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Teen Plays Videogame With Brain Signals
SkyFire360 writes "A team of ECoG (ElectroCorticography) researchers from Washington University in St. Louis successfully wired a young man's brain up to a computer and began reading the neurological firings in his brain. After analyzing the action potentials created when a neuron fires, they were able to get two-dimensional control of a cursor. Taking the research one step further, they decided to connect an old Atari 2600 to the signal processing computer to see if the young man could control the videogame system."
The same sort of thing is already being used for ADHD and depression therapy, as well:
4 09-2379616,00.html
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,20
ZuluPad, the wiki notepad on crack
One dimensional in a purely mathematical sense, yes. However, to the mind, moving left and moving right are two separate actions. In that sense, you might be able to get away with calling it 2D (not to mention the fact that they also added the ability to fire - a 3rd action.)
-dave
http://millionnumbers.com/ - own the number of your dreams
Though we're the first lab to use the ECoG technology, even our resolution is too poor to accurately control things in more than two dimensions. A breakdown of the different resolutions of Brain-Computer-Interfacing is here. The problem with EEG is that the skull acts as a signal damper that disperses and blurs the electromagnetic waves created by the neurons. Though we can still detect the waves created, it becomes increasingly more difficult to discern what area of the brain created these waves, much less what neuron(s) did.
A breakdown of the different types of BCI currently being developed and researched:
- EEG - Electro-Encephalograph - Biggest advantage is that anyone can use it, as it can be worn like a helmet or a headband. Though because it is non-invasive, it has extremely poor resolution
- ECoG - Electro-Cortocography - Though it needs to be implanted inside the skull, it produces fairly good resolution. Also, because it only sits on top of the brain as opposed to inside gray matter, it has much less of a chance to form scar-tissue (though still greater than zero). Tough to get more than one dimension of control.
- Single Receptor - A microscopic electrode is placed directly in contact with a specific neuron or group of neurons. This allows researchers to directly measure the potential of one neuron firing. Of course, this requires the electrode to be implanted. This form of BCI is also very prone to scar-tissue buildup, causing the signal to become weaker and possibly lost as the body reacts to a foreign object in the brain.
- Light Reactive Imaging - Still very theoretical - A laser is trained on a single neuron and its reflectance is picked up by a separate sensor. When the neuron fires, the laser light pattern and wavelengths that are reflected change slightly. This allows researchers to monitor a single neuron while leaving the tissue "untouched", negating the issue of scar-tissue buildup. However, this technology is not able to penetrate the skull yet, as would be needed for external/non-invasive BCI
More information about BCI and ECoG can be found in a presentation from a WashU professor... actually, he's the guy standing behind the computer. Check pages 9-11 for some good slidesThough keep an eye out for us at BMES... we just found coding for direction and velocity, and it is scalar.