You know how in the Matrix they can download any skills from Karate to Origami? It looks like we might be looking at that technology one day. For real.
According to a study carried out by Boston University and Japan's ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, the practice of importing knowledge into our brains might not be entirely reserved to science fiction and video games, after all.
The researchers designed a decoded functional MRI neurofeedback method that induces a pre-recorded activation pattern in targeted early visual brain areas that could also produce the pattern through regular learning. They then tested if repetitions of the fMRI pattern improved performance of the visual feature.
The results were encouraging, yet a little bit concerning. Data showed that there was a significant improvement in performance, but it was especially impressive when the subjects didn’t even know what it was that they were learning. Oh boy, those New World Order guys are going to have a field day with that.
Still, pretty exciting, however. I look forward to downloading the ability to not be awkward around men directly to my brain.
[Sciencemag via The Atlantic]
