Researchers at the University of Utah said they have made progress in identifying words through brain signals.
Microelectrodes on a human brain
While the detection rate was not especially stunning, there is a clear indication that scientists will be able to listen to your words in the future – even if you do not say them aloud or move your lips. The research group from the University of Utah said they observed brain signals when a volunteer with severe epileptic seizures read the words yes, no, hot, cold, hungry, thirsty, hello, goodbye, more and less.
They connected brain signals to each of the words and were able to detect them between 76 and 90% of the time as long as only one word was the focus. When all ten words were considered, they could only detect them between 28 and 48% of the time. This is clearly better than the odds of 10% when you would have to guess an answer, but it is not good enough for a reliable translation yet.
“This is proof of concept,” said Bradley Greger, an assistant professor of bioengineering. “We’ve proven these signals can tell you what the person is saying well above chance. But we need to be able to do more words with more accuracy before it is something a patient really might find useful.” The researcher said that People who eventually could benefit from a wireless device that converts thoughts into computer-spoken spoken words include those paralyzed by stroke, Lou Gehrig’s disease and trauma. People who are now “locked in” often communicate with any movement they can make – blinking an eye or moving a hand slightly – to arduously pick letters or words from a list.
The scientists used two grids of microelectrodes that were placed directly on top of the volunteer’s brain to detect the brain signals that are generated by a few thousand neurons or nerve cells. Each of the two grids with 16 electrodes spaced 1 millimeter (about one-25th of an inch) apart, and was placed over one of two speech areas of the brain: The facial motor cortex, which controls movements of the mouth, lips, tongue and face as well as Wernicke’s area, which is “a little understood part of the human brain tied to language comprehension and understanding,” the researchers said. According to the University of Utah, the volunteer already had a portion of his skull partially removed, so doctors could place conventional electrodes to locate the source of his seizures and surgically stop them.
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