‘Watt’ a Shocker! New DARPA Project Seeks to Electrically Rewire Human Brains

The brain is often compared to a computer, a thrumming mass of circuitry, software and wires. If that’s the case, it’s surely possible to rewire it – to ensure mankind’s onboard central processing unit is the best it can be.

That’s the theory behind the latest project from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the US military’s shadowy research branch. It aims to enhance human cognitive abilities by activating “synaptic plasticity” — under the banner of Targeted Neuroplasticity Training (TNT).

​The idea was inspired by recent research, suggesting the stimulation of peripheral nerves, which relay signals between the brain, the spinal cord and the rest of the body, enhance an individual’s ability to learn, via triggering the release of neurochemicals that reorganize connections in the brain.

© PHOTO: PIXABAY

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Under the auspices of the project, DARPA is funding eight separate projects targeting those nerves with electrical stimulation, the ultimate objective being to translate those findings into real-world applications that boost military training regimens.

For example, allowing a soldier to learn a new skill (such as a foreign language) in weeks rather than years. If successful, such an innovation would have a huge impact on the armed forces — and the wider world.

One team, at Johns Hopkins University, will focus on speech and hearing, another at the University of Florida perception, executive function, decision-making, and spatial navigation in rodents, another at Arizona State University visual, sensory and motor functions.

​There are already a number of products on the market offering cognitive, psychological, and physical performance enhancement — although whether that offer is genuine is debatable. Nonetheless, there are real world examples of “brain zapping” technology being used in certain spheres — US basketball team Golden State Warriors claim it gives their players the edge in training. In November 2016, US military scientists claimed to have artificially enhanced cognitive skills in staff using electrical brain stimulators.

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​Still, it is not entirely understood how these devices work, if they actually do — DARPA program is to settle this debate, testing the efficacy of both implanted and non-invasive devices to understand not only whether they actually work, but if so, how. If there is indeed a link between neurostimulation and improved learning capabilities, the program will enter its second phase, and design devices that enhance training in foreign language learning, image analysis, and spatial navigation tasks.

The University teams involved have hitherto focused on repairing damaged brain circuits, and using targeted plasticity therapy to treat afflictions such as PTSD.

The big question now is whether their experience in recovering lost or deteriorated functions can translate into facilitating the addition of new functions and abilities.

​Many potential stumbling blocks remain. First and foremost, whether the research will yield tangible results is little more than speculation. Additionally, the project is likely to be highly controversial — public anxiety and ethical debate over human experimentation and intrusive biotechnology is intense.

In April, a story about a Swedish firm forcibly microchipping their employees to monitor how long they spent on bathroom breaks spread like wildfire on social media, and provoked much alarm — while the story was entirely false, such fears are perhaps understandable. The prospect of DARPA creating a band of cyborg soldiers will not be a welcome one for most, even if the reality is benign.

© PHOTO: PIXABAY

Real-Life ‘Universal Soldiers’: US Military to Create Implantable Chip to Turn Soldiers Into Cyborgs

DARPA is concurrently conducting several other brain projects at present, such as using implanted chips to treat mental illness and restore memories and movement to battle-wounded soldiers — compared to such projects, TNT is fairly tame.

If it fails, it won’t be the first time DARPA squandered vast sums on a failed project based on dubious assumptions — in the 1970s, the organization commissioned the Rand Corporation to assess “scientific and technical activities where substantial disparities exist between the respective US and USSR research programs on paranormal phenomenon.” In essence, DARPA was concerned about a potential “psychic gap” with the Soviet Union.

The eventual report documented entirely fictitious Soviet “advances” in the fields of telepathy, precognition and telekinesis, and how millions of dollars were spent recruiting telepaths to conduct remote espionage. One such subject was charlatan Uri Geller.

​Other projects have been more successful. In 2010 the agency started a US$32 million program to develop and test the “robo-mule,” a large bot used to carry heavy loads, and more recently created bionic arms for injured military veterans.

Pet Therapy: Do therapy pets need their own therapy?

This week, B.C. Children’s Hospital Foundation received a $200,000 grant from PetSmart Charities of Canada, to fund the expansion of their Dog Visitation Program.

The hospital currently retains seven volunteer dogs and handlers who visit pediatric patients four days a week. The grant, which will be provided over three years, will double this service by supporting 15 certified St. John’s Ambulance therapy dogs to visit seven days a week, and will also fund a new child and therapy dog playroom within B.C. Children’s Hospital’s new expansion project.

There is plenty of scientific evidence to suggest that this is money well spent, as the power of pets to lift the spirits of children while undergoing medical treatment is well-documented.

Pediatric patients who have canine company can anticipate benefits such as lower systolic blood pressure and less anxiety and fear during and following painful procedures, and in some instances, reduced recovery times.

Furthermore, a 2006 study published by researchers at San Diego State University found that children visited by therapy canines experienced less post-operative pain compared with children who didn’t receive a canine visitor. Psychologists speculate that such benefits arise because dogs provide comfort and distract the children from their negative procedures. Four-year-old Blayke Vandusen has benefited first-hand from the hospital’s Dog Visitation Program. Blayke has a chromosomal disorder called Turner Syndrome and is a regular patient at the hospital.

“It became a big deal and traumatic for Blayke to come into hospital,” explained Blayke’s mother, Cassandra Vandusen.

But, when Molly, a Shih Tzu, was brought in one day last July to help Blayke cope with her anxiety, Vandusen witnessed a miraculous change in her daughter.

“Her face lit up. You could see the fear and anxiety just disappear. All eyes were no longer on Blayke. She was able to focus on something else and just relax. Now, she can just leave her anxiety at the door when she comes in,” says Vandusen.

As the owner of a dog that went through the St. John’s Ambulance visitation program some years ago, I can appreciate the positive impact that these programs can also have on adults. I recall in particular, how one lady reacted on seeing my springer spaniel Pippa approach her bedside. Her first words in two years after suffering from a stroke were: “I used to have a spaniel.” These events are intensely moving, not just for the patients, but also for the handlers and caregivers who witness them.

Despite the countless examples of how hospitalized children and adults can benefit both physically and emotionally from animal visitation programs, as every human therapist knows, providing emotional support to those in need comes with a personal cost. Once in a while, therapists may themselves need help from a therapist.

This raises the question: Do therapy dogs experience stress while on the job? And if so, is the welfare cost to the animal justified by the potential gains to the patients?

Indeed, there is some controversy regarding the toll that therapy dog programs can take on the animals. In the highly regarded Handbook of Animal Assisted Therapy: Theoretical Foundations and Guidelines (2010), an entire chapter is dedicated to this subject, where signs of stress-related fatigue in therapy animals is described as being “common”. Concerns are also raised that many handlers appear oblivious to the stress signals emitted by the therapy animals in their care.

Unfortunately, I have also observed this lack of insight from handlers first-hand. Sweating paws, panting, muscle tension, restlessness, paw lifting, lip licking, yawning and a heightened startle response are just some behaviours that dogs can display when they are stressed — behaviours which handlers should be, but are not always, aware of.

While concerns for the welfare of therapy dogs are valid, that is not to say that a well-run program can’t still provide all of the anticipated benefits to humans while safeguarding the well-being of the animals involved. And some aim to be proactive in determining whether a dog and handler are a good fit for such a program.

“We have had to turn teams away before when the handlers have not been able to recognize when their dogs are not happy,” explained Leigh Ciurka, who is the provincial coordinator for the therapy dog programs in B.C.

David Haworth, a veterinarian and president of PetSmart Charities agrees. “Too much human pain can be hard on the dogs, and handlers, administrators and even patients should be aware of what stress looks like in dogs and be prepared to act in the animal’s best interest when needed.”

With this in mind, well-run dog visitation programs must include regular physical and mental health checkups on dogs that have been certified to participate, as well as comprehensive training for dog handlers. Education of this nature further provides opportunities to teach children about dog behaviour and how to determine when a dog needs space, which is a crucial part of bite prevention programs and humane education.

As Haworth explains, “I think that the growth of organized Animal Assisted Therapy programs is a hugely positive step in healthcare. The benefits of incorporating animals into human healthcare far outweigh the drawbacks, and the assumed risks are actually turning out to be minimal in reality.”

When the welfare of the dogs and the children is prioritized, the result should be a win-win all around. The St. John’s Ambulance therapy dog program started in Canada in 1992, and with 3,300 handler-dog teams currently registered in the country, there is huge potential to do good.

• Rebecca Ledger is an animal behaviour scientist, and sees cats and dogs with behaviour problems on veterinary referral across the Lower Mainland.

A new gadget from Amazon wants to help you pick out your outfit

amazon fashion

Amazon

Amazon has announced the Echo Look, a $200 voice-activated camera that will take full-length pictures of your outfits, by using the command “Alexa, take a photo.”

AppleInsider podcast talks ‘iPhone 8’ rumors, Amazon in the bedroom, a Siri competitor to Echo

this week on the AppleInsider podcast, Neil and Victor talk about the rumors around ‘iPhone 8’ wireless charging, HomeKit and a possible Siri-driven Echo competitor, the Apple Watch at 2 and more.

Source: Veniamin Geskineditors Neil Hughes and Victor Marks discuss:

• Apple still working on P2P payment transfer service to compete with Venmo
• Apple ‘finalizing’ design of Amazon Echo rival based on Siri
• Apple investigating wireless charging via Wi-Fi routers, other communications equipment
• Apple’s ‘iOS 11’ Music app to put more focus on Apple Music video content
• Alleged ‘iPhone 8’ schematic shows wireless charging pad, no rear Touch ID
• How Apple’s ‘iPhone 8’ could improve battery life with 2-cell design, OLED screen
• First look: Rigiet iPhone camera gimbal is an affordable way to stabilize video recordings
• Apple hires NASA AR/VR expert Jeff Norris to work on future products
• Four ex-NASA engineers on Apple’s list of autonomous car software testers
• On its 2nd anniversary, Apple Watch settling into role as fitness & notification wearable with Siri, Apple Pay

TED 2017: UK ‘Iron Man’ demonstrates flying suit

Image copyrightBRET HARTMAN/TED

A British inventor, who built an Iron Man-style flight suit, has flown it at the Ted (Technology, Entertainment and Design) conference in Vancouver.

Richard Browning’s short flight took place outside the Vancouver Convention Centre in front of a large crowd.

Since he posted the video of his maiden flight in the UK, Mr Browning has had huge interest in his flying suit.

But he insists the project remains “a bit of fun” and is unlikely to become a mainstream method of transportation.

He was inspired by his father, an aeronautical engineer and inventor, who killed himself when Mr Browning was a teenager.

He told the BBC that he always had a passion for making things and loved a challenge.

“I did this entirely for the same reason that you might look at a mountain and decide to climb it – for the journey and the challenge.”

He said he was also fascinated by the idea of human flight.

Image copyrightRICHARD BROWNING

“My approach to flight was why not augment the human mind and body, because they are amazing machines, so I just bolted on what was missing – thrust.”

Mr Browning, a Royal Marine Reserve, created his flying machine using six miniature jet engines and a specially designed exoskeleton.

He has a helmet with a sophisticated heads-up display that keeps him informed about fuel use.

The Daedalus suit – named after the father of Icarus by Mr Browning’s eight-year-old son – takes off vertically. Mr Browning uses his arms to control the direction and speed of the flight.

Mr Browning said it is easily capable of flying at 200mph (321km/h) and an altitude of a few thousand feet.

But, for safety reasons, he keeps the altitude and speed low.

He insisted it is “safer than a motorbike”.

Image copyrightBRET HARTMAN/TED

The suit can currently fly uninterrupted for around 10 minutes.

The start-up he founded, Gravity, is working on new technology for the device which Mr Browning said will make the current prototype look “like child’s play”.

Since video of his maiden flight went on YouTube, he has had thousands of views and interest from investors and the UK military.

But he does not think that the system is about to go mainstream anytime soon.

Image copyrightRICHARD BROWNING

“I think of it as a bit like a jet ski, a bit of fun or a indulgent toy, but I do have a hunch that stuff will come along to make it more practical.”

It remains a fascinating project for those who see it in action.

“There is something strange in seeing the human form rise up and drift around and that leaves a deep impression on people,” he said.

The Civil Aviation Authority has yet to take any decisions on the level of regulation required for jetpacks.

And in Europe, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which has responsibility for approving all new aircraft designs, including experimental concepts, has not yet formed an opinion on human propulsion technology.

“Going forward it may be necessary to create a new category of regulation for this technology as it clearly does not fit in neatly with aircraft regulation,” a CAA spokesman told the BBC.

“Ultimately, I think it unlikely that such technology would be completely deregulated.

“This is potentially powered flight after all, unlike activities such as hang-gliding and paragliding which are deregulated. High speed human propulsion could easily conflict with low flying aircraft and so the ‘pilot’ would almost certainly need some kind of training and a licence.”

Google teams up with Huawei for high-end Raspberry Pi rival that runs Android

Thanks to a collaboration between Google and Huawei, Android developers will no longer have to code on Intel x86 architectures – or Chromebooks – to build software for ARM-based systems. They’ll get to do it on a beefed-up Raspberry Pi-style computer that also happens to run Android.

The HiKey 960 is a powerful single-board computer that aims to give Android developers a high-end solution to build and test ARM applications natively. Based on Huawei’s octa-core Kirin 960 chip, which also powers the Mate 9, the device boasts four high-intensity Cortex-A73 cores and four low-power Cortex-A53 cores.

In addition to Android, the board comes with support for Linux and can also be used to craft robots, drones, and other smart devices. While primarily aimed at developers, recreational consumers have the option to simply use the HiKey as a straight-up Android computer.

To give you some more specs, the board packs 32GB of storage, 3GB of LPDDR4 RAM as well as the Mali-G71 GPU with support for 4K graphics. The bummer, though, is that the device will only have HDMI 1.2a slot, meaning output will be limited to 1080p.

The HiKey further features 802.11 b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.1, PCIe m.2 slots for extra storage and connectivity options. It also has 40-pin and 60-pin expansion connectors and multiple high-definition outputs that offer the ability to hook cameras to the board.

The device is expected to launch in May at the price of $239. Shipping will be initially available only to customers in the US, the EU and Japan, with plans to expand worldwide in the near future.

But before you rush to place your order, here’s a little heads-up: While you can download Android 7.1 on the device, it won’t be all that easy. Google has laid out detailed instructions on how you can do that here.

on PCWorld

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Home-made bricks for a habitat on Mars

A brick made with Martian-like soil simulant compacted under pressur. (David BAILLOT / Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California at San Diego / AFP)

Scientists said Thursday that they have manufactured tiny bricks out of artificial Martian soil, anticipating the day when humans may construct colonies on the Red Planet.

Remarkably, the technique requires only that the red-hued building blocks be compressed in a precise way — no additives or baking required.

“The people who will go to Mars will be incredibly brave, they will be pioneers and I would be honoured to be their brick maker,” said Yu Qiao, a professor at the University of California San Diego and lead author of a study in Scientific Reports.

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Structural engineers used a dirt mixture concocted by NASA that mimics Martian soil to make hundreds of 3 millimetre-thick (0.1 inch), disc-shaped bricks.

By accident, they had discovered that high-pressure compression hardened the artificial soil into rock-solid structures stronger than steel-reinforced concrete.

Once the stuff of science fiction, human habitation of Mars has captured the collective imagination, and inspired governments and billionaires to explore the feasibility of making the Red Planet a home away from home

In March, the US Congress passed a bill — signed by President Donald Trump — directing NASA to send a manned mission to Mars in 2033.

Qiao believes real Martian soil could be compacted layer by layer to form a wall or shaped into larger bricks.

Previous ideas for how to make construction materials on Mars involved building nuclear plants to fire bricks, or hauling large quantities of polymer — a kind of glue — from Earth.

Professor Qiao’s proposed masonry, on the other hand, would be 100 percent made-in-Mars and require minimal resources.

“All the previous methods involved energy intensive heating or pretty significant space transportation from Earth for additives,” the researcher told AFP.

Iron oxide — the component that gives Mars its reddish hue — is thought to be the “cementing agent” that makes the soil so malleable.

Whether real Martian soil would react in the same way is still uncertain, Qiao concedes — only on site tests would tell for sure.

But he hopes his approach will be given a hearing.

Qiao initially set out to use lunar soil to make cement. When he applied the same technique to Martian-like soil, he discovered its exceptional properties.

NASA’s Curiosity rover collected samples of Martian dust and sand for the first time in 2012, analysing its composition in a laboratory inside the mobile robot.

The soil was found to contain a complex chemistry of water, sulphur, and chlorine substances but no traces of organic carbon compounds that could indicate signs of life.