Miguel Nicolelis Miguel Nicolelis is a Brazilian neuroscientist known for his research regarding neuronal population coding and Brain Machine Interfaces. Additionally, he is known for his work in the development of neuroprosthetic devices. His laboratory work in these fields have grown to prominence with the publication of experimental research in which monkeys were able to use thought to control virtual arms in order to obtain rewards. He also conducted experiments in which brain to brain communication was allegedly achieved between animals. Through the use of his research, successful development of a robotic exoskeleton prosthesis which a paralyzed person was able to control utilizing the use of a Brain Machine Interface. The highlight of this prosthetic development was when the prosthesis was utilized to perform the opening kickoff at a World Cup match in Brazil in 2014. His work represents significant advancement in Brain Machine Interface technology, having demonstrated the possibility of creating brain controlled prosthetic technology for individuals suffering from paralysis resulting from spinal cord injuries. Furthermore, Nicholeis' research potentially holds extensive implications for the future of the way we interface with all of our technological devices.
Academic Background
Miguel Nicolelis was educated at the University of Sao Paolo in his native Brazil. He earned a M.D. in 1984 and a Ph.D. in 1988. He is currently affiliated with Duke University as a Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience at the Duke School of Medicine. He holds additional appointments at Duke as a Professor in Neurobiology, Biomedical Engineering and Orthopedic Surgery, as well as being the founder and director of Duke's Center for Neuroengineering. He is the Principal Investigator at Nicolelis Lab.
Brain Machine Interface Technology
Nicolelis' contributions revolve around an emerging technology known as a Brain Machine Interface (BMI) or a Brain Computer Interface (BCI). BMI technology allows for direct communication between the brain and a computer, wherein communicative output from the brain is achieved through the use of various types of sensors which record electrical activity in the brain. The feedback to the brain is then delivered through modes of neural activation such as intracortical microstimulation (ICMS). Nicolelis has pioneered techniques which are used to record the activity of multiple neurons simultaneously, implanting arrays that obtain information at over a thousand data points.
Notable Experiments
Nicolelis has a lengthy history of conducting and pioneering a great deal of neuroscientific research leading to many of his experiments coming to prominence. The experiment he conducted in which monkeys learned to control a robotic arm by thinking resulted from implanting electrode arrays in the sensorimotor regions of the the animals' brains. The monkeys were able to learn to control the robotic arm by activating motor control signals in the somatosensory regions of their brains associated with their own arm movements. Electrode arrays were implanted in locations determined by neuronal population coding efforts to be able to pick up the motor intent, and the monkeys were able to control the robotic arm at distances of thousands of miles, eventually learning to control the robot arm without even needing to moving their own arms.
Another experiment involved the transmission of recorded patterns of neuronal activity in one rat to the brain of another. This effectively represented the first scientific demonstration of what might be called technological-mediated telepathy. These rats were able to perform tasks that relied on sensory information without direct access to necessary sensory information. Instead, the rats were able to obtain BMI-transmitted sensory information which was initially recorded in the brain of another rat who performed the task with access to the necessary sensory input. This suggests that the rat receiving the recorded signal through intracortical microstimulation may have experienced something akin to "feeling" a sensation that was actually physically transduced by the other rat. Nicolelis claims that this result is the first demonstration of the way that interneural circuits can be developed, implying that different animals brains in the future may be effectively "connected" together as a network of nodes that can theoretically perform computational operations.
More recently, he has revealed his work developing brain controlled robotic prostheses to enable disabled individuals with spinal cord lesions walk have led to the unexpected result of stimulating sensory connections in long term paralyzed patients. Out of eight patients who had been paralyzed below the waist for over a decade, seven regained some limited motor sensitivity and control after working the BMI controlled robotic prosthesis. Nicolelis has suggested that the data shows each of the paralyzed individuals re-learning to send efferent signals to BMI controlled prosthetic limbs, and may function to rehabilitate the damaged neural pathways in spinally traumatized patients.
Miguel Nicolelis is a Brazilian neuroscientist known for his research regarding neuronal population coding and Brain Machine Interfaces. Additionally, he is known for his work in the development of neuroprosthetic devices. His laboratory work in these fields have grown to prominence with the publication of experimental research in which monkeys were able to use thought to control virtual arms in order to obtain rewards. He also conducted experiments in which brain to brain communication was allegedly achieved between animals. Through the use of his research, successful development of a robotic exoskeleton prosthesis which a paralyzed person was able to control utilizing the use of a Brain Machine Interface. The highlight of this prosthetic development was when the prosthesis was utilized to perform the opening kickoff at a World Cup match in Brazil in 2014. His work represents significant advancement in Brain Machine Interface technology, having demonstrated the possibility of creating brain controlled prosthetic technology for individuals suffering from paralysis resulting from spinal cord injuries. Furthermore, Nicholeis' research potentially holds extensive implications for the future of the way we interface with all of our technological devices.
Academic Background
Miguel Nicolelis was educated at the University of Sao Paolo in his native Brazil. He earned a M.D. in 1984 and a Ph.D. in 1988. He is currently affiliated with Duke University as a Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience at the Duke School of Medicine. He holds additional appointments at Duke as a Professor in Neurobiology, Biomedical Engineering and Orthopedic Surgery, as well as being the founder and director of Duke's Center for Neuroengineering. He is the Principal Investigator at Nicolelis Lab.
Brain Machine Interface Technology
Nicolelis' contributions revolve around an emerging technology known as a Brain Machine Interface (BMI) or a Brain Computer Interface (BCI). BMI technology allows for direct communication between the brain and a computer, wherein communicative output from the brain is achieved through the use of various types of sensors which record electrical activity in the brain. The feedback to the brain is then delivered through modes of neural activation such as intracortical microstimulation (ICMS). Nicolelis has pioneered techniques which are used to record the activity of multiple neurons simultaneously, implanting arrays that obtain information at over a thousand data points.
Notable Experiments
Nicolelis has a lengthy history of conducting and pioneering a great deal of neuroscientific research leading to many of his experiments coming to prominence. The experiment he conducted in which monkeys learned to control a robotic arm by thinking resulted from implanting electrode arrays in the sensorimotor regions of the the animals' brains. The monkeys were able to learn to control the robotic arm by activating motor control signals in the somatosensory regions of their brains associated with their own arm movements. Electrode arrays were implanted in locations determined by neuronal population coding efforts to be able to pick up the motor intent, and the monkeys were able to control the robotic arm at distances of thousands of miles, eventually learning to control the robot arm without even needing to moving their own arms.
Another experiment involved the transmission of recorded patterns of neuronal activity in one rat to the brain of another. This effectively represented the first scientific demonstration of what might be called technological-mediated telepathy. These rats were able to perform tasks that relied on sensory information without direct access to necessary sensory information. Instead, the rats were able to obtain BMI-transmitted sensory information which was initially recorded in the brain of another rat who performed the task with access to the necessary sensory input. This suggests that the rat receiving the recorded signal through intracortical microstimulation may have experienced something akin to "feeling" a sensation that was actually physically transduced by the other rat. Nicolelis claims that this result is the first demonstration of the way that interneural circuits can be developed, implying that different animals brains in the future may be effectively "connected" together as a network of nodes that can theoretically perform computational operations.More recently, he has revealed his work developing brain controlled robotic prostheses to enable disabled individuals with spinal cord lesions walk have led to the unexpected result of stimulating sensory connections in long term paralyzed patients. Out of eight patients who had been paralyzed below the waist for over a decade, seven regained some limited motor sensitivity and control after working the BMI controlled robotic prosthesis. Nicolelis has suggested that the data shows each of the paralyzed individuals re-learning to send efferent signals to BMI controlled prosthetic limbs, and may function to rehabilitate the damaged neural pathways in spinally traumatized patients.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR_LBcZg_84
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHT6AGdzEaU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld_9CnH9m9I
http://www.nicolelislab.net/
https://bme.duke.edu/faculty/miguel-nicolelis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miguel_Nicolelis
http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.0000042
http://www.nature.com/articles/srep11869
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