Neuroscientists Develop 'Organic Computer' by Interconnecting Multiple Animal Brains
ByA team of researchers is taking literally the phrase "two minds are better than one" in their attempt to wire two animals' brains together.
According to Live Science, authors of a study published in the journal Scientific Reports are trying to find a method to enhance problem solving by revving up brainpower. For their study, the scientists are trying to develop "organic computers" by interconnecting pairs of brains of monkeys and rats.
"This is the first demonstration of a shared brain-machine interface, a paradigm that has been translated successfully over the past decades from studies in animals all the way to clinical applications," study co-author Miguel Nicolelis, a co-director of the Center for Neuroengineering at the Duke University School of Medicine, said in a press release. "We foresee that shared BMIs will follow the same track, and could soon be translated to clinical practice."
For one experiment, the researchers created two- and three-brain "brainets" with rhesus macaque monkeys in which the animals shared brain activity while sitting in different rooms, Live Science reported. In various trials, the monkeys tried to guide a robotic arm to touch a target. They received rewards when successful.
"We hope to be able to report data on such research in a few months," Nicolelis told Live Science. "One day this could also help stroke patients, epilepsy patients and patients with other neurological disorders. Also, this could be done non-invasively, instead of having to use implants like we did in our experiments with monkeys and rats."