{"id":10162,"date":"2022-02-08T12:21:12","date_gmt":"2022-02-08T12:21:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/TheNextWeb=1379759"},"modified":"2022-02-08T12:21:12","modified_gmt":"2022-02-08T12:21:12","slug":"diy-brain-computer-interfaces-have-arrived-why-thats-cool-and-why-it-isnt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=10162","title":{"rendered":"DIY brain-computer interfaces have arrived \u2014 why that\u2019s cool (and why it isn\u2019t)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/neural?filter_last=1&amp;fit=1280%2C640&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2021%2F08%2Fbrainhacker.jpg&amp;signature=cfff5233fef3bc3573004c6089f68408\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<p>A US-based science group intends to use a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdsupply.com\/hackerbci\/pieeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">crowd sale<\/a>\u201d to distribute brain-computer interfaces to a community of hackers. Dun-dun-dunnnnn!<\/p>\n<p>Another way of putting it: A PhD student and an <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/artificial-intelligence\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">artificial intelligence<\/a> expert are planning to sell some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackerbci.com\/product\/pieeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">nifty brain-computer interfaces<\/a> they cobbled together. And, for some weird reason, they\u2019ve called their company <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackerbci.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Hacker BCI<\/a> and given it the tagline: \u201cfrom hackers for hackers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Per the duo\u2019s website:<\/p>\n<blockquote readability=\"8\">\n<p>In our definition \u201cHackers\u201d are creative problem-solvers, who will find something that others won\u2019t be able to find, and think the way others won\u2019t think.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>The NSA might disagree.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Up front:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/brain-computer-interface\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Brain-computer interfaces<\/a> are huge right now. Or, at least, they could be <span>\u2014 i<\/span>f they were accessible, affordable, and functional.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s enough hype out there to make \u201cBCI\u201d a household acronym. And we can thank Elon Musk\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/neuralink.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Neuralink<\/a> for that.<\/p>\n<p>Neuralink had raised <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/07\/30\/elon-musks-neuralink-backed-by-google-ventures-peter-thiel-sam-altman.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">over $200 million in funding<\/a> as of about eight months ago. With that money, Musk\u2019s genius, and a revolving door of top-notch talent, they\u2019ve managed to show a video of a monkey playing Pong with its brain and another where a computer makes a beeping sound as a pig snuffles.<\/p>\n<p>While those are very impressive use-cases for a device that\u2019s surgically implanted in your head by robots, the price is a bit steep for most of us.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Background:<\/strong> Brain-computer interfaces have been around for decades. But, thanks to recent advances in machine learning, they\u2019ve become a hugely popular field of research-for-future-profit.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s a huge difference between the wearable and intracranial interfaces used in the medical community as diagnostic or assistance devices and those being developed for everyday use by the general public.<\/p>\n<p>What Hacker BCI is attempting to accomplish is quite different than what the medical community or Elon Musk is.<\/p>\n<p>Per a recent article on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackster.io\/news\/ildar-rakhmatulin-s-pieeg-aims-to-turn-your-raspberry-pi-into-a-brain-computer-interface-f4ed1c09a21c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Hackster.IO<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote readability=\"8\">\n<p>Maker Ildar Rakhmatulin is working to make entry-level brain-computer interfaces affordable and easy to build, designing an open source add-on for the Raspberry Pi family of single-board computers to interface with electroencephalograph sensors: the PIEEG.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>For more, you can check out this weird YouTube video:<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p> <iframe srcdoc=\"\n\n<style>*{padding:0;margin:0;overflow:hidden}html,body{background:#000;height:100%}img{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;transition:opacity .1s cubic-bezier(0.4,0,1,1)}a:hover img+img{opacity:1!important}<\/style>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/wNgCEKIXGUY?feature=oembed&amp;autoplay=1&amp;mute=1&amp;modestbranding=1&amp;iv_load_policy=3&amp;theme=light&amp;playsinline=1'><img src='https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/wNgCEKIXGUY\/hqdefault.jpg'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn-hover.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;opacity:0;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><\/a>&#8221; height=&#8221;240&#8243; width=&#8221;320&#8243; allow=&#8221;accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture&#8221; allowfullscreen frameborder=&#8221;0&#8243;>[embedded content]<\/iframe> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p> <!--resp-video-container--><\/p>\n<p><strong>Our take<\/strong>: This is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it\u2019s super cool. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/354935534_Low-cost_brain_computer_interface_for_everyday_use\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">company\u2019s paper<\/a> says it costs about \u201c$350 for 24 electrodes.\u201d We\u2019re assuming that\u2019s indicative of their cost of production for the devices.<\/p>\n<p>This makes it seem like you could build your own DIY BCI for around $500 or $600. Nice.<\/p>\n<p>But, on the other hand, this isn\u2019t the first BCI kit for hobbyists and students. It might be the first one with a bespoke Raspberry Pi shield and a research paper. But a quick Google search can point would-be BCI builders to myriad similar solutions with options galore.<\/p>\n<p>The bottom line is that these devices can only do so much. Sensing EEG, EMG, and EKG through a human skull and the tissue and hair covering it doesn\u2019t provide high resolution data.<\/p>\n<p>At their absolute best, these sorts of BCIs allow you to control computers with movement. You put on a cap, and a computer can tell when you intentionally blink, move your eyes in a specific direction, and clench your jaw.<\/p>\n<p>Clever algorithms can translate these signals into direct inputs, such as executing a function whenever you blink.<\/p>\n<p>Is it worth hundreds of dollars? In the practical sense: no. Of course it isn\u2019t. You\u2019re essentially paying money so you can sit in a chair with a bunch of wires hanging off your head that make it more difficult to perform simple computer functions than using a keyboard, mouse, or touch control.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s no functional, consumer-luring upside here. The reason you purchase a low-end BCI project kit is for the joy of tinkering or as a teaching tool.<\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/diy-brain-computer-interfaces-have-arrived-why-thats-cool-why-isnt\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A US-based science group intends to use a \u201ccrowd sale\u201d to distribute brain-computer interfaces to a community of hackers. Dun-dun-dunnnnn! Another way of putting it: A PhD student and an artificial intelligence&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10162"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10162\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}