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What would the future of people and machines look like? American billionaire Elon Musk believes it would involve connecting the human brain directly to a computer, but neuroscientists believe that is easier said than done, writes “Invers.”
Musk and his team at the secret company “Neuralink” demonstrated on August 28 what it looks like when a chip called a “link,” which means “connection,” is implanted in the brain of a pig. The coin-sized chip is connected by even smaller wires, the size of a twelfth of a human hair, to the brain of a Gertrude pig with a battery that lasts 12 hours after charging, after which it can be recharge wirelessly.
“Neuralink” claims that its chip will one day have an application in medicine and will solve a variety of ailments, from memory loss to brain damage.
Ralph Adolfs, a professor of psychology, neuroscience and biology at the California Institute of Technology, believes this is a “great technical achievement.”
– This is a good example of technology that exceeds our ability to know how to use it. The main initial application will be for those people who are ill and for clinical reasons it is justified to implant such a chip in their brain. It would not be ethical to do it to a healthy person. But who knows what the future holds? – said by “Invers”.
Adolf pointed out that the Mask chip can be compared to natural processes that appear during evolution. Currently, for the brain to connect with the world, people use their hands and mouth.
– Right now, it is difficult to just sit and think about it, it is necessary to focus a lot of work in the future on making that connection with the world more natural – Adolf points out.
That goal may be more difficult to achieve than what was noted in the “Neuralinka” demo. John Krakauer, a MindMaise scientist and professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins University, told Invers that his view of humanity is still “a long way away” from consumer “ties” in that way.
– The device we saw was placed on top of a sensorimotor area (brain). If we want to read thoughts instead of movements (assuming we know its nerve base), where do we put it? How many will need them? How can anyone avoid filling their skull with them? That, of course, was not even mentioned – notes Krakauer.
He states that there are many possible non-invasive solutions that can help people with conditions that Neuralink plans to treat with its technology. Existing solutions don’t require invasive surgery, but Krakauer fears that the fact that his chip looks “cool” to people casts a shadow on critical thinking.
However, Musk, who is the CEO of “Neuralinka,” does not plan to stop for treatment. The ultimate goal, he said, is for his company to create a symbiosis between humans and computers, which would allow humanity to keep up with ultra-fast machines. Krakauer finds these ambitions troubling.
– I would like to see a less unfounded advertisement about “Alex’s brain” and the connection with artificial intelligence. The argument is that if a singularity can’t be avoided, join it. Sorry, but this angle is just ridiculous – he points out.
Even a “link” for general use could be a lot further out of development than it sounds. In 2017, Musk said that link could be available to people without disabilities in eight to 10 years, which would mean 2027.
Kevin Tracy, professor of neurosurgery and president of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, says he “cannot imagine” that any of the aforementioned diseases could see a solution at least a decade ago.
Considering that “Neuralink” hopes to offer its device as a medical solution before switching to general-purpose implants, such expert opinions cast doubt on the timing of its plans. Still, Tracy is pleased that this area of research has gained more attention.
He pointed out that the “Neuralinka” device is just one part of the puzzle of connecting the brain and that there are three fields at stake: goal-seeking molecular medicine and neuroscience concerned with understanding how those connections are controlled by the devices themselves.
Neuralink, for example, could help map new connections, but that’s just one aspect of the work that needs to be done to get everything to work according to plan. Tracy says the company’s small chips can help prevent brain damage seen in larger devices.
But perhaps the biggest benefit of Mask’s demo is that this field of research has gotten “cool” again.
“If a new, very” cool “device sparks a discussion about the consequences of new devices in neuroscience and what we need to do to make these things contribute to humanity through science, that’s good,” Tracy concluded.
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