May 25, 2023

"[Gert-Jan] Oskam... said that these stimulation technologies had left him feeling that there was something foreign about the locomotion..."

"... an alien distance between his mind and body. The new interface changed this, he said: 'The stimulation before was controlling me, and now I’m controlling the stimulation.' In the new study, the brain-spine interface, as the researchers called it, took advantage of an artificial intelligence thought decoder to read Mr. Oskam’s intentions — detectable as electrical signals in his brain — and match them to muscle movements. The etiology of natural movement, from thought to intention to action, was preserved. The only addition... was the digital bridge spanning the injured parts of the spine.... 'It raises interesting questions about autonomy, and the source of commands. You’re continuing to blur the philosophical boundary between what’s the brain and what’s the technology.'"

16 comments:

pacwest said...

The Borg. The rapid advancement of GNR (Genetics, Nanotechnology, Robotics) pretty much guarantees that is where we are headed as a species.

Owen said...

So now the trick will be to hack the implant and turn the owner into a puppet. Kinda like eavesdropping on car fobs? Look for the implant version with RFID blocking.

That said: this is some amazing tech.

rehajm said...

an alien distance between his mind and body

….wait until it looks like: mind DEMOCRATS body

Tom T. said...

The comments about autonomy seem like they're groping for false profundity. There's no ambiguity here; the man's brain controls the implant.

The interesting aspect is that the makers of the implant have made real progress in decoding the human "machine language," the basic electrical codes by which the brain communicates with the rest of the body.

n.n said...

The Borg. The rapid advancement of GNR

Resistance is futile.

the trick will be to hack the implant and turn the owner into a puppet

The Puppet Master • Ghost in the Shell

n.n said...

Nature connects body and mind. Humans construct bridges to narrow the gap. Science cannot discern origin and expression.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Is AI writing medical articles now about AI medical advances. Damn! They’re going to kill it at the PR game!

Owen said...

Tom T @ 7:09: "...groping for false profundity..." Hey! I don't need to grope, I can hit home runs of false profundity all day long!

...How long before device makers have to agree on a Bio USB and a CNS ASCII code protocol?

Wince said...

Now I'm gaining confidence that, when my body eventually gives out, my brain can be preserved in a bottle with enough capacity so I can at least continue to comment on Althouse for all eternity.

mikee said...

Our meatsacks are complicated, and we still live in them not by choice but necessity. Any mechanical replication of the meatsack operations need not use meatsack technology. And eventually, we may escape our meatsacks into alternatives.

I don't recall anyone ever questioning the computer voice of Stephen Hawking as anything other than his words.

Even seeing through glasses alters our reality. We'll accept replacements for failed body parts, probably up to total replacement of the biological bits.

Dude1394 said...

That is amazing.

Joe Smith said...

It seems that the source of commands is still the brain and will be so until someone puts up a wall between the brain and the interface.

Owen said...

mikee @ 8:56: "Our meatsacks are complicated..." You got that right.

I remember a phrase coined, I guess, by Freud (maybe in "Civilization and Its Discontents"?). He said we are "prosthetic gods."

gahrie said...

The Borg. The rapid advancement of GNR (Genetics, Nanotechnology, Robotics) pretty much guarantees that is where we are headed as a species.

There will be attempts to preserve "pure humanity" by traditionalists. Mankind will split into two populations, pure humans and humans who use genetic manipulation and/or mechanical enhancement. The question is, will they live alongside each other, live in segregated societies, or make war on each other?

Tom T. said...

Owen, just to be clear, I was referring to the comments in the article. I wasn't criticizing anything you said.

wildswan said...

It seems like a wire joining two ends of a burned out section of wire. Amazing - and wonderful for the guy - but not a replacement for his humanity.