Next X-Prize — $10M For a Brain-Computer Interface 175
The first X-Prize was about reaching space. Now, reader destinyland writes "This time it's inner space, as Peter Diamandis holds a workshop at MIT discussing a $10 million X-Prize for building a brain-computer interface. This article includes video of Ray Kurzweil's 36-minute presentation, 'Merging the Human Brain with Its Creations,' and MIT synthetic neuroscientist Ed Boyden also made a presentation, followed by discussion groups about Input/Output, Control, Sensory, and Learning. Besides the ability to communicate by thought, the article argues, a Brain-Computer Interface X Prize 'will reward nothing less than a team that provides vision to the blind, new bodies to disabled people, and perhaps even a geographical 'sixth sense' akin to a GPS iPhone app in the brain.'"
I've got that right now (Score:2, Interesting)
It's called my hands on the keyboard.
ok, where's my 10mil
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That's interesting, when I read "brain-computer interface", I was thinking more along the lines of a stake.
This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contests (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:4, Funny)
It also might not take millions of dollars to do. This could potentially be solved by someone in their garage.
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Funny)
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Funny)
That's a strange name to give a child...
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I agree. Especially since most slashdoters already have their DIY lobotomy kits.
What did you think where all those First Posters and goatse linkers come from?
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Informative)
It also might not take millions of dollars to do. This could potentially be solved by someone in their garage.
No, that's just not the case. It will take millions of dollars and lots of equipment and infrastructure. We're not talking about technology, we're talking about biology. There are already hundreds if not thousands of people working on the problem (I'm among them). The limiting factors are not the power of our computers, or the whizziness of our mechanical machines, but the understanding of (a) how we can make permanent high-fidelity implants in the brain that do not pose an undue risk to the health of the patient, (b) what, exactly, the language for communicating through these implants is. While the last 100 years has seen tremendous, fantastic progress in understanding the brain, we are still pretty much in the dark as to the fine details, and it's the fine details that matter for a machine-brain interface. Fortunately, recent technological advances (two photon microscopy coupled with ultra-high resolution 3d tissue reconstruction) are going to give us a huge push toward understanding the details in the next few years.
Like I said, I work in the field. To do a very small -- SMALL -- experiment with only half a dozen volunteers who will have a temporary brain implant for two weeks, the non-recoverable costs are about $500,000. That's just for the hospital stays, the costs of the operating room, and paying support staff and the like, and assumes that the surgeon's time is donated, along with all of the important hardware. Remember, this is actually brain surgery. And yes, I have that cost baked into my budget.
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(1) The project is laughably underfunded. Think more on the order of hundreds of millions of dollars plus for these types of projects to make it through the full FDA approval process. Human trials are phenomenally expensive, to the point where whole established companies can be driven to bankruptcy through the process (ART in Canada comes
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I read a BCI panel report put together by Theodore Berger some 3 years ago and the one thing I took away from the report was that the problem with BCI right now (for invasive implants) isn't the matter of "Where to put the implant" and "How to communicate," but a problem with keeping it permanently there. I hadn't realized prior to reading that report that the body was actually the number one "enemy" in any kind of long term study involving invasive implants
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Like I said, I work in the field. To do a very small -- SMALL -- experiment with only half a dozen volunteers who will have a temporary brain implant for two weeks, the non-recoverable costs are about $500,000.
Clearly you should offshore this to China or India.
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Okay, so it won't be solved by someone in their garage safely or legally, but what else is new?
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Could you do it for less if you relocated everybody and all the machines long term to India?
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Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:4, Insightful)
One aspect to this is programming the mind itself.
To some extent we already do this naturally with our learning and memory forming cognitive capabilities. Simple programs are easily written to our minds.
THINK ABOUT YOUR BREATHING
YOU ARE NOW BREATHING MANUALLY
It will take time to build a language in which we can program more complex behaviors, but I have no doubt it is possible.
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Especially programming the jury's minds to give you the prize. :-)
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Funny)
THINK ABOUT YOUR BREATHING
YOU ARE NOW BREATHING MANUALLY
Oh no! Now what do I do? How do I know that once I stop thinking about breathing that it will continue? Oh, cruel Fate! Must not get distracted...
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Your post was exceptionally good at putting MY breathing into manual just by reading it. Now I've got to wait until it goes back to auto before I feel normal again.
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Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Informative)
My understanding -- as a complete outsider to the field -- is that a lot of the elements are already there.
My understanding -- as an insider in the field -- is that you are correct. I work in the field of visual prosthetics. There are Phase II clinical trials underway for visual prostheses based on retinal stimulation, and a handful of researchers, like myself, who are looking at alternate approaches that include a more direct brain interface. To create a crude machine-brain visual interface, you need: (1) a digital imaging device, like a web cam, (2) a means to translate the image into the neural signal, like a wearable computer, (3) a computer-controlled multi-channel stimulator, like are used for cochlear implants, (4) a brain electrode, like are used to treat Parkinson's disease through Deep Brain Stimulation, or are used on the cortical surface to treat epilepsy. The parts are all there; it's really just a matter of integration, optimization, and getting FDA approval to try it in blind volunteers.
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My understanding -- as an insider in the field -- is that you are correct. I work in the field of visual prosthetics. There are Phase II clinical trials underway for visual prostheses based on retinal stimulation, and a handful of researchers, like myself, who are looking at alternate approaches that include a more direct brain interface.
Then what are you doing posting on slashdot!?! There's 10 million at stake! If you're really so close, get back in the lab and make yourself a multi-millionaire!
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Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:5, Interesting)
I frankly have to say that the resolution in non-surgical methods is just not there, and is not promising. Surgical methods, on the other hand, are fairly invasive, and have yet to yield long-term success. And by success, I mean prediction of a single motor event, ie a mouse pushing a lever. Implants tend to degrade in signal quality over time.
Given that we cannot yet accurately predict simple motor events (which should have very easy-to-identify motor cortex manifestations), the idea that we are anywhere near interacting with conscious thought (which we still have no concept of the physical manifestation of which), is wrong. To put it in CS terms: Our data path is lossy and degrades with time. We have no idea what format the data is in, or even the data structures involved. We can tell that there is traffic on the network, but little else.
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Communication from device to nerves is different than communica
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Geez do I have to do all the work around here !
humanbrain@body:/#e2fsck -fpC 0 /dev/brain
Re:This will be one of the shorter X-Prize contest (Score:2)
Yeah; for example: does banging your head on the keyboard count?
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Or do the "thought controllers" currently on the market count?
Re:We're not even close (Score:5, Insightful)
> we still do not have the ability to even accurately map active neural networks in the brain let alone communicate with them in real time.
Does the prize apply if the BCI only works if it is installed at an early age?
That way we don't need to have accurate maps of the neural networks (which are likely subtly different for each brain).
We just put the interface in, and let the brain learn how to use it - just the way tetrachromats get four colour vision while most humans have 3 colour vision.
Or how humans can learn how to use echolocation, see with their tongues (google seeing with tongue), or see with sound that's derived from videos/pictures ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0lmSYP7OcM [youtube.com] ).
Virtual telekinesis and telepathy (Score:3, Interesting)
Except that DRM and restrictive Copyright laws will probably cripple it...
Re:Virtual telekinesis and telepathy (Score:5, Funny)
We're sorry but the memory you are trying to access has been removed due to a copyright claim by the MPAA.
Re:Virtual telekinesis and telepathy (Score:5, Interesting)
Don't worry. You'll only get such messages in the beginning. As technology advances, you'll simply forget that you've ever seen it (which has the additional advantage for them that you might go again to see it "the first time").
I might do that on purpose! (Score:5, Funny)
Think of the possibilities! You could re-watch your favorite anime minus the filler episodes, then watch them after and you'll think of them as bonus content! You could re-watch the Matrix without the sequels! You could write a short summary of the Lost storyline on the back of a napkin, print out some pics of Kate, then delete your entire memory of the series and take in the good bits ALL AT ONCE!
Oh! Oh! You could re-watch Star Wars with the prequels first, so that when you see episodes 4-6 you'll be like FUCK YEAH NOW IT'S GETTIN' GOOD!
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You could re-watch the Matrix without the sequels!
What sequels?
You could re-watch Star Wars with the prequels first
What prequels?
*sigh* You know, you're right, I do wish we had this technology...
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Isn't there a Red Dwarf episode about that? They go into Rimmer's brain and implant a memory, and then later remove the memory of them implanting the memory... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanks_for_the_Memory_(Red_Dwarf_episode) [wikipedia.org]
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Yay for virtual telekinesis
My girlfriend already has telekinesis. All she has to do is visualize what she wants moved, express that desire verbally, and then I got move it for her, all without the power of her mind!
It's already done (Score:2, Insightful)
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Sight (Score:2)
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communicate from dreams (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:communicate from dreams (Score:4, Funny)
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"Burke, we're taking you off of the Subconscious Programming Team."
"Why? Did the program my subconscious wrote not work?"
"No, it worked fine."
"Did I not follow the code guidelines?"
"No. Look, the problem is that every single variable, function name, and comment refers to female anatomy."
"Oh. Wait, that's the one I wrote while awake!"
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I had lucid dreaming perfected during high school, though I'll be honest, I would prefer to work the day and rest in my dream.
My dreams could be anything I wanted them to be. More fantastical than a Role playing game and more stimulating than a girlfriend. Now that I look back on it, I don't think I'd be able to get any work done, even more distractions than the internet.
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Actually, there's something to this, though not necessarily from dreaming.
I often find that in the 9-10 minutes between my alarm going off the first time and after I've hit the snooze button waiting for the alarm to go off again, I spend what feels like hours thinking about things. My brain slows down again when I have to deal with physical stimulus.
So, if I could have my brain connected into a body/device that could work at the speed of my thoughts rather than the speed of my meat self, that would likely m
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Sleep is for the mind, not the body.
Just remember for safety (Score:2)
use optoisolators for any sensors attached to the human body.
The Keyboard (Score:1, Offtopic)
Win Criteria? (Score:2)
I wonder what the criteria is for winning? Do you have to be able to move something physical? Move a mouse or press a button? According to this wiki article, [wikipedia.org] they've already had some success with the non-humans.
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Hrmmm...that makes it even more curious. I'm assuming that what they want is the cybernetic equivalent of a private sector space launch, you know? But I wonder what that could be? Maybe complete control of a UI where you can press buttons and write sentences just by using precognitive functions? As you and some of the other posts have pointed out, many of the building blocks are already in place.
Depressing (Score:3, Funny)
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If by "us" you mean, "the internet" yes, I can assure you, "we" will be even more depressed than we are after reading the millions of blogs out there.
Signed, the internet.
Actual information (Score:5, Informative)
iPhone GPS app? (Score:1)
Seriously, let's just work on getting "brain in a jar" to a functional state, and get the kinks worked out before Apple gets a hold of it and turns it into an iBody.
Not enough. (Score:2)
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Great Idea, probably won't affect consumers (Score:1)
I can think of a few people ... (Score:2)
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I like to think of the whole planet as a system; each of us as an application in part of the global operating system.
In which case I'd settle for widespread use of alt-F4.
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widespread use of alt-F4
That would explain why reality never works out like you want it to...apparently it's run on Windows.
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The only problem is if management makes me upload the data so they can make sure Job.exe is getting the most attention.
Wait a second, how dangerous is this? (Score:1)
Cyberbrain sclerosis (Score:2)
So what will we do when people start developing Cyberbrain sclerosis? Who will be liable, will it be the indivdual or group who invents the interface or the one who manufactures it or the neurosurgeon who installed it?
And also will section 9 be involved?
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Now that J.D. Salinger has died and is now more popular than ever, it seems more and more likely....
Non-Standard Interface (Score:3, Insightful)
The big problem I see is that unlike regular computer interfaces, which have tightly defined specs for physical connectivity, voltage levels, signalling etc, brains tend to be unique, irregular and dynamic, with only very rough maps available of which area has which function.
Unlike TCP/IP, There's no clear distinction between the link, transport and application layers to work with in the brain, they blend together. So it might be possible to implement on an individual level with a ton of work, but I can't see it happening generally.
Does this count? (Score:2)
If so, I hope they have their checkbook out [youtube.com]
Slashdot covered it [slashdot.org], so it must be legit!
Prize not needed and too small (Score:5, Insightful)
A $10 million prize is absolute peanuts compared to the obvious commercial value of a usable, non-invasive (or at least low-risk) BCI. Just for starters, an effective BCI would largely solve some of the major side effects of a stroke. That right there is a massive, multi-billion dollar market. Another $10 million is not going to substantially stimulate research and development in this area. It's like offering $10 million for a cure for cancer.
Furthermore, this is an invention with applications in dozens of areas. The company or individual that invents it would be swamped with licensing offers.
Compare this to the original X-Prize. There a prize was useful because there was no substantial pre-existing market for the technology being developed and there were relatively few areas of application for the technology. Under those circumstances a prize model makes sense.
But for situations like this one we already have a prize; it's called a patent. Even better, the value of the prize is determined by the market, so there's less of a risk of under or overvaluing the invention.
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"Compare this to the original X-Prize."
I've always thought the X-Prize awards were kind of silly in that the offered prize seemed too small given the R&D expenses, and potential market value of the accomplishment.
Then I realized this is just clever Venture Capitalism. You want to throw $10M into a startup, to help it with a portion of startup costs for bringing the project to market. You don't want to throw a lot of money at R&D in the initial phases when you have no idea if the person/team/company
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Then I realized this is just clever Venture Capitalism. You want to throw $10M into a startup, to help it with a portion of startup costs for bringing the project to market. You don't want to throw a lot of money at R&D in the initial phases when you have no idea if the person/team/company in question will be able to deliver something legitimate or not.
Actually venture capitalism is usually most valuable at the R&D stage. The X-Prize is a VC who only wants to come in after the idea has already been
Bad Idea (Score:2)
KVM... (Score:2)
Where's my money.
Keyboard. (Score:2)
Please no iPhone app in my head! (Score:2)
The possibilities for such an interface are amazing yet I have to say that I really find it distasteful when 'product placement' intervenes in an otherwise fun comment. It casts a pall over the entire comment and denigrates it to marketing-speak.
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I think it's already here. (Score:2)
I'd be very surprised if this technology doesn't already exist.
Richard Dolan speaks here [youtube.com] about what he terms the, "Break Away Civilization".
The idea being that black budget technology is so advanced, has been growing of its own accord for so long, and is so impossible to reveal given its nature, the result is that people working within its structure are essentially no longer dealing with the same reality as the rest of us. The slaves get sticks and fire while the master of the house gets to use the current
Banging my head on the keyboard... (Score:2)
Does that count?
Baud rate? (Score:2)
For a commercial takeoff, we need to expand beyond quadruplegic patients and the locked-in. Always loved the idea, but let's be honest -- if typing is faster, typing will still win. And that's just output. For input, I don't think competing with something high-speed like vision is all that important. Just a BCI that would allow for IM rates might as well be freakin' telepathy.
Not enough of a prize (Score:2)
The Russians are already WAY ahead of us... (Score:2)
The web browser was obviously just a spinoff technology!
I already have a couple... (Score:2)
My keyboard and mouse already provide a brain-computer interface.
What!? Not the same thing, you say?
I beg to differ. All of the current technologies that might be used for this purpose are just fancy keyboards using some other kind of sensing technology rather than hall-effect switches. The systems don't understand what you're thinking they just interpret the activation of certain neuron groups as on-off switches. You can train your brain to trigger these neuron groups in pretty much the same way you
Ten Million?!? (Score:2)
Pfft; if someone solves this, ten million will be pocket change.
Don't Bother (Score:2)
Microsoft Already patented it!
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=6609 [zdnet.com]
United States Patent Application 20070185697
Kind Code A1
Tan; Desney S. ; et al. August 9, 2007
Using electroencephalograph signals for task classification and activity recognition
Abstract
A method for classifying brain states in electroencephalograph (EEG) signals comprising building a classifier model and classifying brain states using the classifier model is described. Brain states are determined. Labeled EEG data is collected and d
Cybus Industries (Score:2)
new bodies to disabled people
You will be upgraded.
TEN?? I offer $100,000,000.00 for this...! (Score:2)
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That would assume he can actually add 1 + 1. I think Al Gore is running off of a "speak and spell" by the way he talks. Either that or he is running of the device E.T. built utilizing a speak and spell... "Al Gore, Phone Home"....
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You'll think differently about this as soon as someone rooted your brain.
On second thought: No you won't.
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Well, not exactly. The holographic (more correctly holonomic [wikipedia.org]) brain theory says that cognition arises from brainwave interference patterns. Our senses act as frequency analyzers, and the brain operates on their output. It's a fascinating idea and one I am partial to, but the evidence is (AFAIK) scarce.
only software modeling is needed at this point to interpret the waves
This may be just a tad optimistic.
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It's a sad commentary on modern media that the first thing I thought of when I read "Braingate" was "Is there some kind of mind-control scandal I missed?"