UCLA’s Dr. Nanthia Suthana is using VR, motion capture, and brain implants to find out how we encode memories, which could help treat diseases like Alzheimer’s.
The brain is a mysterious place. Even as the field of A.I. attempts to emulate its bio-based neuronal firings, there is much we don’t yet know.
Despite weighing just 3 pounds, a lot can go wrong with the 100 billion (or so) neurons inside. Currently, traumatic brain injury is a major cause of death and disability, 1 in 26 Americans will develop epilepsy in their lifetime, and there are 5 million Americans currently living with Alzheimer’s.
But imagine a future where patients walk around with neuroprosthetic implants that stimulate brain function and constantly monitor oscillations, which are sent wirelessly to medical experts in real time via body sensors. This scenario isn’t too far off.
