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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jun 19, 2011 14:44:46 GMT 2
Why the Human Brain Can't Multitask
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jun 25, 2011 22:47:33 GMT 2
" A new brain implant tested on rats restored lost memories at the flick of a switch, heralding a possible treatment method for patients with Alzheimer’s disease, stroke or amnesia. Such a “neural prosthesis” could someday be used to facilitate the memory-forming process and help patients remember. The device can mimic the brain’s own neural signals, thereby serving as a surrogate for a piece of the brain associated with forming memories. If there is sufficient neural activity to trace, the device can restore memories after they have been lost. If it’s used with a normal, functioning hippocampus, the device can even enhance memory. In the study, scientists at Wake Forest University and the University of Southern California trained rats to learn a task, pressing one lever after another to receive water. In a series of tests, the rats pressed one lever and were then distracted. They had to remember which one they’d already pressed and therefore which lever to press next, left or right, in order to receive their reward. The team attached electrodes to the rats’ brains, connected to two areas in the hippocampus, called CA1 and CA3. Prior research has shown that the hippocampus converts short-term memory into long-term memory. The team recorded the signals between these regions as the rats performed their tasks, and then they drugged the rats so that the hippocampus regions could not communicate. The rats forgot which lever to press next, said Theodore Berger, a biomedical engineering professor at USC and lead author of the study, which is published in the Journal of Neural Engineering. “The rats still showed that they knew ‘when you press left first, then press right next time, and vice-versa,’” Berger said. “And they still knew in general to press levers for water, but they could only remember whether they had pressed left or right for 5-10 seconds.” Then, the team made an artificial hippocampus, which could duplicate the normal neural signals between the CA1 and CA3 regions. They turned it on, and replayed the previously recorded signal from CA1 — like a recorded message from the brain. The rats remembered. “Flip the switch on, and the rats remember. Flip it off, and the rats forget,” Berger said. Although this is a long way from being tested in humans, the research shows that if there’s enough information about the neural coding of memories, the signal patterns can be recorded and duplicated, and restored later through a neural implant. This could be difficult to do in patients with severely limited memory, as the New York Times points out — there needs to be a memory trace that can be recorded and amplified. But for patients with dementia, enhancing the memory-formation process can be useful — remembering where you put the keys, for instance, or where the bathroom is located. Simple memories like those could keep people independent for longer periods. The researchers want to test the device in monkeys next, according to USC. "
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 4, 2011 11:43:13 GMT 2
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 11, 2011 12:20:52 GMT 2
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Post by Claudiu Goretchi on Jul 11, 2011 15:24:58 GMT 2
"40 km of subway will take 3 years at best" Ia sa vorbeasca si cu Oprescu
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 12, 2011 14:00:12 GMT 2
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Post by Mihai Constantin on Jul 12, 2011 17:13:38 GMT 2
Ca veni vorba de "Brain Control" ;D,in anul scolar care tocmai s-a incheiat s-a deschis la mine in liceu o clasa seciala numita: "Laboratorul Nexus" - coordonat de dl.Florin Munteanu- implexus.ning.com/profile/FlorinMunteanu - mi s-a parut destul de interesant asa ca am participat si eu.(se tinea doar miercurea). Tema de anul acesta era binecunoscuta tema despre ceea ce simt plantele si daca acestea reactioneaza la vreun stimul extern: - www.areplantsconscious.com/Toti cei care participam eram impartiti in 2 grupe: - prima grupa se ocupa de soft - si anume programele realizate in LABView - a 2-a echipa se ocupa de hard - adica asamblarea tuturor senzorilor necesari (senzori de presiune, de temperatura, etc) pentru proiectul final si punerea lor cap la cap. E unul faceam parte din prima echipa desi eram destul de atras si de partea de hard. Anyway, sa nu credeti ca nu ne si distram sau ca era un loc plictisitor pt ca pe langa aceste lucruri obisnuite mai primeam si "dispozitive" foarte interesante. Odata ne-au fost aduse 2 casti neuronale - asemanatoare cu aceasta [a href=" "] [/a][/center] numai ca acelea mai aveau "un brat" ce se aseza pe frunte si erau putin mai compacte. Din pacate am apucat sa testam doar una dintre cele 2 casti neuronale insa am ramas placut uimit. ;D Aceasta casca era insotita de un cd cu mai multe jocuri neuronale. Pentru inceput, inainte de a incepe jocurile, trebuia sa iti testezi capacitatile mentale cu ajutorul a 3 aplicatii. - prima aplicatie iti masura pe 2 contoare diferite atat nivelul atentiei(concentrarea) cat si nivelul imaginatiei(relaxarii). - a 2-a aplicatie masura separat concentrarea punandu-te sa explodezi un butoi cu pulbere doar cu ajutorul mintii.(treptat cu cat erai mai concentrat butoiul scanteia, iar intr-un sfarsit exploda - doar ca am descoperit ca te puteai concentra si asupra altui lucru nu numai asupra butoiului cum credeam initial si acesta tot exploda intr-un final) - a 3-a aplicatie masura separat relaxarea si in aceasta aplicatie trebuia sa ridici o sfera in aer si sa o mentii cat mai mult si cat mai sus posibil (am descoperit ca daca inchindeam ochii ne puteam concentra mai bine pentru ca dupa cum stim ochii sunt cei care transmit cele mai multe informatii catre creier) Si de asemenea joculetele in sine aveau la baza aceste 3 aplicatii. Sper ca veti avea rabdare sa cititi pentru ca am scris destul de mult, dar dupa parerea mea este un subiect care merita. ;D Bafta la citit!
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 13, 2011 9:29:02 GMT 2
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Post by Mihai Constantin on Jul 13, 2011 15:58:02 GMT 2
Casca cu care am lucrat noi era exact ca aceasta :
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 13, 2011 18:55:51 GMT 2
Noi doi am mai discutat despre acest subiect, dar poate ii intereseaza si pe altii. Lucrurile de acolo chiar tin de SF, este greu de spus care a fost realitatea, dar subiectul este foarte interesant.
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Post by Claudiu Goretchi on Jul 13, 2011 23:13:20 GMT 2
Cu calatoritul in timp, e mai greu.Chiar ma intreb cand se va realiza asta.Dupa mine este ultimul prag.
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Post by Cristian Anghelache on Jul 15, 2011 13:51:46 GMT 2
Will Computers Ever Understand Emotion?
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Post by Ciprian Valean on Aug 5, 2011 9:50:19 GMT 2
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Post by Adrian Constantin on Aug 11, 2011 12:15:43 GMT 2
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