Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Now scientists can virtually read our minds, UCL study shows
timesonline.co.uk ^ | March 12, 2009 | Mark Henderson

Posted on 03/12/2009 1:31:45 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY

A mind-reading experiment by British scientists has shown that a person’s thoughts can be decoded from a brain scan, offering new insights into the formation of memory.

Researchers can tell where a person is “standing” in a virtual reality room purely by looking at patterns of activity in the brain, the study at University College London has found.

The findings indicate that it is possible to read at least a small part of people’s minds using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and open a new window on the way the brain learns and constructs memories.

“With this kind of research, we are approaching the realm of mind-reading,” said Eleanor Maguire, a leader of the study.

Her colleague Demis Hassabis said: “You can predict where someone is standing by reading the patterns in their brain activity. You can track what is purely an internal thought.”

While the research could shed light on disorders that involve changes to brain structure or memory loss, such as amnesia, dementia and stroke, it does not suggest that MRI mind-reading could soon be used to detect lies or reveal thoughts without their consent.

The procedure works only with the co-operation of its subjects, who must repeat the virtual reality game again and again in the scanner to calibrate the computer algorithm that matches brain activity to particular thoughts. It can also detect only very simple thoughts.

“We can rest easy in terms of issues surrounding mind-reading,” Professor Maguire said. “While technically we were able to predict somebody’s spatial memory from their brain activity, there was nothing intrusive about what we did.

“This analysis technique requires the person to be co-operative with us, to train the algorithm we use on many instances of a particular memory.

(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Science
KEYWORDS:

1 posted on 03/12/2009 1:31:46 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY

That’s nothing. Liberals have been doing that for decades.


2 posted on 03/12/2009 1:37:35 PM PDT by Lorianne
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY

“it is possible to read at least a small part of people’s minds”

This has been a military objective of the major powers for 60 years.

You can be sure if this is what’s public, the cutting edge is 100x more....


3 posted on 03/12/2009 1:37:51 PM PDT by chuck_the_tv_out
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY

What am I thinking?


4 posted on 03/12/2009 1:40:26 PM PDT by Thebaddog (Obama really did believe that stuff he was saying during the campaign)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY

Resistance is futile.

5 posted on 03/12/2009 1:40:50 PM PDT by Free Vulcan (No prisoners. No mercy. 2010 awaits.....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY

They won’t come into my mind. I have my tin foil hat!
/sarc.


6 posted on 03/12/2009 2:10:47 PM PDT by jonrick46 (The Obama Administration is a blueprint for Fabian Socialism.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY
Man that will take all the fun out of water boarding.
7 posted on 03/12/2009 2:28:00 PM PDT by mountainlion (concerned conservative.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Thebaddog
Thebaddog: What am I thinking?

Oboy, oboy, go for walk...wag tail...wag tail, chase cat....fetch stick.....mark firehydrant....hump good looking neighbors leg.....

Sorry, I was playing with your screen-names' attributes.;-)

8 posted on 03/12/2009 3:02:01 PM PDT by Sarajevo (You jealous because the voices only talk to me.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Sarajevo
Oboy, oboy, go for walk...wag tail...wag tail, chase cat....fetch stick.....mark firehydrant....hump good looking neighbors leg.....

That is right! Now what am I thinking, and what does a man do standing up, a woman sitting down and me on three legs?

9 posted on 03/12/2009 4:51:58 PM PDT by Thebaddog (Obama really did believe that stuff he was saying during the campaign)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: AdmSmith; Berosus; Convert from ECUSA; dervish; Ernest_at_the_Beach; Fred Nerks; george76; ...

“It’s the StaPuft Marshmallow Man.”


10 posted on 03/12/2009 5:10:01 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/____________________ Profile updated Monday, January 12, 2009)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Thebaddog

LOL!


11 posted on 03/12/2009 6:32:33 PM PDT by Sarajevo (You jealous because the voices only talk to me.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: Free ThinkerNY
Mind reading is a lot easier than you think:


12 posted on 03/12/2009 6:34:48 PM PDT by Richard Kimball (We're all criminals. They just haven't figured out what some of us have done yet.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson