The Man Who Lived With a Brain-Computer Interface Made History

Nathan Copeland, 36, after a car accident in 2004 paralysis from the chest down He remained unable to move and felt any of his limbs. In 2014, at the University of Pittsburgh, hoping to see if his method of the brain-computer interface could restore some functionality. for people with major spinal cord injuries participated in a study.

Copeland had surgery without hesitation, even if he had to undergo brain surgery. The pencil eraser-sized implant placed in his brain after the surgery in 2015 changed his life. Thanks to the electrode array that streamlines brain impulses, the computer can play video games and a robotic arm that he can move by thinking It has become able to control external equipment such as

He has been using the system that is said to be used for five years without any problems for seven years.

The system Copeland used and deceived as BrainGate, implant in the brain arranged in a square grid, covered with a conductive metal in the skull, each about one millimeter long. from 100 small needles is formed. This system connects neurological signals to an external device with a cable and works with a computer with software to activate these signals.

No one, including Copeland, knew exactly how long the device would run when the system was first installed, and up to five years that you can use they were thinking. It was also based on experiments in monkeys during this given five-year period because no human had ever used this system before. However, the opposite of what was said turned out to be the opposite, and Copeland fully implemented this system. seven years without problems using the way He can play games and control his tablet.

After Copeland installed the first device in 2015, four more active implants and as part of research He started using three more implants. He is aware that his implants may one day stop working, and that you don’t let your life flow and think about bad things Saying that, Copeland explained that if there is a new development, he can have surgery again and that he can go anywhere in the world for this.