Will future desktops and laptops have organic parts?
Why not, said Higgins. "Computers now are good at chess and Word and Excel, but they're not good at being flexible or interacting with other users," he added. "There may be some way to use biological computing to actually make our computers seem more intelligent."
Right now, Higgins has successfully attached electrodes into a single vision neuron in the moth's brain. (Different neurons perform different functions like vision and the sense of smell. Humans have millions, if not trillions, of neurons. Insects have hundreds.) Now, Higgins is experimenting with connecting four electrodes into neurons on both sides of the moth's brain, expanding the visual image that the robot receives. "That should give me information about things moving on the left and right of the animal, at different speeds and moving up and down," he explained.
Higgins is also experimenting with tapping into the moth's muscles and olfactory senses. If he can work with the muscles, for instance, a strapped down moth trying to move in a certain direction would actually propel the robot.
"We're developing a lot of technology that could be used for prosthetic applications," said the researcher. "There are lots of people working on connecting functional brains to people who have nonworking limbs. You connect to the brain and send the information to a human limb or robotic limb. It's an area that is closely related to what we're doing."
Related News and Discussion:
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- Joyce Carpenter, Philosophy of Technology blog: Receptionist. Robot. What's the difference?
- The Coming Robot Revolution
- MIT debate: Will a 'conscious' machine ever be built?
- Group calls for closer look at nanotech ethics, safety risks
- The Grill: Ray Kurzweil talks about 'augmented reality' and the Singularity