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Paralyzed Patients "Speak" With Their Pupils

sciencehabit writes "Lying in bed, unable to move a muscle, so-called locked-in patients have few ways to communicate with the outside world. But researchers have now found a way to use the widening and narrowing of the pupils to send a message, potentially helping these patients break the silence. The trick is a webcam-like setup that tracks pupil dilation. When people focus on a hard problem--say a math problem--their pupils dilate. Employing the approach, some locked-in patients could answer 'yes' and 'no' questions just by dilating their eyes."

7 of 72 comments (clear)

  1. Why are they even teaching anyone? by ZaMoose · · Score: 5, Funny

    I mean, seriously, paralyzed people would probably be bad candidates for teaching anyone anyth...

    OHHHHH. Those kinds of pupils!

    --
    I wish I had a kryptonite cross, because then you could keep Dracula and Superman away.
  2. Why bother with pupil dilation? by Conspiracy_Of_Doves · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Why don't they go straight to neurofeedback? The hardware is getting a lot less expensive.

  3. Pike by Master+Moose · · Score: 4, Funny

    With this type of tech, pretty soon we will be able to hook them all up to motorised boxes with a single light that can blink once for yes and twice for no.

    --
    . . .gone when the morning comes
  4. Euthanasia Please by nukenerd · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I sincerely hope that by the time I might get to that state that the idiots who oppose euthanasia have been recognised as the nutjobs that they are and that I can be put out of my misery. If you kept a dog in that state (in the UK at least) you would be prosecuted for cruelty.

  5. Re:paralysis of the eyes by Shadow+of+Eternity · · Score: 3, Informative

    pupil dilation is more akin to peristalsis than blinking.

    --
    A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
  6. Re:Facilitated Communication Hoax by sconeu · · Score: 3, Informative

    Bullshit. It's real. My late wife had ALS, and her eyegaze computer was worth every penny. Even if it wasn't *HER* voice (we didn't bank it early enough), she could still talk with us.

    --
    General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
  7. Re:Facilitated Communication Hoax by chuckinator · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Thank you for your feedback. I was actually hoping to hear someone with specific experience with these techniques share their impression of the technique.

    Can you expand on your experience with this technique? How did it work in your late wife's case? What was the latency of the communication like due to the obvious bandwidth constraints of this particular medium?