KATIE ZHUANG, NICOLELIS LAB, DUKE UNIVERSITYResearchers have electronically linked the brains of pairs of rats, enabling the animals to communicate directly via implanted microelectrode arrays to solve simple behavioral problems, according to a study published today (February 28) in Scientific Reports.
The authors of the study claim the achievement is the first of its kind, and could lead to the linking of multiple animal brains to form the first “organic computer” through which multiple animals could exchange, store, and process sensory and motor information.
But neuroscientists in the field of brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) told The Scientist that the study is actually a combination two methods demonstrated several times before—namely, recording and decoding information from neural networks and using extracted neural firing patterns to stimulate external devices or muscles of the body.
Critics also pointed out several methodological flaws, including the lack of adequate controls, and cautioned that claims about enabling “organic computing” are far-fetched at best.
“[The researchers] have made numerous important contributions to the field ...
