Beyond Boundaries
[1] A pioneering neuroscientist shows how the
long-thought merger of brains with machines is about
to become a paradigm-shifting reality.
Imagine living in a world where people use their
[5] computers, drive their cars, and communicate with one
another simply by thinking. In this stunning and inspiring
work, the award-winning neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis
shares his revolutionary insights into how the brain
creates thought and the human sense of self — and how
[10] this might be augmented by machines. It sounds like
something out of science fiction but it is real. It is the
next frontier in understanding the power of the brain.
Beyond Boundaries is the first book to chronicle
the science behind the creation of these brain-machine
[15] interfaces, a revolutionary technology that has the
capacity to transform human society and shape a new
“industry of the brain”, a potential trillion-dollar global
enterprise. This is one of the great adventures of
contemporary science, and Nicolelis offers a unique
[20] front-row seat.
As we observe Nicolelis in his lab, he describes
with cinematic precision his experiments training rats
to sense the world magnetically, rather than with their
whiskers and sensory organs, and his work successfully
[25] teaching monkeys to use their brains alone to control
the movements of a robotic arm thousands of miles away.
Such brain-machine interfaces, or BMIs, may one
day restore mobility to severely paralyzed patients —
through the use of membrane-like “exoskeletons” that
[30] patients will wear like suits — and they offer a path to a
cure for neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s
disease. There are also fascinating implications for
deep-sea and deep-space exploration emergency
response, and long-distance communication.
[35] Beyond Boundaries promises to reshape our
concepts of the technological future to a world filled with
promise and hope.
Beyond Boundaries. Disponível em: . Acesso em: 10 out. 2012. Adaptado.
About this cartoon, it’s correct to say that the computer is
