Taking a revolutionary step towards modern communication technologies, a doctoral student posted a status update on the social networking Web site Twitter - only by thinking about it. The message-"using EEG to send tweet"- just 23 characters long, demonstrated a natural, manageable way in which "locked-in" patients can couple brain-computer interface technologies with modern communication tools. The researcher from University of Wisconsin-Madison biomedical engineering doctoral student is among a growing group of researchers worldwide who aim to perfect a communication system for users whose bodies do not work, but whose brains function normally. Such people include those having amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), brain-stem stroke or high spinal cord injury.
There are brain-computer interface systems that employ an electrode-studded cap wired to a computer, in which the electrodes detect electrical signals in the brain - essentially, thoughts - and translate them into physical actions, such as a cursor motion on a computer screen. Based on brain activity related to changes in an object on screen, the researchers embarked upon developing a simple, elegant communication interface. The interface consists of a keyboard displayed on a computer screen. The way this works is that all the letters come up, and each one of them flashes individually. And what the brain does is, if you're looking at the 'R' on the screen and all the other letters are flashing, nothing happens. But when the 'R' flashes, the brain understands that something's different about what it was just paying attention to.
More information:
http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/scientist-tweets-using-only-his-mind/
More information:
http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/scientist-tweets-using-only-his-mind/