Context: As per the computer-brain interface company Neuralink, the first human has received a brain chip implant and is recovering well.
How do neurons work?
- Nerve cells or neurons are the basic functional units of the nervous system. Multiple interconnected neurons form a neural circuit and use electrical and chemical signals to quickly transmit information among themselves and throughout the body.
About Neuralink brain implant/chip
- Rationale: Neuralink is working on linking the nervous system to computers, with efforts aimed at helping treat brain disorders, overcoming brain injuries, and other applications.
- Aim: To give people the ability to control a computer cursor or keyboard using their thoughts alone or “just by thinking”. The initial users would be those who have lost use of their limbs.
Working of the brain chip
- Implantation: The chip, roughly the size of a small coin, is implanted into the motor cortex of the brain through a minor surgical procedure via a robotic surgery. The chip consists of thin, flexible threads/wires containing electrodes which are inserted into specific brain regions, aiming to record neural activity.
- Data Acquisition: The electrodes pick up electrical signals generated by neurons firing, translating brain activity into digital information. The chip processes this data, identifying patterns and translating them into meaningful actions.
- Communication: The processed data is wirelessly transmitted to an external device (like a computer or phone) via a low-power transmitter.
Risks
- This technology is still evolving, and its long-term impact on humans is unknown. Additionally, brain surgery has significant potential risks such as brain haemorrhage or seizures.