Cyberpunk predicted this yonks ago; science fiction has expended reams of print in exploring the human and philosophical ramifications of it, but it still boggles the mind that brain/pc interfaces are actually here, now, licensed to Mattel and likely to retail for under a hundred bucks:
Researchers have developed systems that read brainwaves – in the form of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals – in order to help people suffering from disabilities or paralysis control wheelchairs, play games , or type on a computer. Now, two companies are preparing to market similar devices to mainstream consumers.
Australian outfit Emotiv will release a headset whose 16 sensors make it possible to direct 12 different movements in a computer game. Emotiv says the helmet can also detect emotions.
Compatible with any PC running Windows, it will ship later this year for $299 (see image). They have shown off a game where the player moves stones to rebuild Stonehenge using mind power alone (see video).
Californian company NeuroSky has also built a device that can detect emotions: the firm says it can tell whether you are focused, relaxed, afraid or anxious, for example.
Rather than selling it directly to the public, NeuroSky is licensing its set-up to other companies, including Mattel, Nokia and Sega. Mattel, for example, will soon sell a game which involves players levitating a ball using thought alone (see video).
These devices are remarkably cheap, especially when compared to the price tags on research-grade EEGs, which can run to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Emotiv’s headset will retail for $299, while Mattel’s game will cost just $80. At such low prices, these dirt-cheap brain interfaces will likely be popular – and not just with people who want to play with them
And where will the technology be in a year, or five, or ten? The New Scientist points out that in a generation’s time children will be growing up who’ve known no other way of existing or using technology. As a commenter noted: “The adventure of what it is to be human has just begun”.
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