Scientists at the University of Berkeley have developed a system that can capture visual activity in the human brain and that can translate as a digital video. In future, this process could be used to record and reconstruct dreams on a computer.
“This is a big step in terms rebild internal images.
We open a window to the movies in our minds,” said Jack Gallant, professor at the University of Berkeley.
For this experiment, three subjects were used. By coincidence or not, the three men were part of the research team, as was necessary to spend many hours each inside an MRI machine (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). They were subjected to two types of video trailers of Hollywood films and device recorded blood flow passed through the visual cortex. Data were entered into a software and was divided into three types of pixels called voxel (volumetric pixel). This decode brain signals generated by the motion picture, connecting information about shape and motion from movies with specific actions in the brain. Over time, the computer continued to learn about visual work presented on the screen corresponds to brain activity.
After recording this information, another group of clips were used to reconstruct the images seen by the subjects. Computer analysis of 18 million seconds in a series of random movies on YouTube, building a database of potential brain activity. From these clips, especially the one hundred software that combined them into one. Even if the film is attached to a lower quality news, images match those seen by subjects.
“Our experience normal viewing like watching a movie. Because this technology can be applied, must first understand how the brain processes dynamic visual experience,” said Shinji Nishimoto, research team member.
Project researchers at Berkeley is a revolutionary, the first time someone managed to decode brain activity and rebuild video on a computer.
Researchers claim that this technology will in future translation into images of dreams, will also have medical applications, for example to reconstruct what a patient in coma or suffered a stroke.
Also, scientists say that this system will allow patients to control computers using immobilized mind.
Source: Berkeley and Gizmodo
