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Sending Messages With Your Brain Via EEG
An anonymous reader writes "From a University of Wisconsin-Madison announcement: 'In early April, Adam Wilson posted a status update on the social networking Web site Twitter — just by thinking about it. Just 23 characters long, his message, 'using EEG to send tweet,' demonstrates a natural, manageable way in which "locked-in" patients can couple brain-computer interface technologies with modern communication tools. A University of Wisconsin-Madison biomedical engineering doctoral student, Wilson is among a growing group of researchers worldwide who aim to perfect a communication system for users whose bodies do not work, but whose brains function normally.' A brief rundown of the system: Users focus on a monitor displaying a keyboard; the interface measures electrical impulses in the brain to print the chosen letters one by one. Wilson compares the learning curve to texting, calling it 'kind of a slow process at first.' But even practice doesn't bring it quite up to texting speed: 'I've seen people do up to eight characters per minute,' says Wilson. See video of the system in action."
Is this anything like TCMP?
I got a catholic block.
That a brain was involved in the process of Tweeting.
Think how much more Stephen Hawking could gives us with this device.
:-)
I know he's in the hossie at the moment and I hope he recovers fully, enough to try this device.
Send one to him. Now!
If I had an Ass, I'd call it Fanny Bottom, then I could slap my Ass; Fanny Bottom, on the Arse.
d a m n t h i s t h i n g i s s l o w
As this technology gets better isn't there going to be a big chance for really bad Fruedian slips? XD
Princess Leia: The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers
Especially if your name is Etaoin Shrdlu.
So it wouldn't work very well for the blind and its not pulling the letters out of the brain, its just a more sophisticated eye tracking device, similar to the goggles in apache helicopters? Why not just fit patients with those for a faster input method?
Because Apache helicopters are prohibitively expensive even for patients with the best insurance, aside from being illegal for civilians to own. Duh.
The enemies of Democracy are
Kif Kroker: One beep for yes, two beeps for no. ... [Fry beeps twice]
[Fry beeps once]
Captain Zapp Brannigan: Double yes. Guilty.
I wonder how fast he would be if he imagined a Dvorak keyboard.
'Because Apache helicopters are prohibitively expensive even for patients with the best insurance, aside from being illegal for civilians to own.'
It would probably be much cheaper to pick up a surplus thought-guided control system from the Soviet Mig-31 project on ebay. The only downside (and this is very important) is that you must think in Russian. You can't think in English and transpose it - you must think in Russian.