Neural Dust

The invention of "neural dust" could mean people will be able to communicate with computers using the power of their mind.

17:50 08 August 2016

Neural dust, a tiny implant the size of a grain of sand, can connect computers to the human body without the use of wires or batteries. They are powered by ultrasound vibrations that can penetrate every part of the body. The devices are designed to continuously monitor vital organs and could in the future, implanted into the brain to control robotic devices like prosthetic arms or legs.

 

It is hoped that they can be used for the treatment of various conditions including epilepsy by stimulating nerves and muscles as well as incontinence by helping patients effectively control their bladder and even suppress appetite. 

 

One of the inventors, Professor Michel Maharbiz, of University of California, Berkeley, said: “I think the long-term prospects for neural dust are not only within nerves and the brain, but much broader.

 

“Having access to in-body telemetry has never been possible because there has been no way to put something super-tiny super-deep [in the body].

 

“But now I can take a speck of nothing and park it next to a nerve or organ, your [gastro-intestinal] tract or a muscle, and read out the data.”