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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| How the brain controls a 'mind machine' | How the brain controls a 'mind machine' |
| (1 day later) | |
| Activity observed in the brain when using a "mind machine" is similar to how the brain learns new motor skills, scientists have found. | Activity observed in the brain when using a "mind machine" is similar to how the brain learns new motor skills, scientists have found. |
| Participants' neural activity was recorded by using sensors implanted in their brain, which were linked to a computer that translated electrical impulses into actions. | Participants' neural activity was recorded by using sensors implanted in their brain, which were linked to a computer that translated electrical impulses into actions. |
| The researchers believe people will be able to perform increasingly complex tasks just by thinking them. | The researchers believe people will be able to perform increasingly complex tasks just by thinking them. |
| The study is published in PNAS journal. | The study is published in PNAS journal. |
| The subjects in the study moved from thinking about a task to automatically processing a task, in a similar way to how other motor movements are learnt - like playing the piano or learning to ride a bicycle. | The subjects in the study moved from thinking about a task to automatically processing a task, in a similar way to how other motor movements are learnt - like playing the piano or learning to ride a bicycle. |
| This was shown by the areas of neurons that were active in the brain, which changed as subjects became more adept at a mental task. | This was shown by the areas of neurons that were active in the brain, which changed as subjects became more adept at a mental task. |
| Scientists analysed the results of a mind control task on a brain-computer interface (BCI) of seven participants with epilepsy. | Scientists analysed the results of a mind control task on a brain-computer interface (BCI) of seven participants with epilepsy. |
| Mind control | Mind control |
| They were asked to play a computer game where they had to manipulate a ball to move across a screen - using only their mind. | They were asked to play a computer game where they had to manipulate a ball to move across a screen - using only their mind. |
| Recent studies using BCIs have shown that our minds can control various objects, like a robotic arm, "but there is still a lot of mystery in the way we learn to control them", said Jeremiah Wander from the University of Washington in Seattle, US, who led the study. | Recent studies using BCIs have shown that our minds can control various objects, like a robotic arm, "but there is still a lot of mystery in the way we learn to control them", said Jeremiah Wander from the University of Washington in Seattle, US, who led the study. |
| "It's similar to learning a new motor task, but in other ways it's really different as there is no sensory feedback coming to your brain." | "It's similar to learning a new motor task, but in other ways it's really different as there is no sensory feedback coming to your brain." |
| He believes his research could help individuals master more advanced levels of mind control. | He believes his research could help individuals master more advanced levels of mind control. |
| "If we slowly work to add in more and more difficulty, we can push the limits on how complex the devices are that people can control. | |
| "We now have an understanding from the brain signals themselves, as to whether or not a user has developed proficiency with the current level of complexity of a task," he explained. | "We now have an understanding from the brain signals themselves, as to whether or not a user has developed proficiency with the current level of complexity of a task," he explained. |
| Ian Daly from the University of Reading, UK, who works on non-invasive BCIs, said that the study would help other scientists build BCIs that are more useful for analysing the different interactive paths of the brain. | Ian Daly from the University of Reading, UK, who works on non-invasive BCIs, said that the study would help other scientists build BCIs that are more useful for analysing the different interactive paths of the brain. |
| "We expect from previous reports in the literature that there's a similar response in the brain when you make a movement and when you imagine a movement. | "We expect from previous reports in the literature that there's a similar response in the brain when you make a movement and when you imagine a movement. |
| "The novelty of this study does not come from discovering the area is involved in learning. What is novel is studying the learning effect of subsequent trials in a BCI context," Dr Daly told BBC News. | "The novelty of this study does not come from discovering the area is involved in learning. What is novel is studying the learning effect of subsequent trials in a BCI context," Dr Daly told BBC News. |
| "This paper highlights that neural networks of the brain are not static; they are dynamic and they change over time." | "This paper highlights that neural networks of the brain are not static; they are dynamic and they change over time." |