American entrepreneur Elon Musk recently said that his brain-computer interface company "Neural Connection" carried out the first human transplant of a brain-computer interface device. At the moment, the transplanter "appears to have completely ** and has no adverse effects" and can already move the mouse through the brain. According to Musk, the first brain-computer interface product of the "Neural Connection" company is called "Telepathy".After the brain is implanted with a device, you can control your mobile phone, computer, etc. just by using your mindPeople who have lost the function of their limbs will be the first users of this product. In May last year, the company received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to initiate human clinical trials of brain implant devices. In September of the same year, the recruitment of volunteers for clinical trials began. 
What is a "brain-computer interface"? Brain-computer interfaces are a common scenario in science fiction works. In recent years, with the continuous development of brain-computer technology, people with aphasia have frequently appeared in our field of vision to "speak" and command machinery through "ideas". Musk released a monkey doing experiments in 2021. The monkey manipulated his mind and typed a line of words on the computer: "I want to eat a snack". Behind this behavior is the support of the more traditional standard brain-computer interface. 
Cochlear implants, which help people with disabilities access sound, are the most successful and clinically applied brain-computer interface technology to date. It works by converting sound signals into electrical signals and transmitting them directly to the brain, which can help a large number of deaf people regain their ability to sound and communicate. 
In addition, the characters in the movie, such as Avatar or Iron Man, all use brain-computer imaging to flexibly operate their body movements. Although it is not yet possible, they are the expectations of scientists for the future practice of brain-computer connectivity. 
What exactly is a "brain-computer interface"? Expert introduction,Brain-computer interface refers to the connection between the human brain and external devices to realize the information exchange between the human brain and external devices. To put it simply, a brain-computer interface is a direct "conversation" between a human brain and a computer or other electronic device. Through this technology, we can convert the brain's thoughts into signals that the computer can understand, or the computer's signals into instructions that the brain can understand. It allows people with disabilities or brain diseases to regain some motor ability and gain some simple interaction skills. What are the types of "brain-computer interfaces"? In recent years, after years of development by domestic and foreign scientific research teams, brain-computer interfaces have made a lot of progressInvasivewithNon-invasiveTwo major technical paths. Musk's brain-computer interface company "Neural Connection" focuses on invasive brain-computer interfaces, while some companies focus on exploring the application of non-invasive brain-computer interfaces. According to experts, China and some European countries take non-invasive brain interfaces as the core, and the United States mainly focuses on invasive brain interfaces. From an application perspective, invasive brain interfaces are limited to some medically necessary research; In addition to medical applications, non-invasive brain interfaces can also be used in various occasions such as education and entertainment.
What fields can "brain-computer interfaces" be applied to? In the future, brain-computer interface is expected to be widely used in medical, entertainment and other fields. For example, brain-computer grafting can be used to help paralyzed patients regain functions such as walking and speaking; It can be used to help blind and deaf people perceive their surroundings; It can also be used to develop new forms of entertainment, such as brain-computer interface games. Currently,Brain-computer grafting is most widely used to help people with disabilities flexibly use prosthetics. When nerve signals are inserted, the prosthesis can perform very sensitive and complex operations. 
Nowadays, in Guangdong, Zhejiang and other places, brain-computer interfaces have entered the practice stage in many laboratories. For example, the intelligent bionic hand can extract the weak electromyography and neuroelectrical signals on the arm, identify the intention of movement, and achieve "hand movement"; The hood that collects EEG can collect the electrical signals emitted by the brain, convert them into a visual EEG map, and judge whether a person's attention is concentrated through the fluctuation of ripples. 
Is it safe to study "brain-computer interfaces"? Although Musk's brain-computer interface project has made some progress and can indeed help many people in need, there has been a lot of discussion about the safety of research related to the "neural connection" company, and the company has also faced scrutiny from the relevant authorities. 
In November last year, four members of the U.S. Congress signed a letter to the U.S.** and the Exchange Commission, asking the agency to review the "Neural Connection" company. In the letter, they said that records of experiments conducted on monkeys by Neural Connections showed that the brain-implanted device adversely affected the health of the animals, showing symptoms such as paralysis, seizures and brain swelling, and that at least 12 young and healthy monkeys were euthanized after participating in the experiments, while Musk downplayed investors' concerns about the results of his animal trials. In fact, with the development of brain-computer interface, there are more and more discussions about whether brain-computer interfaces are risky and how to deal with ethical issues. The reporter learned from the Ministry of Science and Technology that the Artificial Intelligence Ethics Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Ethics Committee recently compiled the "Ethical Guidelines for Brain-Computer Interface Research", which is the first ethical guideline in the field of brain-computer interface research in China. The guidelines make it clear that the research on brain-computer interface should ensure that the research has social value, and should be mainly focused on restorative brain-computer interface, emphasizing the health needs of the public through technological development. For more information, click **