"I don't mind making jokes, but I don't want to look like one."

October 28, 2010 4:15 AM

'Marilyn Monroe' neuron aids mind control. "Volunteers fade famous images in and out using a brain-machine' interface. People have used mind control to change images on a video screen, a study reports. The volunteers, whose brains were wired up to a computer, enhanced one of two competing images of famous people or objects by changing firing rates in individual brain cells."
posted by Fizz (10 comments total)

Those who like this may also enjoy this TED talk by Tan Le.
posted by ixohoxi at 5:38 AM on October 28, 2010

Wow, Nature is making mini-docos on some of their accepted submissions now? That's pretty impressive. Interesting stuff, thanks for the post.

Original article here for those with access.
posted by kisch mokusch at 5:44 AM on October 28, 2010

One day, shouting "enhance that image!" at a screen will actually work.
posted by danb at 6:00 AM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

Just reading the abstract on the research article, this phenomenon involves clusters of neurons--though they do claim a single neuron was measured. I don't see a claim that this single neuron codes for e.g. Marilyn Monroe.

See also,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandmother_cell

I hate to say it, but wired has a better take here


The researchers weren’t particularly interested in specific neurons, or even specific brain regions: Each wired neuron was representative of five million more, spread across the brain. Instead, he was looking for patterns of focus.


The idea that a single neuron codes for anything is ridiculous. It's a neural network people!
posted by kuatto at 6:47 AM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

This is not mind control. This is called "thinking".
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 6:47 AM on October 28, 2010

People have used mind control to change images on a video screen...

Usually it's the video screen that does the mind control on the people.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 6:52 AM on October 28, 2010

The idea that a single neuron codes for anything is ridiculous. It's a neural network people!

I'm no neuroscientist, but given the ratio between my dog's general intelligence and her response to the word "walk", I have to wonder if this is always true.
posted by condour75 at 7:54 AM on October 28, 2010

Dear Metafilter front-page posters: in the future, if you make a post around a popular science article, please include a link to the primary source. Thanks in advance <3
posted by IjonTichy at 8:28 AM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

I didn't realize Professor Snape is now at Caltech.
posted by vortex genie 2 at 5:11 PM on October 28, 2010

That's not Snape. It's obviously Trent Reznor.
posted by es_de_bah at 6:32 AM on October 29, 2010