Reminds me of The Terminal Man
A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
11–20 of 178 posts
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#12I wonder if there’s any point in using this for military applications.
Have you watched the Manchurian Candidate?
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#13I wonder how healthy this actually is. Isn’t pain a signal the brain uses to alert you about a detected problem? Just eliminating the sensation of pain could mean your body would be unable to signal an issue that needs to be resolved.
try:
perform_task()
except:
passRe: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#14The article speaks about using this as a way to escape addiction to painkillers. Not so fast. Addiction is a phenomenon that predominantly happens in the brain, due to it constantly adapting to find homeostasis. And being unable to perceive pain when you should be is not homeostasis.
Couldn't this cause addiction to the implant instead? Or really nasty "withdrawals" if the implant is removed? Wouldn't be very different to opioids or painkillers; just different mechanisms if action for similar phenomenon
FTA:
> What’s especially neat is that the stimulated brain region normally doesn’t generate any sense of euphoria, the downfall of opioids. This means it’s likely to decrease the chance of addiction. And because the system only stimulates the brain when it detects pain signals, it lowers the chance the brain adapts to the stimulation.
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#15The article speaks about using this as a way to escape addiction to painkillers. Not so fast. Addiction is a phenomenon that predominantly happens in the brain, due to it constantly adapting to find homeostasis. And being unable to perceive pain when you should be is not homeostasis.
Couldn't this cause addiction to the implant instead? Or really nasty "withdrawals" if the implant is removed? Wouldn't be very different to opioids or painkillers; just different mechanisms if action for similar phenomenon
Yeah, seems like you could get "spoiled" by it and lack the mental resiliance to tolerate any pain if it's removed.
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#16I always feel so confused by--and skeptical of--these kinds of brain implant technologies. It says: "The chip then automatically triggers a light beam to stimulate the region, activating neurons that can override pain signals." Isn't that potentially stimulating millions or even hundreds of millions of neurons? We don't know what each individual neuron is doing. How is it possible to do this without causing bizarre m…
It sounds like they depend on the smoke test, doesn't it? Despite the huge advancements in biological sciences, when I get interested in something and read about it I would encounter the "We don't know why exactly it works but it works" much more often than I am used to. It feels so wrong.
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#17Yesterday I visited a friend with late stage cancer. He hasn't eaten or drunk anything for a few days. He doesn't really talk or move around anymore. I was just thinking a system like this would be perfect for him, if he could activate his morphine pump every time he feels pain. It's hard for his family to tell when they need to push the morphine button right now because he's non-verbal.
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#18I wonder how healthy this actually is. Isn’t pain a signal the brain uses to alert you about a detected problem? Just eliminating the sensation of pain could mean your body would be unable to signal an issue that needs to be resolved.
It is. Excerpt from [1]
> An inability to feel pain and temperature often leads to repeated severe injuries. Unintentional self-injury is common in people with CIPA, typically by biting the tongue, lips, or fingers, which may lead to spontaneous amputation of the affected area. In addition, people with CIPA heal slowly from skin and bone injuries. Repeated trauma can lead to chronic bone infections (osteomyelitis) or a condition called Charcot joints, in which the bones and tissue surrounding joints are destroyed.
1: https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/condition/congenital-insens...
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#19I wonder how healthy this actually is. Isn’t pain a signal the brain uses to alert you about a detected problem? Just eliminating the sensation of pain could mean your body would be unable to signal an issue that needs to be resolved.
You don’t have to completely eliminate it. Maybe someone suffering from cluster headaches only has to go through a migraine level of pain to realize there is a problem, not suffer through childbirth level pain every time an attack comes on.
Re: A new brain implant automatically detects and kills pain in real time
#20Guess how can I tell this thread is bait without even opening it.