In the future direct interfacing between the brain and technology seems likely. The rudimentary technology has already been demonstrated and Musk’s company is working on an implant meant to be a commercial product. My question is about how you see the interface eventually working. In particular I am curious about what the advantage of an implant is.
From the demonstrations I’ve seen things like typing, moving cursors, ect can be achieved with sensors applied to the body externally like an fmri skullcap or a neckband that reads vibrations in the vocal cords. External sensors are much safer to apply than a brain implant, they can be replaced much more easily if they malfunction, and they can be upgraded. I have read an article that said there are advantages to implants for people with medical issues like paralysis because the implant can offer feedback providing a more “normal” experience and interacting with specific nerves gives more precise control and less lag time. For medical applications like restoring lost function that makes the risk of surgery make sense. For the average person what advantages do implants offer over external sensors that make the risks of brain surgery worth it?
I’d argue that reaaaaally don’t want your fuzzy thoughts controlling a jet.
Clint Eastwood movie from the 1980s. “Firefox” was a pretty good thriller where Clint had to invade Russia and steal their latest plane, one with mind reading tech iirc.
I remember that one as a very patchy movie without having any kind of real message. People died for Clint, Clint flew the plane, …
Maybe I’m old though :-) and I know the foxbat (if I remember correctly that was maybe the plane) was the URSS drummed up “superfigjter” which, surprise, wasn’t that super.
Fun little book I just read. ‘The Defector’ by Chris Hadfield. The author actually was an astronaut, so the details are great. Soviet pilot lands a Foxbat at the Tel Aviv airport hours before the Yom Kippur War breaks out…