Scientists say our brains will connect to computers within decades to form an 'internet of thoughts' that will provide instant access to information.
The Borg is widely depicted as an oppressive force in the fictional universe of "Star Trek," but there are some real-life scientists who may not have gotten the message.
An international collaboration, led by researchers at UC Berkeley and the U.S. Institute for Molecular Manufacturing, has published a new analysis predicting that nanotechnology breakthroughs are inevitably leading us to develop a "Human Brain/Cloud Interface" (B/CI) that connects brain cells to vast cloud-computing networks in real time.
The technology is derived from the work of futurist Ray Kurzweil, who is perhaps most famous for the book "The Singularity is Near," in which he predicted that the human race will eventually merge with artificial intelligence.
Imagine a future technology that would provide instant access to the world's knowledge and artificial intelligence, simply by thinking about a specific topic or question. Communications, education, work, and the world as we know it would be transformed.
The latest step in this direction has to do with the development of nanobots that are safe to inject into the human brain that can monitor and control signals to and from brain cells for easy upload to the cloud.
"These devices would navigate the human vasculature, cross the blood-brain barrier, and precisely autoposition themselves among, or even within brain cells," explained Robert Freitas Jr., senior author of the new research. "They would then wirelessly transmit encoded information to and from a cloud-based supercomputer network for real-time brain-state monitoring and data extraction."
Interfaces connecting human brains directly to a computer may not be as far off as you think according to scientists. One such device, developed by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), is shown
The interfaces wouldn't just stop at linking humans and computers, say researchers. A network of brains could also help form what they call a 'global superbrain' that would allow for collective thought.
Sound a little too much like the Borg? Not to worry, say researchers. It's all being developed with the best of intentions.
"A human B/CI system mediated by neural-nanorobotics could empower individuals with instantaneous access to all cumulative human knowledge available in the cloud, while significantly improving human learning capacities and intelligence," says lead author Dr. Nuno Martins.
A universal superbrain
Imagine a world where you could instantly access all the information on the internet, and could even learn new skills using a Matrix-like interface that downloads information straight into your brain. Ultimately, humanity can develop a universal superbrain — a collective consciousness — that we can all tap into. You know, for the sake of world peace and global enlightenment.
"With the advance of neural-nanorobotics, we envisage the future creation of 'superbrains' that can harness the thoughts and thinking power of any number of humans and machines in real time," explained lead author Dr. Nuno Martins. "This shared cognition could revolutionize democracy, enhance empathy, and ultimately unite culturally diverse groups into a truly global society."
Of course, we'll need supercomputers with superior processing speeds to avoid a complete bottleneck of information, before any sort of idealistic B/CI world can ever develop. But that technology is well on its way, predict the researchers.
Another challenge? Convincing people to inject nanobots into their brains. There are still significant hurdles to getting these tiny technological overlords safely into our heads through the blood/brain barrier. But like with most technology, if it's possible, it's probably inevitable.
When can we connect?
According to the group's estimates, even existing supercomputers have processing speeds capable of handling the necessary volumes of neural data for B/CI – and they're getting faster, fast.
Rather, transferring neural data to and from supercomputers in the cloud is likely to be the ultimate bottleneck in B/CI development.
"This challenge includes not only finding the bandwidth for global data transmission," cautions Martins, "but also, how to enable data exchange with neurons via tiny devices embedded deep in the brain."
One solution proposed by the authors is the use of 'magnetoelectric nanoparticles' to effectively amplify communication between neurons and the cloud.
"These nanoparticles have been used already in living mice to couple external magnetic fields to neuronal electric fields – that is, to detect and locally amplify these magnetic signals and so allow them to alter the electrical activity of neurons," explains Martins. "This could work in reverse, too: electrical signals produced by neurons and nanorobots could be amplified via magnetoelectric nanoparticles, to allow their detection outside of the skull."
Getting these nanoparticles – and nanorobots – safely into the brain via the circulation, would be perhaps the greatest challenge of all in B/CI.
Resistance is futile, as the Borg likes to say.
We can only hope that when the technology is eventually developed, that we'll have the choice to opt-in or opt-out, without zombie-like cybernetic peers chasing us down attempting to assimilate us into the Collective. Then again, if the number of hours we each spend staring at our phones is any indication, maybe we'll all go willingly.
Source; Human Brain/Cloud Interface <https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2019.00112>
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