actually get anything useful from EEG signals. They are totally useless for exploring the brain's functions. Sorry to burst your bubble, but even microelectrode arrays implanted directly into the brain don't provide anything too interesting. At best, you might see a different firing pattern based on external stimulus, and even that is rare.

Re:Critical that it stays Open Source

[natrik]

Early tests with monkeys indicate great progress in controlling a robotic arm with a monkey.

The monkey is in a room looking at a screen, and thinks ... the picture on the screen changes position according to the monkey's mind. A robotic arm is also controlled, and the screen and arm basically do the same things as a result of the monkey "wanting" it to. ... and that's just a monkey!

Google it: robot arm monkey brain

Risky?

[usefool]

...homemade, low-cost systems are feasible? Where can I find out how to inject signals into my head?

Homemade, low-cost, inject signals into my head... For some reasons I don't think this is one place for DIY :)

chips on baby's brains

[flechette_indigo]

New braincells are total wildcards. They can be used for anything. Put a grid of wires over a 1000X1000 patch of neurons shortly after birth. Use the grid for io, teaching the baby to use the interface. Viola, a computer finger.

Re:chips on baby's brains

[randyest]

Sounds cool. Why don't you test it on your kid? Let us know how it works out.

Re:chips on baby's brains

[bigsteve@dstc]

Viola, a computer finger.

Bzzzt. A viola is a musical instrument. Thanks for playing.

hmm

[uprightcitizen]

What do /.'ers foresee coming in this field?

Porn. I foresee lots and lots of porn in the field.

Not to be argumentitive...

[merikus]

...but does anyone else find this to be creepy? I like having a physical separation between me and my net connection. If we had direct brain interface, could you imagine what the script kiddies would come up with? You'd open an e-mail attachment by mistake, and end up poking yourself in the eye for hours...

Isn't it obvious

[fireman sam]

"But, what research is being done into getting data from your computer to your brain?..."

Duh, a monitor!

"getting data from your brain to your computer."

Damn, that is a tough one? How about a keyboard.

btw, I'm *trying* to be funny.

You'll need a good firewall

[SteamyMobile]

MindGuard provides pyschotronic mind-control protection and runs on Linux. Try it, you'll see how well it works.

DIY neural interface

[Mr. Roadkill]

what about direct neural interfacing?

Parts/Tools Required:

Dremel with bone drill bit

Heat shrink tubing

13 Acupuncture Needles

Hookup wire

soldering iron

DB25 cable,

DB25 breakout box

9V battery

an observer.

Difficulty: Intermediate/Suicidal

Procedure:

Drill holes at various spots on your head. Solder hookup wire to non-pointy ends of sufficient acupuncture needles, and use heatshrink tubing to cover almost all of the needles, leaving only 1mm uncovered at the pointy end. Using the 9V battery, and a return path via somehwere convenient and moist (I suggest your anus, what's a little more humiliation if you've gotten this far?) test your response to electic stimulation at various holes and depths. This is where the observer comes in handy, as you might be in no fit state to write down your observation, or even disconnect the current. Once you've found a useful set of needle positions, wire them up to your breakout box and plug it in to your printer port. Write software to apply a signal to each needle under various conditions.

You could interface it with remote monitoring software, and a complete loss of bowel and bladder control could be used to indicate that a Windows machine on your network has crashed. Aphasia could be used to signify a loss of internet connectivity. And a throbbing erection could be used to signify yet another V1@gr@ spam in your inbox. Remember, you're limited only by your imagination and the rate at which infection sets in!

Re:DIY neural interface

[K-Man]

You may laugh, but this isn't far from the procedure used to get high-quality EEG data. The stuff you get from outside the skull is generally junk.

Researchers used to piggyback on severe epilepsy patients, whose condition had gotten so bad as to require surgery to remove or alter parts of the brain that triggered the seizures. This operation required a bit of reconaissance to find the offending grey matter, so a craniotomy (skylight in the cranium) was standard diagnostic procedure, and the operation usually had a few extra minutes for experimental measurements.

Some of the more advanced people used to insert probes all the way into the brain to trigger the seizures; the whole process was guided by EEG's to gradually refine the location of the source.

One of my programs was set up to take EEG's from an 8x8 electrode array, which was laid upon the brain after the skull and membrane were removed. I almost got to attend one such procedure live, but I was scratched from the roster at the last minute - that's a lesson as to why software shouldn't be too reliable.

As far as using a soundcard, I'm not surprised at all. A soundcard is basically a two-channel A/D converter. You need a lot more channels to compete nowadays, but for the price, you can't beat the commodity hardware. The only additional hardware you need is a bank of preamps, and possibly a clock/timer board to make sure the sampling is precise. And, of course, a drill.

The dangers of technology?

[MachDelta]

...post your thoughts automatically...

Man, who is this tool and what the hell is he talking about? Slashdot always seems to attract such weirdos.

Oh, shit! Boss looked at me. I hope he doesn't know i'm on slashdot right now... eye contact... polite smile... nod at the projector image... and.... quickly write something on your paper:

"Joe. Is. A. Wanker."

Hah, that ought to fool him. Stupid bastard. "Oh i'm sorry, but we just don't have the budget to increase staff salaries right now." Dick. Here he drives around in a fucking Lexus, and i've got a 20 year old car thats about to rust itself out of existance. What a load of crap.

I should reala... ahh.... ahhh... oh no! I think i'm gonna sneeze! Hold it in, hold it in! Ahhh...!

{CONNECTION INTERRUPTED}
...
{CONNECTION REESTABLISHED}

Shit! Now *everyone* is looking at me, even that cute girl from region...

Ok, they all looked away. Good.

Man she has a nice rack. I'd like to get my hands on -- CRAP! She saw me! Oh fuck, I hope she doesn't know I was looking at her chest...

Waitasec, did she just smile at me? Hot damn, I think she did!

I hope that was a "Hi there" kind of smile and not a "You have snot all over your face" kind of smile though. I don't feel anything, but maybe i'd better check... got to be discreet here... rub my chin... aaannnd... clean! Whew, close one.

SHIT! She looked at me again! Look away, look away! Act uninterested you fool! You... OH YOU IDIOT YOU LOOKED AGAIN!! Goddamnit, now she probably thinks i'm a weirdo stalker or something...

*Sigh* Back to browsing on slashdot.

Waitasec, whats all this text? Is this thing on?!?

{CONNECTION CLOSED}

Information Injection

[cr0sh]

Getting information out of the brain is going to be difficult at best - as others have noted, it is a very noisy output on the best of days. Filtering the noise, etc - tough, though not impossible to do. What is difficult is analysing the results (the brainwave plots). I remember an old Steve Ciarcia Workshop column or book (late 70's - early 80's) that detailed building your own EEG machine using cheap high-gain op-amps (designed for this work, with isolation and such - when you are dealing with electricity around the brain, you need safety above all else) - I can't remember, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if he didn't show how to interface it with an S-100 bus computer...

Now, getting data into the brain, that would be easier. We have two main, "high bandwidth" conduits for input; the eyes and the ears. First off - look up "brainwave stimulation", "light and sound", etc - here's a few links:

Hack Canada's Brain-Wave Machine
Futuremind Light & Sound
Neural Signals, Inc

There are other projects out there as well - just google, and you will find them.

Also - look into "Neurophone" and "Voice to Skull" technologies - these use two systems: ultrasound and microwave. Of the two, microwave seems to offer direct neuron stimulation. Basically, on both systems, a carrier wave is set up and voice is FM modulated on top of the carrier wave. The signal is beamed to the subjects head. In the ultrasound version, the skull filters out the carrier wave, leaving the original signal, and bone conduction allows the subject to "hear" the original sound. In the microwave system, the brain itself does the filtering, and the brain then reconstructs the sound. Both systems suffer from major drawbacks in sound quality. Both versions are patented. NASA at one time was interested in the research. Basically, to the subject, it sounds like voices are speaking in their heads - and in the case of microwaves being used as the transmission medium (the research originally started when radar and microwave technicians reported hearing "clicking" type noise whenever they worked on live equipment), it makes you wonder about wearing tinfoil hats (hmmm). I know that the ultrasound version has recently been used as a testbed for "beaming" custom music or advertisements to people on an individual basis - I know /. stories have reported on this in the past (heck, you will find my comments in them on voice to skull).

Anyhow - once you have a couple of ways to get data into the eyes and ears (and/or vestibular system) - and note, a good quality HMD could be used as a light/sound device - you then can play. I can see using the sound part to play music, and underneath the music have the sound binaural beat doing the brain-wave thing (basically, what you do is inject two different audio signals into the ears - say the left at 30 Hz, and the right at 36 Hz - which will yield a "beat tone" of around 6 Hz, which will make you drowsy, etc). Get the sound going, and sync up the eyes in a similar matter, to the sound. Maybe monitor (via IR leds and a camera) the eyes, see what they do, and if you can tell when you are in the meditative state - then alter the sound and/or visuals to force something different (say, ramp slowly from 10 Hz to 6 Hz - then hold at 6, then ramp quickly up to 7-8 Hz, injecting crazy patterns into the eyes - if using an HMD, maybe something like a visualization hack).

Another thing or possibility would be the idea of computer controlled or directed lucid dreaming, via a brain-wave system - imagine donning the goggles and headphones, lying back, listening to a relaxing audio CD as the computer drops you down to a lucid dreaming state, then starts putting suggestions into your ears and eyes, suggesting and guiding a lucid dream (perhaps the computer could also monitor breathing rate, skin conductivity, etc - to help control the "dream")...

Fascinating thoughts and ideas...

Re:Cluster

[xp]

Great. Now I'll need an anti-virus patch for my brain.
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