I just came across this research paper(http://www.nature.com/nnano/journal/v10/n7/full/nnano.2015.115.html), which introduces Syringe-injectable electronics directly into the brain. A direct link to the neurons, What a fascinating idea!!!
So I was wandering, if we can start recording neural connections and processes by embedding nanosensors into this flexible electronics for to sense electrochemical and ionic exchange between neurons, instead of EEG, which reads only mechanical data.
Any ideas or work done towards it?
Also, there is one more research(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0956566315300610) that demonstrated creating artificial neuron using organic electronic biomimetic neuron, if we can make close model of neuron with this kind of technologies and maybe start replacing original neurons one by one, we may able to unlock the mysteries of our brain much faster!
Please share your ideas or opinions about these technologies!!!
This is Elonâs answer to the inevitable outcome of AI becoming sentient and taking over the planet / solar system. Without some advanced machine/brain interface we will be unable to compete and will be âlike housecatsâ in the eyes of our new robot overlords. Although itâs predicted at least 5% of the worlds population will have Neuralink by 2033, thereâs no telling when it will be available to the masses, but itâs comingâŚ
Muskâs concepts like Hyperloop and Neuralink are entirely âover the topâ. Great ideas for Science Fiction, but not in any way practical. On the other hand the warnings about AI are prescient and should be heeded. Steve Omohundro is working in these areas in a much more grounded sense,
Building a re-usable rocket or a high-performancre electric car was once thought to be âentirely over the topâ, but it happened. People seem to either love Elon or dismiss his achievements and lofty goals. Either way itâs good to have people with resources obsessed with making science fiction the likes of Neuralink a reality, whether or not they succeed. Itâs no doubt a cooperative effort and I have a hunch the people he has working on it arenât completely inept.
The way to tame AI is with ideas along the lines of Steve Oâs work. Not with brain implants or fears of ârobot overlordsâ. Electric cars and NASA have been ongoing efforts for decades. Musk can certainly evolve technology, but he cannot leap into fantasy science fiction.
So youâre basically saying a wifi enabled connectome isnât possible or practical and not worth the time amd will always remain in theenigmaric class of âscience fictuonâ just anothet impossible thing that no group of scientists could ever possibly engineer with any amount of time or fundling. And Elon has nothing worthwhile to say about AI and how to control it. Gotcha.
Connectome research is another pie in the sky Science Fiction fantasy. Neurons are not little digital I/O units with well defined inputs / outputs. The hubris of some projects is astounding.
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@wjcraft well, if nature can do it, why canât us! after all we are the latest thing in our cosmos, in the context of intellect!
@newspeed
Because nature is not a âmachineâ. Each neuron and cell contains a minute degree of âconsciousnessâ. The brain is not a âcomputerâ. It is a receiver of consciousness. See this explanation of the âfilterâ model of consciousness.
http://www.explorejournal.com/article/S1550-8307(12)00175-9/pdf
We are increasingly learning that the heart and the brain work together, in fact the whole mind body heart system is intricately interconnected. âIntellectâ and brain do not work in isolation.
William Croft
@wjcroft Wonderful article!! you may say its not a machine, but you have to accept that it is also a system based on few simple rules, we know that material universe came from simple entities which react with each other in only specific ways, which we understand to some extent, as they say âComplexity from underlying simplicityâ . Those interactions gave birth to the whole new kinds of systems, plants, animals and us. We have to see that animals and plants(https://www.brainpickings.org/2016/09/26/the-hidden-life-of-trees-peter-wohlleben/) have consciousness too just like us, we are not so special but a little more complex system and its upto us to see if can unravel this sensation and make something out of it, possibilities are endless. Even if we are not capable of understanding reality in more depth because of those filters, we can learn to overcome them(not necessarily by concretizing). But we have these unique capacities to construct and explore new models of reality, so I think everything is possible, but its upto us. We canât just sit because of that filter called âfearâ of uncertainty. I do believe that there is 'A God Hack!â and âconnectomeâ is just one of many models in the path that will finally get us there. Whats your opinion!
âyou may say [the brain is] not a machine, but you have to accept that it is also a system based on few simple rulesâ
Umm. Sorry, the ârulesâ of neuron, astrocytes (glia), connectome, microglia, etc. are not âsimpleâ whatsoever. Please reread the Guardian article I linked above. I fully applaud and support efforts to expand neuroscience. But assuming we have the knowledge and expertise to now ârewireâ that conscious web, is hubris indeed. The brain is not wired and connected, it is evolving moment by moment. Glia potentiate and surround each synapse, adjusting the firing potentials in what is called neuroplasticity. Not by acting like little digital circuits, but invoking their synergistic ability to evolve towards more âwholenessâ and heart-intelligence.
Pure intellect without heart and wisdom, is a time bomb that is already exploding in our faces. For the sake of the planet we must grow our abilities for empathy and care for all of life. Re-membering what indigenous peoples knew long ago.
@wjcroft You are right, its not simple but I was talking about the system a little below, in terms of atoms, now we can fully simulate simple atoms like hydrogen(https://www.wired.com/2010/01/quantum-computer-hydrogen-simulation/), soon we may be able to simulate complex molecules using quantum computation and may be one one day simulate those complex little glia cells too. This can further foster our understanding of neurons from bottom approach and matching the results with top approach(electrode etc.), we may be able to learn more things about the brain. I do understand that without all of these organs working together in unison, the consciousness as we know wouldnât exist, but we can try replacing these organs with artificial ones(which are going mainstream nowadays), from which we can log things and connect them to form âthe big pictureâ.
I have read that article(rather a good critic) and have put that book on my âto-readâ shelve too. Sometimes, to explore we have to take shots in the dark too! Donât you think! For the sake of exploration of course!