Remote-Controlled Flies

Rollie Hawk writes "This could be a huge development for the ultra-lazy (and ultra-stinky, for that matter). It seems that Yale scientists have managed to engineer a remote control system for flies. According to their study (recently featured in Cell), specific neurons can be stimulated by lasers to control basic functions in fruit flies such as jumping, walking, and flying. The study, of course, was performed with wider ranging applications in mind than bringing new meaning to the saying, "Shew, fly!" The overall goal was to determine whether isolated-neuron stimulation could be used to control basic motor activities and even more complex behavior. Everyone since the days of Mary Shelly has obviously known that there are connections between electrical current and muscle movement. What makes this study unique is that it does not use traditional electrodes, which lack the single-neuron specificity of lasers. Eventually, this could lead to mappings that will give humans knowledge and possibly control over not only complex movements but less-than desirable mental functions such as aggression and overeating."

Comments

Fly Racing

[fembots]

I once saw a fly racing competition where the contestants must get their flies to weave through a course.

They used water pistols filled with fruit juice. Flies' response time was slow but accuracy was extremely high.

To bad for Sony.

[Kaenneth]

They patented doing this with Sound waves instead of Lasers.

Re:To bad for Sony.

[DumbSwede]

Yes, because we would rather have Sony shooting Laser Beams through our heads instead of sound waves...

Re:To bad for Sony.

[NoMoreNicksLeft]

Too bad the universal Sony remote controls almost certainly won't support this either.

Re:To bad for Sony.

[foofoodog]

I thought TV already accomplished all of this.

Oh yeah. Brilliant

[ZorbaTHut]

Like we really need the sharks with frickin' laser beams to be even *more* powerful.

I, for one, welcome our new brain-controlling frickin' laser shark overlords.

(Smooth, guys. Real smooth.)

Groucho had the answer

[Anonymous Coward]

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

Groucho Marx

Re:Groucho had the answer

[Capt'n Hector]

Frog says: Time's fun when you're having flies.

No comment

[bonch]

The scientists involved were unavailable for comment, as they were too busy constructing levels out of Lego blocks and playing them with their new remote-controlled flies in a real-life videogame.

Work has already begun to interface with the flies using an NES controller. "Up-up-down-down-left-rifgt-left-right-B-A-select" makes their wings spin off!" exclaimed one sugar-charged geek.

I read it wrong. I hate when that happens !!

[fodi]

I thought this was going to be a discussion on remote-controlling computer files

gg evil-mart

[ccbutler]

another tool for the corporations to sell their goods and services.

- patron enters store
- patron gets stimulated by a flood of lazers within the store
- patron has the urge to purchase more than what he/she origionaly wanted

this sinister motive is nothing new either, corporations have dumped lots of money in research for these same reasons. I.e. certain fragrences in the air stimulate people to spend money, certain oxygen levels, etc. Ever notice how there is never a clock visable in a department store? The absence of knowing the time makes shoppers less in a hurry to leave.

Re:gg evil-mart

[Eric(b0mb)Dennis]

Eh? I work at k-mart and there's plenty of clocks everywhere.

Did you get the whole oxygen thing from the casino/urban legend?

Re:gg evil-mart

[NanoGator]

"Ever notice how there is never a clock visable in a department store?"

Heh. To be fair, they'd have to go out of their way to install clocks.

Re:gg evil-mart

[nmb3000]

There's a lot of other places you can see this.

I saw a thing on Discovery Channel (I think) that talked about fast food places and what they did to try to get you to buy more and stay in the restaurant for less time.

As to eating more, ever hear of MSG? They call it a "flavor enhancer" but what it really does is make you want to eat more of whatever it's in. KFC was the worst offender in this--their chicken was drenched in the stuff. It's been known for a while that it excites neurons in the brain and is believed by a lot of people to be very unhealthy (like fried chicken is healthy, but wtf).

Also, restaurants don't like it when customers hang out longer than necessary, so they shape their tables/booths to be uncomfortable as well as choose aggravating colors. McDonald's used to use bright yellow and red colors because these were unpleasant to see and made you want to leave sooner (this show claimed anyway). Temperatures were also chosen to be colder in the dining area and warmer in the ordering are (if possible).

I would imagine that any way a company can influence a consumer to their advantage, as long as it's subtle, cheap, and easy they will do it in a heartbeat. This isn't paranoia talking, it's a model of corporate survival in a capitalist environment. It's not really that bad I guess, unless it gets out of hand and becomes potentially dangerous or truly unethical.

Re:gg evil-mart

[MyLongNickName]

Eh? I work at k-mart and there's plenty of clocks everywhere.

Maybe that's why they had to file bankruptcy twice...

Re:gg evil-mart

[G-funk]

No, MSG is simply a "flavour enhancer" that got a bad rap in the 80s because it was over-used and some people are allergic to it. It's like salt. There are certain receptors on your tongue that pick up MSG, just like there are some that detect sweet, sour, bitter, and savoury.

Re:gg evil-mart

[nmb3000]

Interesting. I did a little looking and it appears that what you said is true from most perspectives.

There's still a lot of people who think otherwise though. I wonder why this is still debated a lot? What is there to gain from removing MSG as many seem to want?

The one thing about all those "pro MSG" sites was that they all refer to mono-sodium glutamate as simply "glutamate", saying it's found naturally in proteins and in out bodies. Glutamate is an essential and natural amino acid. That's fine, but is plain old "glutamate" the exact same as MSG? MSG might be based on glutamate, but chemicals can change drastically if you add or remove extra elements. Anyone know more?

Re:gg evil-mart

[gfody]

Read this and look around here

unless you grow your own food, MSG is in just about EVERYTHING you eat. It helps you to be a good consumer. good consumer. goood.

Re:gg evil-mart

[jaoswald]

Except they *also* have to

1) find specific, distinct neurons that cause the behavior they want
2) modify those neurons to respond to ATP

It's not clear at all that there are specific, distinct neurons that cause a consumer to buy an iPod, to pick a random example. Even if there are, it's not at all likely that the same neurons would cause the same response in others, so that the neuron is easy to find.

Flies work in the example because their nervous systems are considerably simpler than ours. The responses the scientists caused in this experiment are very low-level.

Furthermore, to modify the neurons, PharmaCompanyX would have to somehow pass clinical trials proving that their ATP/UV/PVP treatment was safe and effective for treating a disease, where the regulatory agencies are going to have to be convinced that "iPod avoidance" is medical disorder. And, doctors would have to completely abandon their ethical obligations to their patients, and insurance companies or patients would have to be convinced to pay for the medication.

Other than that, it might be conceivable. Hardly "definitely possible."

Fucking moron.

Shocking Inaccuracy

[Doc Ruby]

Since the days of Galvani , the Italian experimenter for whom "galvanic" current is named. Mary Shelly's days started just about when Galvani's ended, as he died in December 1798, while she was born in August 1797. She wrote the story of "Frankenstein's monster", where dead flesh is revived by electricity, during Summer 1816.

Re:Shocking Inaccuracy

[danila]

Obscure scientist? Heck, the whole thing was named after him (galvanism). How is that obscure?

controlling our brains

[sellin'papes]

I wonder what the benefits of artificially overcoming anger and over eating are. These mental functions generally have root causes. To use a form of mind control to subdue those thoughts will be temporary and will make our society dependent on brain lasers to cure our problems. The solution should come from confronting the causes in our personal lives. However, using the lasers to make animals dance could have benefits for all. Flea circus indeed!

Re:controlling our brains

[ihategenetics]

You're entirely missing the point. The "brain lasers" won't work in humans. They're a research tool to help us figure out what the causes of things like aggression and obesity, so we can figure out ways to treat them more effectively.

Regarding aggression and obesity having causes in our personal lives, that's obviously partially true, but that doesn't mean we can't fix them clockwork orange-style. That day will hopefully come soon.

Sweet

[grommet_tdi]

This opens the door to the exciting world of nanotechnology. The number of applications could be limitless, one of which could be the development of tiny flying robots, millions working together to solve complex problems. Of course the military could see immediate benefits, creating swarms of synthetic "cameras", allowing our intelligence agencies access to unprecedented targets of interest. And the risks should be minimal, as these are purely man-made beings with no innate ability to reproduce, mutate, or turn on their creators. I for one cannot wait...sign me up!

zap diet

[Virtual Karma]

Husband: Honey! why are you just eating oatmeal today?
Wife: Thats because my dietitian zapped me with this laser.
Husband: How much did it cost?
Wife: Only $550
Husband: *faints*

I discovered this DECADES ago...

[Anonymous Coward]

...during a Laser Zeppelin show when I took off like a hummingbird. By buddies thought it was the brown acid, but I swore it was the lasers.

the best scientific coverage so far

[ihategenetics]

is here.

Foil hat

[dark_requiem]

So a foil hat will block this out, right guys? Guys? Why are you all advancing on me with weapons? And what's with the glazed look in your eyes? Guys? Really, this isn't funny anymore, get back, I swear to god I'll... *long, terrified scream*...

Yaaay in the future I'll be able to bug anyone

[bacterial_pus]

I want.

This is just the tip of the iceberg

[MCTFB]

Pretty soon science will give us the ability to reprogram specific areas of the human brain and not to much farther down the road you could potentially remap an entire human brain onto a clone "6th Day" style.

But why would you want to even stop there? Why not just create a new host for your consciousness in the form of reprogrammable replicating nanocells that are adverse to many of the inherent problems with cellular life and its fragile DNA?

Even better than that, with this new artificial host created by nanocells, your consciousness could instruct your nanocells to create new limbs or extend your special member to any desired length or girth with just a thought "Spawn" style. You could in effect become anything you wanted to, provided there are safeguards for not corrupting your own neural net accidentally.

Of course these prospects might sound cool now, but even the typical amoral geekified anti-god slashdotter has to wonder if there is such a thing as science going too far when you can reprogram and remote control other organisms (including humans) in such a way that you might as well be playing god yourself.

how it works, briefly

[davi_bock]

The flies have been engineered to express receptors for the neurotransmitter ATP in subpopulations of neurons. (This is the same ATP that is used for energy storage; it also acts as a neurotransmitter in mammals.) They are then injected with a form of ATP that is inactive until it is exposed to ultraviolet light. When the flies are exposed to the UV, the ATP is uncaged, and the selected population of neurons expressing the transgenic receptors is activated.

Also, Carl Zimmer has written an article in the NYTimes on this; here's his blog post on the topic, as well.

dyslexia is a cruel mistress

[DangerTenor]

I could have sworn the link in my RSS reader said "Remote-Controlled Files". I was wondering what doofus had accepted a story about FTP.

time to wear your reflective hats

[Khashishi]

This is just one step closer to state-prescribed mind control.

Military uses

[EmbeddedJanitor]

If you can make a fly hop etc, it isn't too far to making soldiers do stuff, or shooting an enemy with a dart and taking control of their body (eg. make them surrender etc).

Re:Military uses

[Fiz Ocelot]

I've been doing that with Dark Archons for years :P

Re:Military uses

[ikkonoishi]

Why go through the trouble of making them surrender when you can just disable their voluntary muscle control?

Really I doubt that anyone would want soldiers to be able to be remote controlled. That introduces far to large of a possible security breach for it ever to get past the drawing stages, and it would definately reduce the number of people willing to volunteer for the military.

I guess you could force conscription, but conscripted soldiers really suck for today's warfare because of the higher education requirements for operating the most effective tactical gear.

If you just want a body that you can control, animals would be better than humans in most cases.
Reptiles in particular would be good at stealth work due to cold-bloodedness masking them from infrared goggles.

Not to mention the military applications of sharks with fricken laser beams on their heads.

Re:Stronger Better

[postsingularity]

This pretty much already happens without technology. Seeing as the technology involved requires trasngenic modification and further requires a uv light source that can reach the neurons in question, somewhat less of a problem for an essentially transparent fruit fly than it would be a human with a half inch of bone and a flak helmet in the way

Re:Cool for cheap R/C aircraft!!!

[WhatsAProGingrass]

We could apply this method to thousands of birds and tie a rope to them all and we can get them to fly us places. No more polution, less expansive than gas. Plus less traffic conjestion and noise polution. Just have to watch out for the bird poop. But we can just stimulate that part of the brain when we are at a parking spot or something.

Hey, you know what's awesome!?

[NitsujTPU]

What's awesome is that Slashdot now comes equiped with readers who can't wait to have their brains controlled! Yay!

Good science, though!

Re:Hasn't this happened with rats?

[curlyjunglejake]

And with cockroaches. There is actually a company called BrainGate that is in human trial phase for a complex electrode fiber implant sheith that will go over the brains of the severly handicapped to allow them to regain fine tuned control over computer screen elements. Eventually they would like to produce "wearable robots"; essentially a hydrolic exoskeleton directly controllable via "natural" movement commands from the brain. There are also groups trying to devise means of implanting a surrogate nervous system that would stimulate the muscles and allow a severly injured individual to regain direct control over their limbs. This last bit is highly speculative, but all have been considered.

None have very much to do with this particular technology.

...should also note...

[x2A]

whilst true that high levels of glutamite can cause neuron death due to excitotoxicity, the brain does have defenses against it (in fact when glutamite levels shoot up high, the brain releases an NMDA-antagonist similar to ketamine, to protect against excitotoxicity).

Glutamite is also coverted in the brain to GABA, another amino acid which acts as a primary inhibitory neurotransmitter, which counters glutamite and other excitory neurotransmitters. So it really isn't so cut and dry.

-2A

Obligatoy Warning Label

[Shag]

Do not look into laser with remaining fly.