Download Knowledge Directly to Your Brain, Matrix-Style

Well...the preliminary stage thereof anyhow...

For the first time, researchers have been able to hack into the process of learning in the brain, using induced brain patterns to create a learned behavior. It’s not quite as advanced as an instant kung-fu download, and it’s not as sleek as cognitive inception, but it’s still an important finding that could lead to new teaching and rehabilitation techniques.

Future therapies could decode the brain activity patterns of an athlete or a musician, and use them as a benchmark for teaching another person a new activity, according to the researchers.

Scientists from Boston University and ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories in Kyoto used functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, to study the learning process. They were examining the adult brain’s aptitude for visual perceptual learning, or VPL, in which repetitive training improves a person’s performance on a particular task. Whether adults can do this as well as young people has been an ongoing debate in neuroscience.

Full POPSCI Article

Oh the possibilities here! What would be the first skill or "activity" you'd want to have uploaded? That is a tough question for me, too many to list. Think of the marketability aspect if they are able to perfect this, Vanilla Skyesque, at least I think that was the movie where they uploaded scenarios that you "lived" out. Even more, could they eventually do a brain transplant...not a physical transplant in the conventional sense, but just the conscience and adjoining subcon.

The possibilities are quite fascinating the more I think about it.

ETA: For those having link trouble, here is a link to the "technology" articles, it should be the third one down, the link I originally posted is working for me, my apologies for the inconvenience.

POPSCI Technology Articles
Note: these stories will most likely update with time and this story will most likely be archived eventually.

reply to post by UberL33t


Hmmm the link doesn't seem to be working for me. I would like to know more about "induced brain patterns" and how it works. A story I'm writing is based on a similar concept (see my signature).

reply to post by UberL33t


Maybe its just me, maybe I'm just cynical...but I don't see this as good...I see this as a fullproof way of creating a obedient population of zombie cloned slave workers who are good at "skills" such as doing as they are told, not asking questions etc etc...

They will impliment this forcefully like they do education, rehabilitation, etc...

They will start with prisons and rehab centers first where the courts order them to be "re-educated" or face indefinate imprisonment.

Hell they already have the enough drugs and senseless vauge laws made to eventually get every single last person with an ounce of free will caught up in the machine.

reply to post by UberL33t


I can't get the link to work either, tried searching for it on google but even that link didn't work so its like they pulled the story.


ETA
Found a similar link : old.news.yahoo.com...

and the original www.sciencemag.org...

reply to post by UberL33t


This is beautiful! The first thing that I would do is get some even better guitar skills than the opens i've been training my hand to throw out for the past 10 years!

On another note, OP, your avatar seems to go PERFECTLY with this discovery.

You know that the whole problem with this is that it would surely be used for evil.
Heck, the US government probably already uses these techniques.

Manchurian Candidate?

I would however like to understand how a womans brain works... think they could do that?
Probably not, this is science, not science fiction, oh well...

Interesting enough, I cannot pinpoint something in particular I'd want to "learn" that way, maybe something that would make me enjoy washing my dishes would be a good start I wouldn't like to be one of the first to try it thought, wouldn't like to end bugged because one of the instruction put into my brain would be in conflict with already existing instructions. In fact the more I think about it, I prefer the old way of learning, trial and error.

Originally posted by polarwarrior
reply to post by UberL33t

 

I can't get the link to work either, tried searching for it on google but even that link didn't work so its like they pulled the story.

It seems you are correct. They've removed the story for some reason.

The possibilities of this ARE great but the way it will end up being used is not so great.

I see it like this: The government or corporations will buy all patents for this and then decide who gets what knowledge and skills based on the amount of money they have.
Or if its from the government, they can create the "perfect" version of slavery where they program you what they need you to do when you're born and also take away or mask your creativity and judgement.

I'd love to look at the bright side of things but the way things seem to be going, I'm seeing a William Gibson vision of this technologies use.

Originally posted by UberL33t

For the first time, researchers have been able to hack into the process of learning in the brain, using induced brain patterns to create a learned behavior. It’s not quite as advanced as an instant kung-fu download, and it’s not as sleek as cognitive inception, but it’s still an important finding that could lead to new teaching and rehabilitation techniques.
.

Full POPSCI Article

I'm sure this process has been used before or is being used today.
But in a much more subtle fashion.


I wonder what else is used to "induce brain patterns"...?
Perhaps television programming?

Wasn't there a study on that?
Or at least a paper...HERE...

The Google cached version is still available:
Download Knowledge Directly to Your Brain, Matrix-Style [cached]

Here's another snippet from the article:

“It can ‘incept’ a person to acquire new learning, skills, or memory, or possibly to restore skills or knowledge that has been damaged through accident, disease, or aging, without a person’s awareness of what is learned or memorized,” they write.

So it can insert knowledge and memories into a persons mind without them even knowing...

Sorry OP, but there's already a thread discussing this exact same topic in the same forum:

'Downloading' New Skills Right Into Brains Due Soon

reply to post by UberL33t


reminds me of an episode of the twilight zone i watched recently where in the future you can buy memories

the downfall is those memories have to come from someone... ie. if u want memories on learning to play guitar some other smuck had to have sold his memories of learning the guitar
the episode witnessed an individual selling most of his memories and forgetting most of his life from what school he went to for university to the first time he made love

though hopefully as this tech develops they can copy memories instead of removing them for others to use

Maybe this matrix-style brain download machine could make me not so miserable and dysfunctional

reply to post by SonicInfinity


Thank you, please direct further discussion in the thread referenced above.

Please direct your comments to this ongoing Thread

'Downloading' New Skills Right Into Brains Due Soon

Thanks

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