Computer Implant Could Help Restore Memories

The human mind is a truly complicated creature, so much so that even until now, there is far less that we know about it compared to what we already do. Scientists over at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have worked to develop a small computer that could very well see it implanted in the human brain down the road in an effort to restore memories of one whose nerve cells have degenerated due to disease, or damaged in a combat or accidental situation.

The lab itself has already picked up a $2.5 million contract from DARPA, also known as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, in order to develop a neural implant alongside researchers from UCLA and Medronic, with the latter being a high-tech medical device firm.

It is hoped that this completed memory implant will eventually be prepared for clinical trials by the time the next World Cup kicks off in Russia. I am quite sure the Brazilians would want a computer implant that could help them forget the pain of the 7-1 drubbing that they suffered at the hands of the Germans yesterday though, instead of remembering it. That aside, “multi-scale computational models” must first arrive before the ultimate hardware can be achieved. Will this mean the start of the end of diseases such as Alzheimer’s? We can only hope for the best, and it does look as though future contraceptives could go in the same direction, too.

Edwin Kee
Categories: Medical
Tags: implant, Science