Jan Scheuermann, a fifty-five-year-old woman, underwent an innovative "neurosignaling" procedure two years ago.
Initially, Scheuermann began to control a robotic arm with his mind. The woman managed to control her arm by having him perform some functions such as taking or giving a five.
Surprisingly, the scientists found that Scheuermann was also able to control not one, but two robotic prostheses with the left motor cortex, which is generally responsible for the physical control of the right arm.
Jan - says Arati Prabhakar - has decided to try the flight simulator of the Joint Strike Fighter.
His request, they say from the Pentagon, initially aroused hilarity which then turned into awe and admiration when the woman "passed to the commands of the F-35". His brain has developed a capacity that has not even been theorized to date. From that moment, no one smiled anymore.
The flight simulator is part of a joint experiment between DARPA and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Unlike the pilots, who use technology for training, the 55enne did not think of flying the plane with the classic controls, but only imagined doing so. The woman, in fact, has never flown, but has done the hunt thanks to her desire to do it.
Jan Scheuermann has been paralyzed since 2003 due to a neurodegenerative disease. In 2012, he agreed to have two electrodes installed on the surface of the brain, specifically in the area of the motor cortex, responsible for the movements of the hand and right arm. Over the past two years, she has tolerated these probes better than expected, ergo she has been the subject of increasingly sophisticated experiments to determine how far her brain would be able to go.
In having succeeded in doing this - comment from DARPA - we have glimpsed the future and the unimaginable power of the human brain. We could make it do great things - they conclude with a warning - but also turn it into a weapon with a destructive power not even thought of.
Franco Iacch
