Boffins demonstrate power of mind over cursor

In what seems to be something right out of science fiction, researchers from Washington University have demonstrated that humans can control a cursor on a computer screen using words spoken out loud in their head.

The development is seen to hold immense promise for patients who may have lost their speech through brain injury or other disabled patients with restricted movement.

The researchers connected patient's brains to a computer, which showed that the computer could be controlled with up to 90 per cent accuracy even without any prior training  being given to patients.

The study published today in IOP Publishing's Journal of Neural Engineering, involves a technique called electrocortiography (ECoG). The technique uses electrodes directly connected to a patient's brain to record electrical activity. The technique has previously been for identification of regions of the brain that cause epilepsy and has led to effective treatments.

In a more recent application the process of ECoG has been applied to brain-computer interfaces (BCI) aimed at assisting or repair of brain functions. These have already been used to restore the sight of one patient and stimulate limb movement in others.

Four epilepsy patients were part of the study and each patient was given a craniotomy – an invasive procedure used to place an electrode onto the brain of the patient.