Devices that allow persons with paralysis to walk and communicate are quickly improving. Some envision a future in which we can change memories and download skills, but significant hurdles remain.
By M.Rahman
A cyborg outperformed me. When I played the online game WebGrid, using my finger on a laptop touchpad to click on squares that appeared unexpectedly on a grid, my pace was 42 squares per minute. Noland Arbaugh, a self-described cyborg, played it by sending telepathic impulses to his computer via a chip inserted in his brain. His speed is 49.
Arbaugh was paralyzed from the neck down in 2016. In January, he became the first person to be physically implanted with a chip manufactured by Neuralink, an Elon Musk-founded firm. Since then, Arbaugh has used his thoughts to control his phone and computer, surf the internet, and play Civilization and chess.
Neuralink, however, is not the only company that uses brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) to connect humans and machines. A rising number of persons who have been paralyzed due to spinal cord injuries, strokes, or motor diseases are recovering their skills as a result of trials. According to neurosurgeon Jaimie Henderson of Stanford University in California, the accomplishments have caught some researchers off guard. “It’s been an incredible ride.”
Where that takes us remains to be seen. Musk recently mused about making a bionic implant that will allow us to compete with artificial superintelligence. Others are contemplating more profound implications. “In the future, you could manipulate human perception and memories and behaviour and identity,” says Rafael Yuste at Columbia University in New York.
However, while BCIs are unquestionably excellent, as Arbaugh’s WebGrid score shows, the link between brain activity, ideas, and actions is extremely complicated. Imagine a future when memories can…
