A research team has taken the application of brain-machine interfaces one step further–and successfully managed to network the brains of groups of animals, into what they call a "brainet". So, what does this mean to you? Just this: if, in the future, you could join a hive mind, you’d be a lot smarter…but also–well–a lot less alone.
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Laws and technologies invading and eroding privacy are widespread and ongoing. Soon, even the sanctity of our private thoughts – and the (highly-compromised) right to make up our own minds – may be quaint artifacts of a bygone era.
As with all other breakthroughs, the convergence of neuroscience and bioengineering brings with it many curses and blessings. And the more advanced the new science becomes, the greater the possibilities for both positive and negative impacts on how humans relate to each other, to animals, to machines, and to the world.
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We may believe that our genetic programming is a permanent factor in our physical state of being, yet more and more research is proving that our genes can in fact be altered by complex interactions between genetics, our environment, diet and lifestyle.
Those are physical factors, but could genes really be influenced by mind power?
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Scientists have found a way to send brain-to-brain messages using brainwaves connected to computer technology.
A team of researchers from the University of Barcelona in Spain, Axilum Robotics in France, Harvard Medical School and Starlab Barcelona in Spain used EEG headsets to record the electrical activity in the brain related to the formulation of the words ‘hola’ and ‘ciao.’ A computer then converted these messages into binary and used electrical stimulation to implant the information into the receiver’s mind, which then appeared as specific flashes of light in the corner of their vision. The "telephathic" greeting was sent from subject in Thiruvananthapuram, India to another in Strasbourg using only brain-power.
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