Digital Implants
I've been wanting to write this out for a while, but I couldn't decide the best way to do it. I was thinking along the lines of a Sci-Fi story or an essay or something. I've decided to just write it out on here in a rough form. What is it? A collection of thoughts about the implications of a digital implant that reads and writes to the human brain.
The basic idea goes something like this... The human brain and central nervous system works by electronic pulses. If we add a pulse reader to the correct locations, we can read what those pulses are. We can then detect what certain pulses in certain places mean. It's much like a packet logger for human thought. We have to log all the mental packets, find out what they mean, and log them all. This will pave the way to...
Synthetic Body Parts. The idea here is that we create a robotic body part with some type of skin covering (it will get better as technology improves). We then attach the body part to where it's supposed to go, and attach wires to the previously created pulse reader. The body part will take the signals the original part would get, and do the same thing. We can already do this, as the monkey in the box with the robotic arm proved (Google it). This will greatly improve many problems with cancer and damaged body parts that can't be fixed. After that, it gets a bit more complex.
This is the more interesting, and MUCH more dangerous part. Writing data to the brain. If we can read data, we will eventually be able to emulate the same data, either through responses from the various parts of the body that sense it, or though direct manipulation of the brain itself. This will allow for many new things, such as those same synthetic body parts being able to "feel" temperature, objects, etc... Blind people can get new eyes that work the same, or even better than normal eyes. Deaf people could be made to hear a pin drop a mile away should technology allow.
The abilities don't just hold true for those in need, but those who want improvements. A synthetic body for a construction worker could prevent all kinds of dangerous problems, while making him stronger than an elephant. A scientist could get eyes that see as if through a microscope. A doctor could have hands with precision incomparable to anything we've seen before. Technology is improving constantly, yet people stay the same. That doesn't have to be the case.
Imagine you're looking across a great forest from the top of a mountain. Imagine your best friend has the flu and can't get out of bed, or even see you. Now imagine you have digital eyes and a wireless connection within your head. Imagine streaming what you see directly to your friend through the internet. Imagine letting him feel the wind, hear the birds, see the sweeping landscape, and smell the fresh air, all from his sick bed.
It doesn't even have to be real. What about a game that detects all your movements precisely, and can make you feel things, even the feeling of death. Feeling your actual well being improved by a HP Potion, the handle of a blade in your hands, or a bullet entering your shoulder, all virtually created within a game. You can have wings, and feel them, move them, fly with them. You can do anything a programmer has written.
All the recent improvements in keyboards, mice, monitors, speakers, and all other external devices will be obsolete instantly. And everything we can have internally will improve until it reaches perfection. That being said, don't buy Implant 1.0.
The basic idea goes something like this... The human brain and central nervous system works by electronic pulses. If we add a pulse reader to the correct locations, we can read what those pulses are. We can then detect what certain pulses in certain places mean. It's much like a packet logger for human thought. We have to log all the mental packets, find out what they mean, and log them all. This will pave the way to...
Synthetic Body Parts. The idea here is that we create a robotic body part with some type of skin covering (it will get better as technology improves). We then attach the body part to where it's supposed to go, and attach wires to the previously created pulse reader. The body part will take the signals the original part would get, and do the same thing. We can already do this, as the monkey in the box with the robotic arm proved (Google it). This will greatly improve many problems with cancer and damaged body parts that can't be fixed. After that, it gets a bit more complex.
This is the more interesting, and MUCH more dangerous part. Writing data to the brain. If we can read data, we will eventually be able to emulate the same data, either through responses from the various parts of the body that sense it, or though direct manipulation of the brain itself. This will allow for many new things, such as those same synthetic body parts being able to "feel" temperature, objects, etc... Blind people can get new eyes that work the same, or even better than normal eyes. Deaf people could be made to hear a pin drop a mile away should technology allow.
The abilities don't just hold true for those in need, but those who want improvements. A synthetic body for a construction worker could prevent all kinds of dangerous problems, while making him stronger than an elephant. A scientist could get eyes that see as if through a microscope. A doctor could have hands with precision incomparable to anything we've seen before. Technology is improving constantly, yet people stay the same. That doesn't have to be the case.
Imagine you're looking across a great forest from the top of a mountain. Imagine your best friend has the flu and can't get out of bed, or even see you. Now imagine you have digital eyes and a wireless connection within your head. Imagine streaming what you see directly to your friend through the internet. Imagine letting him feel the wind, hear the birds, see the sweeping landscape, and smell the fresh air, all from his sick bed.
It doesn't even have to be real. What about a game that detects all your movements precisely, and can make you feel things, even the feeling of death. Feeling your actual well being improved by a HP Potion, the handle of a blade in your hands, or a bullet entering your shoulder, all virtually created within a game. You can have wings, and feel them, move them, fly with them. You can do anything a programmer has written.
All the recent improvements in keyboards, mice, monitors, speakers, and all other external devices will be obsolete instantly. And everything we can have internally will improve until it reaches perfection. That being said, don't buy Implant 1.0.
posted by Andy at 5:28 PM
1 Comments:
Go do some reading on The Singularity. You may find that interesting.
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