Practical Neurotechnology

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

remote-controlled pigeons

Pigeonbots-- apparently not controlled via MFB stimulation, but direct motor control.

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/02/cyborg_flying_r.html
http://tenementpalm.blogspot.com/2007/02/psb-buys-tiny-german-spy-copters.html
http://english.people.com.cn/200702/27/eng20070227_352761.html

Scientists with the Robot Engineering Technology Research Center of east China's Shandong University of Science and Technology say they implanted micro electrodes in the brain of a pigeon so they can command it to fly right or left or up or down.

The implants stimulated different areas of the pigeon's brain according to signals sent by the scientists via computer, and forced the bird to comply with their commands.

Monday, February 12, 2007

Building the Cortex in Silicon

Technology Review: Building the Cortex in Silicon: "An ambitious project to model the cerebral cortex in silicon is under way at Stanford. The man-made brain could help scientists understand how the most recently evolved part of our brain performs its complex computational feats, allowing us to understand language, recognize faces, and schedule the day. It could also lead to new neural prosthetics."