Implant Enables Thought to Control Computer Cursor
Scientific American News in Brief
By: Sarah Graham

Giving a new twist to the phrase wishful thinking, scientists have
demonstrated that thoughts alone can enable action. According to a report
published in the journal Nature, a tiny array of electrodes that records,
interprets and reconstructs the activity involved in hand motion can harness
brain power to control an onscreen cursor.  

John Donoghue of Brown University and colleagues tested the system on three
rhesus monkeys trained to track a moving image on a video screen using hand
movements and a joystick. Implanted electrodes recorded activity in the motor
cortex regions of the animals' brains while they performed the task. As the
monkeys repeatedly moved the cursor, the scientists developed a series of
mathematical formulas that related the firing of neurons to the cursor's
position. When the researchers removed the input from the hand console and
replaced it with a signal calculated from the implant, the animals continued
to successfully track their target. "We substituted thought control for hand
control," Donoghue notes, adding that input from as few as six neurons was
sufficient for success.  

Though not yet approved for human use, this so-called instant-control brain
cursor technique may one day form the basis of systems aimed at facilitating
communications for paralyzed people. "This implant is potentially one that is
very suitable for humans," study co-author Mijail D. Serruya says. "It shows
enough promise that it could ultimately be hooked up via a computer to a
paralyzed patient to restore that individual's interaction with the
environment."  

http://www.sciam.com/news/031402/2.html


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