Last week in the HCI introductory lecture I mentioned the possibility that Direct Brain Interfaces might mean that the usual trend of aging generations to abandon the latest technology (because it is so different to what they are use to), is in fact stopped because it would become so easy for everyone regardless of technical expertise to interact with technology. My lecturer commented that this was an interesting area of research, but as of yet impractical due to the levels of concentration required for the user to operate such systems. I just thought I'd point out that our scientific understanding of using such technology, both in terms of the complex brain neural networks and the patterns of activity of brainwaves, is still at a very early stage. I'm an optimist about the boundaries of science and what it can achieve. As I understand devices such as the emotiv headset (follow the link at the bottom), a device that reads user's brainwaves to allow them to move virtual objects around a screen, work by noticing kind of primitive signals. Everytime we think "left" for example the pattern of activation is different, but patterns between occurrences are similar, especially compared to those for "right". By interpreting these general patterns the headset can function. However when neuro/cognitive science become more advanced, I have no doubt that given technology will be able to follow and interpret more complex patterns and work without the user concentrating so hard. Anyway I would love to try out the emotiv headset, but it’s pretty unlikely given that it’ll set anyone back £150 this Xmas.
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