Your Brain On... Brain-Computer Interfaces

Restoring a person's ability to speak, enabling individuals with paralysis to regain movement, and detecting neurodegenerative diseases earlier than ever — these are just some of the breakthroughs brain-computer interfaces are making possible.

In this episode, we explore the astonishing world of BCIs: technologies that are giving autonomy and independence back to people with diseases like ALS.

We discuss:

• How BCIs are helping people with neurodegenerative diseases and spinal cord injuries communicate using decoded brain signals • How brain-computer interfaces actually work (and why they're NOT just reading your mind) • Why motor cortex implants may help decode speech, even when inserted in unexpected regions • The ethical challenges of privacy, data ownership, and access in the era of brain-connected devices • The future of the field, from restoring language after stroke to enabling communication in children with cerebral palsy

We speak with three world-leading researchers and clinicians who are helping shape this rapidly-advancing area of neuroscience:

• Dr. Leigh Hochberg, director of the Center for Neurotechnology and Neurorecovery at Massachusetts General Hospital, and principal clinical investigator of the pilot clinical trials of the BrainGate Neural Interface System.

• Dr. David Brandman, neurosurgeon and co-director of the UC Davis Neuroprosthetics Lab.

• Dr. Sergey Stavisky, neural engineer and co-director of the UC Davis Neuroprosthetics Lab.

For more information about the Braingate project, and to volunteer as a participant, visit: https://braingate.org/

This is... Your Brain On Brain-Computer Interfaces.

'Your Brain On' is hosted by neurologists, scientists and public health advocates Ayesha and Dean Sherzai.

'Your Brain On... Brain-Computer Interfaces' • SEASON 5 • EPISODE 3

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