Month: April 2021

Our recently published results in Science on the efficacy of using a 1024-channel neuroprosthesis for the generation of artificial vision gained coverage in national and international media, including CNN, NOS, NPO, RTL, Scientific American, New Scientist, Trouw, de Volkskrant, and AD.

The paper gave rise to >300 items in the popular press across more than 51 countries, with a total potential reach of >1.4 billion people. https://pure.knaw.nl/portal/en/clippings/nieuw-hersenimplantaat-kan-blinden-vorm-van-zien-teruggeven

Here are some of the highlights:

AD https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/dankzij-deze-vinding-kunnen-blinden-niet-alleen-stipjes-maar-ook-vormen-zien~ab2a627f/

Trouw https://www.trouw.nl/wetenschap/zien-zonder-ogen-een-nieuwe-studie-wijst-uit-dat-het-kan~bb320ffa/

Volkskrant https://www.volkskrant.nl/wetenschap/zien-zonder-ogen-hersenimplantaat-kan-blinden-mogelijk-deel-van-hun-zicht-teruggeven~b6e083fc/

Tijd voor Max https://www.npostart.nl/tijd-voor-max/04-12-2020/POW_04776966

NPO Start https://www.npostart.nl/nos-journaal/04-12-2020/POW_04508473

NPO Radio 1 https://www.nporadio1.nl/nos-met-het-oog-op-morgen/onderwerpen/68902-2020-12-04-hoe-blinden-weer-zicht-krijgen

NOS Journal https://nos.nl/artikel/2359209-blinde-mensen-kunnen-zicht-mogelijk-deels-terugkrijgen-door-nieuw-implantaat.html

NRC https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2020/12/03/hersenimplantaat-laat-apen-lezen-zonder-ogen-met-1024-pixels-a4022524

CNN https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/03/europe/brain-implant-blind-intl-scli-scn/index.html

Scientific American https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bionic-eye-tech-learns-its-abcs/

New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/article/2261853-brain-stimulation-device-lets-monkeys-see-shapes-without-using-eyes/

New Scientist (NL) https://www.newscientist.nl/nieuws/ons-hersenimplantaat-kan-blinden-een-vorm-van-zicht-teruggeven/

NOS Nieuwsradio https://www.nporadio1.nl/nos-radio-1-journaal/uitzendingen/1486664-2020-12-04

RTL nieuws https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/video/uitzendingen/video/5201335/rtl-nieuws-1930-uur

FBR Smart Brief https://www2.smartbrief.com/getLast.action?mode=last&b=FBR

Scientists have long dreamed of restoring vision in blind individuals by stimulating the visual cortex, bypassing malfunctioning eyes to directly deliver information to higher visual centers (Bosking et al., 2017). Beauchamp et al. (2020) used electrical stimulation of the visual cortex to produce visual percepts in blind human subjects, using innovative current steering and sequential stimulation techniques to create recognisable shapes such as letters of the alphabet. In our review of Beauchamp et al.’s work, ‘Writing to the Mind’s Eye of the Blind,’ published in Cell, we discuss their ground-breaking results, and their implications for the field of visual cortical prosthetics: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.014

Recent advances in neuroscience and technology have made it possible to record from large assemblies of neurons and to decode their activity to extract information. At the same time, available methods to stimulate the brain and influence ongoing processing are also rapidly expanding. These developments pave the way for advanced neurotechnological applications that directly read from, and write to, the human brain. While such technologies are still primarily used in restricted therapeutic contexts, this may change in the future once their performance has improved and they become more widely applicable.

In this review article, ‘Mind Reading and Writing: The Future of Neurotechnology,’ published in Trends in Cognitive Sciences, we provide an overview of methods to interface with the brain, speculate about potential applications, and discuss important issues associated with a neurotechnologically assisted future: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2018.04.001