Computer chips get under skin of enthusiasts
Omega - 8. Jan, 19:21
8
Jan
2006
The lie detector you'll never know is there
Omega - 8. Jan, 19:20
Brain Voice Read-Write Machine
Omega - 8. Jan, 08:52
New Device Will Sense Through Concrete Walls
American Forces Press Service
Sat Jan 7, 2006 14:26
American Forces Press Service | Donna Miles | January 03, 2006
WASHINGTON - Troops conducting urban operations soon will have the capabilities of superheroes, being able to sense through 12 inches of concrete to determine if someone is inside a building.
The new "Radar Scope" will give warfighters searching a building the ability to tell within seconds if someone is in the next room, Edward Baranoski from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Special Projects Office, told the American Forces Press Service.
By simply holding the portable, handheld device up to a wall, users will be able to detect movements as small as breathing, he said.
The Radar Scope, developed by DARPA, is expected to be fielded to troops in Iraq as soon as this spring, Baranoski said. The device is likely to be fielded to the squad level, for use by troops going door to door in search of terrorists.
The Radar Scope will give warfighters the capability to sense through a foot of concrete and 50 feet beyond that into a room, Baranoski explained.
It will bring to the fight what larger, commercially available motion detectors couldn't, he said. Weighing just a pound and a half, the Radar Scope will be about the size of a telephone handset and cost just about $1,000, making it light enough for a soldier to carry and inexpensive enough to be fielded widely.
The Radar Scope will be waterproof and rugged, and will run on AA batteries, he said.
"It may not change how four-man stacks go into a room (during clearing operations)," Baranoski said. "But as they go into a building, it can help them prioritize what rooms they go into. It will give them an extra degree of knowledge so they know if someone is inside."
Even as the organization hurries to get the devices to combat forces, DARPA already is laying groundwork for bigger plans that build on this technology.
Proposals are expected this week for the new "Visi Building" technology that's more than a motion detector. It will actually "see" through multiple walls, penetrating entire buildings to show floor plans, locations of occupants and placement of materials such as weapons caches, Baranoski said.
"It will give (troops) a lot of opportunity to stake out buildings and really see inside," he said. "It will go a long way in extending their surveillance capabilities."
The device is expected to take several years to develop. Ultimately, servicemembers will be able to use it simply by driving or flying by the structure under surveillance, Baranoski said.
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,84400,00.html?ESRC=dod.nl
Source:
http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=97411;show_parent=1
(excerpt)
Sat Jan 7, 2006 14:26
American Forces Press Service | Donna Miles | January 03, 2006
WASHINGTON - Troops conducting urban operations soon will have the capabilities of superheroes, being able to sense through 12 inches of concrete to determine if someone is inside a building.
The new "Radar Scope" will give warfighters searching a building the ability to tell within seconds if someone is in the next room, Edward Baranoski from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Special Projects Office, told the American Forces Press Service.
By simply holding the portable, handheld device up to a wall, users will be able to detect movements as small as breathing, he said.
The Radar Scope, developed by DARPA, is expected to be fielded to troops in Iraq as soon as this spring, Baranoski said. The device is likely to be fielded to the squad level, for use by troops going door to door in search of terrorists.
The Radar Scope will give warfighters the capability to sense through a foot of concrete and 50 feet beyond that into a room, Baranoski explained.
It will bring to the fight what larger, commercially available motion detectors couldn't, he said. Weighing just a pound and a half, the Radar Scope will be about the size of a telephone handset and cost just about $1,000, making it light enough for a soldier to carry and inexpensive enough to be fielded widely.
The Radar Scope will be waterproof and rugged, and will run on AA batteries, he said.
"It may not change how four-man stacks go into a room (during clearing operations)," Baranoski said. "But as they go into a building, it can help them prioritize what rooms they go into. It will give them an extra degree of knowledge so they know if someone is inside."
Even as the organization hurries to get the devices to combat forces, DARPA already is laying groundwork for bigger plans that build on this technology.
Proposals are expected this week for the new "Visi Building" technology that's more than a motion detector. It will actually "see" through multiple walls, penetrating entire buildings to show floor plans, locations of occupants and placement of materials such as weapons caches, Baranoski said.
"It will give (troops) a lot of opportunity to stake out buildings and really see inside," he said. "It will go a long way in extending their surveillance capabilities."
The device is expected to take several years to develop. Ultimately, servicemembers will be able to use it simply by driving or flying by the structure under surveillance, Baranoski said.
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,84400,00.html?ESRC=dod.nl
Source:
http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=97411;show_parent=1
(excerpt)
Omega - 8. Jan, 08:49
7
Jan
2006
6
Jan
2006
MODERN TORTURE AND CONTROL MECHANISMS ELIMINATING HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRIVACY
MICROWAVE MIND CONTROL: MODERN TORTURE AND CONTROL MECHANISMS ELIMINATING HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRIVACY
http://www.us-government-torture.com/techie.html
Informant: John Mecca
--------
MICROWAVE MIND CONTROL: MODERN TORTURE AND CONTROL MECHANISMS ELIMINATING HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRIVACY
http://texasrepublic.org/Mindcon.htm
http://www.us-government-torture.com/techie.html
Informant: John Mecca
--------
MICROWAVE MIND CONTROL: MODERN TORTURE AND CONTROL MECHANISMS ELIMINATING HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRIVACY
http://texasrepublic.org/Mindcon.htm
Omega - 6. Jan, 14:15
Apparatus and method for remotely monitoring and altering brain waves
United States Patent Malech
Patent Number: 03951134
Abstract
Apparatus for and method of sensing brain waves at a position remote from a subject whereby electromagnetic signals of different frequencies are simultaneously transmitted to the brain of the subject in which the signals interfere with one another to yield a waveform which is modulated by the subject's brain waves. The interference waveform which is representative of the brain wave activity is re-transmitted by the brain to a receiver where it is demodulated and amplified. The demodulated waveform is then displayed for visual viewing and routed to a computer for further processing and analysis. The demodulated waveform also can be used to produce a compensating signal which is transmitted back to the brain to effect a desired change in electrical activity therein.
Inventors: Malech; Robert G. (Plainview, NY)
Assignee: Dorne & Margolin Inc. (Bohemia, NY)
Appl. No.: 494518
Filed: August 5, 1974
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Brain wave monitoring apparatus comprising means for producing a base frequency signal, means for producing a first signal having a frequency related to that of the base frequency and at a predetermined phase related thereto, means for transmitting both said base frequency and said first signals to the brain of the subject being monitored, means for receiving a second signal transmitted by the brain of the subject being monitored in response to both said base frequency and said first signals, mixing means for producing from said base frequency signal and said received second signal a response signal having a frequency related to that of the base frequency, and means for interpreting said response signal.
2. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said receiving means comprises means for isolating the transmitted signals from the received second signals.
3. Apparatus as in claim 2 further comprising a band pass filter with an input connected to said isolating means and an output connected to said mixing means.
4. Apparatus as in claim 1 further comprising means for amplifying said response signal.
5. Apparatus as in claim 4 further comprising means for demodulating said amplified response signal.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5 further comprising interpreting means connected to the output of said demodulator means.
7. Apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising means for producing an electromagnetic wave control signal dependent on said response signal, and means for transmitting said control signal to the brain of said subject.
8. Apparatus as in claim 7 wherein said transmitting means comprises means for directing the electromagnetic wave control signal to a predetermined part of the brain.
9. A process for monitoring brain wave activity of a subject comprising the steps of transmitting at least two electromagnetic energy signals of different frequencies to the brain of the subject being monitored, receiving an electromagnetic energy signal resulting from the mixing of said two signals in the brain modulated by the brain wave activity and retransmitted by the brain in response to said transmitted energy signals, and, interpreting said received signal.
10. A process as in claim 9 further comprising the step of transmitting a further electromagnetic wave signal to the brain to vary the brain wave activity.
11. A process as in claim 10 wherein the step of transmitting the further signals comprises obtaining a standard signal, comparing said received electromagnetic energy signals with said standard signal, producing a compensating signal corresponding to the comparison between said received electrogagnetic energy signals and the standard signal, and transmitting the compensating signals to the brain of the subject being monitored.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Medical science has found brain waves to be a useful barometer of organic functions. Measurements of electrical activity in the brain have been instrumental in detecting physical and psychic disorder, measuring stress, determining sleep patterns, and monitoring body metabolism.
The present art for measurement of brain waves employs electroencephalographs including probes with sensors which are attached to the skull of the subject under study at points proximate to the regions of the brain being monitored. Electrical contact between the sensors and apparatus employed to process the detected brain waves is maintained by a plurality of wires extending from the sensors to the apparatus. The necessity for physically attaching the measuring apparatus to the subject imposes several limitations on the measurement process. The subject may experience discomfort, particulary if the measurements are to be made over extended periods of time. His bodily movements are restricted and he is generally confined to the immediate vicinity of the measuring apparatus. Furthermore, measurements cannot be made while the subject is conscious without his awareness. The comprehensiveness of the measurements is also limited since the finite number of probes employed to monitor local regions of brain wave activity do not permit observation of the total brain wave profile in a single test.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to apparatus and a method for monitoring brain waves wherein all components of the apparatus employed are remote from the test subject. More specifically, high frequency transmitters are operated to radiate electromagnetic energy of different frequencies through antennas which are capable of scanning the entire brain of the test subject or any desired region thereof. The signals of different frequencies penetrate the skull of the subject and impinge upon the brain where they mix to yield an interference wave modulated by radiations from the brain's natural electrical activity. The modulated interference wave is re-transmitted by the brain and received by an antenna at a remote station where it is demodulated, and processed to provide a profile of the suject's brain waves. In addition to passively monitoring his brain waves, the subject's neurological processes may be affected by transmitting to his brain, through a transmitter, compensating signals. The latter signals can be derived from the received and processed brain waves.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the invention to remotely monitor electrical activity in the entire brain or selected local regions thereof with a single measurement.
Another object is the monitoring of a subject's brain wave activity through transmission and reception of electromagnetic waves.
Still another object is to monitor brain wave activity from a position remote from the subject.
A further object is to provide a method and apparatus for affecting brain wave activity by transmitting electromagnetic signals thereto.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other and further objects of the invention will appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings, which form part of the instant specification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith, and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views;
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the interconnection of the components of the apparatus of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing signal flow in one embodiment of the apparatus.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings, specifically FIG. 1, a high frequency transmitter 2 produces and supplies two electromagnetic wave signals through suitable coupling means 14 to an antenna 4. The signals are directed by the antenna 4 to the skull 6 of the subject 8 being examined. The two signals from the antenna 4, which travel independently, penetrate the skull 6 and impinge upon the tissue of the brain 10.
Within the tissue of the brain 10, the signals combine, much in the manner of a conventional mixing process technique, with each section of the brain having a different modulating action. The resulting waveform of the two signals has its greatest amplitude when the two signals are in phase and thus reinforcing one another. When the signals are exactly 180.degree. out of phase the combination produces a resultant waveform of minimum amplitude. If the amplitudes of the two signals transmitted to the subject are maintained at identical levels, the resultant interference waveform, absent influences of external radiation, may be expected to assume zero intensity when maximum interference occurs, the number of such points being equal to the difference in frequencies of the incident signals. However, interference by radiation from electrical activity within the brain 10 causes the waveform resulting from interference of the two transmitted signals to vary from the expected result, i.e., the interference waveform is modulated by the brain waves. It is believed that this is due to the fact that brain waves produce electric charges each of which has a component of electromagnetic radiation associated with it. The electromagnetic radiation produced by the brain waves in turn reacts with the signals transmitted to the brain from the external source.
The modulated interference waveform is re-transmitted from the brain 10, back through the skull 6. A quantity of energy is re-transmitted sufficient to enable it to be picked up by the antenna 4. This can be controlled, within limits, by adjusting the absolute and relative intensities of the signals, originally transmitted to the brain. Of course, the level of the transmitted energy should be kept below that which may be harmful to the subject.
The antenna passes the received signal to a receiver 12 through the antenna electronics 14. Within the receiver the wave is amplified by conventional RF amplifiers 16 and demodulated by conventional detector and modulator electronics 18. The demodulated wave, representing the intra-brain electrical activity, is amplified by amplifiers 20 and the resulting information in electronic form is stored in buffer circuitry 22. From the buffers 22 the information is fed to a suitable visual display 24, for example one employing a cathode ray tube, light emitting diodes, liquid crystals, or a mechanical plotter. The information may also be channeled to a computer 26 for further processing and analysis with the output of the computer displayed by heretofore mentioned suitable means.
In addition to channeling its information to display devices 24, the computer 26 can also produce signals to control an auxiliary transmitter 28. Transmitter 28 is used to produce a compensating signal which is transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject 8 by the antenna 4. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the compensating signal is derived as a function of the received brain wave signals, although it can be produced separately. The compensating signals affect electrical activity within the brain 10.
Various configurations of suitable apparatus and electronic circuitry may be utilized to form the system generally shown in FIG. 1 and one of the many possible configurations is illustrated in FIG. 2. In the example shown therein, two signals, one of 100 MHz and the other of 210 MHz are transmitted simultaneously and combine in the brain 10 to form a resultant wave of frequency equal to the difference in frequencies of the incident signals, i.e., 110 MHz. The sum of the two incident frequencies is also available, but is discarded in subsequent filtering. The 100 MHz signal is obtained at the output 37 of an RF power divider 34 into which a 100 MHz signal generated by an oscillator 30 is injected. The oscillator 30 is of a conventional type employing either crystals for fixed frequency circuits or a tunable circuit set to oscillate at 100 MHz. It can be a pulse generator, square wave generator or sinusoidal wave generator. The RF power divider can be any conventional VHF, UHF or SHF frequency range device constructed to provide, at each of three outputs, a signal identical in frequency to that applied to its input.
The 210 MHz signal is derived from the same 100 MHz oscillator 30 and RF power divider 34 as the 100 MHz signal, operating in concert with a frequency doubler 36 and 10 MHz oscillator 32. The frequency doubler can be any conventional device which provides at its output a signal with frequency equal to twice the frequency of a signal applied at its input. The 10 MHz oscillator can also be of conventional type similar to the 100 MHz oscillator herebefore described. A 100 MHz signal from the output 39 of the RF power divider 34 is fed through the frequency doubler 36 and the resulting 200 MHz signal is applied to a mixer 40. The mixer 40 can be any conventional VHF, UHF or SHF frequency range device capable of accepting two input signals of differing frequencies and providing two output signals with frequencies equal to the sum and difference in frequencies respectively of the input signals. A 10 MHz signal from the oscillator 32 is also applied to the mixer 40. The 200 MHz signal from the doubler 36 and the 10 MHz signal from the oscillator 32 combine in the mixer 40 to form a signal with a frequency of 210 MHz equal to the sum of the frequencies of the 200 MHz and 10 MHz signals.
The 210 MHz signal is one of the signals transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject being monitored. In the arrangement shown in FIG. 2, an antenna 41 is used to transmit the 210 MHz signal and another antenna 43 is used to transmit the 100 MHz signal. Of course, a single antenna capable of operating at 100 MHz and 210 MHz frequencies may be used to transmit both signals. The scan angle, direction and rate may be controlled mechanically, e.g., by a reversing motor, or electronically, e.g., by energizing elements in the antenna in proper synchronization. Thus, the antenna(s) can be of either fixed or rotary conventional types.
A second 100 MHz signal derived from output terminal 37 of the three-way power divider 34 is applied to a circulator 38 and emerges therefrom with a desired phase shift. The circulator 38 can be of any conventional type wherein a signal applied to an input port emerges from an output port with an appropriate phase shift. The 100 MHz signal is then transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject being monitored via the antenna 43 as the second component of the dual signal transmission. The antenna 43 can be of conventional type similar to antenna 41 herebefore described. As previously noted, these two antennas may be combined in a single unit.
The transmitted 100 and 210 MHz signal components mix within the tissue in the brain 10 and interfere with one another yielding a signal of a frequency of 110 MHz, the difference in frequencies of the two incident components, modulated by electromagnetic emissions from the brain, i.e., the brain wave activity being monitored. This modulated 110 MHz signal is radiated into space.
The 110 MHz signal, modulated by brain wave activity, is picked up by an antenna 45 and channeled back through the circulator 38 where it undergoes an appropriate phase shift. The circulator 38 isolates the transmitted signals from the received signal. Any suitable diplexer or duplexer can be used. The antenna 45 can be of conventional type similar to antennas 41 and 43. It can be combined with them in a single unit or it can be separate. The received modulated 110 MHz signal is then applied to a band pass filter 42, to eliminate undesirable harmonics and extraneous noise, and the filtered 110 MHz signal is inserted into a mixer 44 into which has also been introduced a component of the 100 MHz signal from the source 30 distributed by the RF power divider 34. The filter 42 can be any conventional band pass filter. The mixer 44 may also be of conventional type similar to the mixer 40 herebefore described.
The 100 MHz and 110 MHz signals combine in the mixer 44 to yield a signal of frequency equal to the difference in frequencies of the two component signals, i.e., 10 MHz still modulated by the monitored brain wave activity. The 10 MHz signal is amplified in an IF amplifier 46 and channeled to a demodulator 48. The IF amplifier and demodulator 48 can both be of conventional types. The type of demodulator selected will depend on the characteristics of the signals transmitted to and received from the brain, and the information desired to be obtained. The brain may modulate the amplitude, frequency and/or phase of the interference waveform. Certain of these parameters will be more sensitive to corresponding brain wave characteristics than others. Selection of amplitude, frequency or phase demodulation means is governed by the choice of brain wave characteristic to be monitored. If desired, several different types of demodulators can be provided and used alternately or at the same time.
The demodulated signal which is representative of the monitored brain wave activity is passed through audio amplifiers 50 a, b, c which may be of conventional type where it is amplified and routed to displays 58 a, b, c and a computer 60. The displays 58 a, b, c present the raw brain wave signals from the amplifiers 50 a, b, c. The computer 60 processes the amplified brain wave signals to derive information suitable for viewing, e.g., by suppressing, compressing, or expanding elements thereof, or combining them with other information-bearing signals and presents that information on a display 62. The displays can be conventional ones such as the types herebefore mentioned employing electronic visual displays or mechanical plotters 58b. The computer can also be of conventional type, either analog or digital, or a hybrid.
A profile of the entire brain wave emission pattern may be monitored or select areas of the brain may be observed in a single measurement simply by altering the scan angle and direction of the antennas. There is no physical contact between the subject and the monitoring apparatus. The computer 60 also can determine a compensating waveform for transmission to the brain 10 to alter the natural brain waves in a desired fashion. The closed loop compensating system permits instantaneous and continuous modification of the brain wave response pattern.
In performing the brain wave pattern modification function, the computer 60 can be furnished with an external standard signal from a source 70 representative of brain wave activity associated with a desired nuerological response. The region of the brain responsible for the response is monitored and the received signal, indicative of the brain wave activity therein, is compared with the standard signal. The computer 60 is programmed to determine a compensating signal, responsive to the difference between the standard signal and received signal. The compensating signal, when transmitted to the monitored region of the brain, modulates the natural brain wave activity therein toward a reproduction of the standard signal, thereby changing the neurological response of the subject.
The computer 60 controls an auxiliary transmitter 64 which transmits the compensating signal to the brain 10 of the subject via an antenna 66. The transmitter 64 is of the high frequency type commonly used in radar applications. The antenna 66 can be similar to antennas 41, 43 and 45 and can be combined with them. Through these means, brain wave activity may be altered and deviations from a desired norm may be compensated. Brain waves may be monitored and control signals transmitted to the brain from a remote station.
It is to be noted that the configuration described is one of many possibilities which may be formulated without departing from the spirit of my invention. The transmitters can be monostratic or bistatic. They also can be single, dual, or multiple frequency devices. The transmitted signal can be continuous wave, pulse, FM, or any combination of these as well as other transmission forms. Typical operating frequencies for the transmitters range from 1 MHz to 40 GHz but may be altered to suit the particular function being monitored and the characteristics of the specific subject.
The individual components of the system for monitoring and controlling brain wave activity may be of conventional type commonly employed in radar systems.
Various subassemblies of the brain wave monitoring and control apparatus may be added, substituted or combined. Thus, separate antennas or a single multi-mode antenna may be used for transmission and reception. Additional displays and computers may be added to present and analyze select components of the monitored brain waves.
Modulation of the interference signal retransmitted by the brain may be of amplitude, frequency and/or phase. Appropriate demodulators may be used to decipher the subject's brain activity and select components of his brain waves may be analyzed by computer to determine his mental state and monitor his thought processes.
As will be appreciated by those familiar with the art, apparatus and method of the subject invention has numerous uses. Persons in critical positions such as drivers and pilots can be continuously monitored with provision for activation of an emergency device in the event of human failure. Seizures, sleepiness and dreaming can be detected. Bodily functions such as pulse rate, heartbeat reqularity and others also can be monitored and occurrences of hallucinations can be detected. The system also permits medical diagnoses of patients, inaccessible to physicians, from remote stations.
http://tinyurl.com/7b6cv
Patent Number: 03951134
Abstract
Apparatus for and method of sensing brain waves at a position remote from a subject whereby electromagnetic signals of different frequencies are simultaneously transmitted to the brain of the subject in which the signals interfere with one another to yield a waveform which is modulated by the subject's brain waves. The interference waveform which is representative of the brain wave activity is re-transmitted by the brain to a receiver where it is demodulated and amplified. The demodulated waveform is then displayed for visual viewing and routed to a computer for further processing and analysis. The demodulated waveform also can be used to produce a compensating signal which is transmitted back to the brain to effect a desired change in electrical activity therein.
Inventors: Malech; Robert G. (Plainview, NY)
Assignee: Dorne & Margolin Inc. (Bohemia, NY)
Appl. No.: 494518
Filed: August 5, 1974
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Brain wave monitoring apparatus comprising means for producing a base frequency signal, means for producing a first signal having a frequency related to that of the base frequency and at a predetermined phase related thereto, means for transmitting both said base frequency and said first signals to the brain of the subject being monitored, means for receiving a second signal transmitted by the brain of the subject being monitored in response to both said base frequency and said first signals, mixing means for producing from said base frequency signal and said received second signal a response signal having a frequency related to that of the base frequency, and means for interpreting said response signal.
2. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said receiving means comprises means for isolating the transmitted signals from the received second signals.
3. Apparatus as in claim 2 further comprising a band pass filter with an input connected to said isolating means and an output connected to said mixing means.
4. Apparatus as in claim 1 further comprising means for amplifying said response signal.
5. Apparatus as in claim 4 further comprising means for demodulating said amplified response signal.
6. Apparatus as in claim 5 further comprising interpreting means connected to the output of said demodulator means.
7. Apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising means for producing an electromagnetic wave control signal dependent on said response signal, and means for transmitting said control signal to the brain of said subject.
8. Apparatus as in claim 7 wherein said transmitting means comprises means for directing the electromagnetic wave control signal to a predetermined part of the brain.
9. A process for monitoring brain wave activity of a subject comprising the steps of transmitting at least two electromagnetic energy signals of different frequencies to the brain of the subject being monitored, receiving an electromagnetic energy signal resulting from the mixing of said two signals in the brain modulated by the brain wave activity and retransmitted by the brain in response to said transmitted energy signals, and, interpreting said received signal.
10. A process as in claim 9 further comprising the step of transmitting a further electromagnetic wave signal to the brain to vary the brain wave activity.
11. A process as in claim 10 wherein the step of transmitting the further signals comprises obtaining a standard signal, comparing said received electromagnetic energy signals with said standard signal, producing a compensating signal corresponding to the comparison between said received electrogagnetic energy signals and the standard signal, and transmitting the compensating signals to the brain of the subject being monitored.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Medical science has found brain waves to be a useful barometer of organic functions. Measurements of electrical activity in the brain have been instrumental in detecting physical and psychic disorder, measuring stress, determining sleep patterns, and monitoring body metabolism.
The present art for measurement of brain waves employs electroencephalographs including probes with sensors which are attached to the skull of the subject under study at points proximate to the regions of the brain being monitored. Electrical contact between the sensors and apparatus employed to process the detected brain waves is maintained by a plurality of wires extending from the sensors to the apparatus. The necessity for physically attaching the measuring apparatus to the subject imposes several limitations on the measurement process. The subject may experience discomfort, particulary if the measurements are to be made over extended periods of time. His bodily movements are restricted and he is generally confined to the immediate vicinity of the measuring apparatus. Furthermore, measurements cannot be made while the subject is conscious without his awareness. The comprehensiveness of the measurements is also limited since the finite number of probes employed to monitor local regions of brain wave activity do not permit observation of the total brain wave profile in a single test.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to apparatus and a method for monitoring brain waves wherein all components of the apparatus employed are remote from the test subject. More specifically, high frequency transmitters are operated to radiate electromagnetic energy of different frequencies through antennas which are capable of scanning the entire brain of the test subject or any desired region thereof. The signals of different frequencies penetrate the skull of the subject and impinge upon the brain where they mix to yield an interference wave modulated by radiations from the brain's natural electrical activity. The modulated interference wave is re-transmitted by the brain and received by an antenna at a remote station where it is demodulated, and processed to provide a profile of the suject's brain waves. In addition to passively monitoring his brain waves, the subject's neurological processes may be affected by transmitting to his brain, through a transmitter, compensating signals. The latter signals can be derived from the received and processed brain waves.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the invention to remotely monitor electrical activity in the entire brain or selected local regions thereof with a single measurement.
Another object is the monitoring of a subject's brain wave activity through transmission and reception of electromagnetic waves.
Still another object is to monitor brain wave activity from a position remote from the subject.
A further object is to provide a method and apparatus for affecting brain wave activity by transmitting electromagnetic signals thereto.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other and further objects of the invention will appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings, which form part of the instant specification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith, and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views;
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the interconnection of the components of the apparatus of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing signal flow in one embodiment of the apparatus.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings, specifically FIG. 1, a high frequency transmitter 2 produces and supplies two electromagnetic wave signals through suitable coupling means 14 to an antenna 4. The signals are directed by the antenna 4 to the skull 6 of the subject 8 being examined. The two signals from the antenna 4, which travel independently, penetrate the skull 6 and impinge upon the tissue of the brain 10.
Within the tissue of the brain 10, the signals combine, much in the manner of a conventional mixing process technique, with each section of the brain having a different modulating action. The resulting waveform of the two signals has its greatest amplitude when the two signals are in phase and thus reinforcing one another. When the signals are exactly 180.degree. out of phase the combination produces a resultant waveform of minimum amplitude. If the amplitudes of the two signals transmitted to the subject are maintained at identical levels, the resultant interference waveform, absent influences of external radiation, may be expected to assume zero intensity when maximum interference occurs, the number of such points being equal to the difference in frequencies of the incident signals. However, interference by radiation from electrical activity within the brain 10 causes the waveform resulting from interference of the two transmitted signals to vary from the expected result, i.e., the interference waveform is modulated by the brain waves. It is believed that this is due to the fact that brain waves produce electric charges each of which has a component of electromagnetic radiation associated with it. The electromagnetic radiation produced by the brain waves in turn reacts with the signals transmitted to the brain from the external source.
The modulated interference waveform is re-transmitted from the brain 10, back through the skull 6. A quantity of energy is re-transmitted sufficient to enable it to be picked up by the antenna 4. This can be controlled, within limits, by adjusting the absolute and relative intensities of the signals, originally transmitted to the brain. Of course, the level of the transmitted energy should be kept below that which may be harmful to the subject.
The antenna passes the received signal to a receiver 12 through the antenna electronics 14. Within the receiver the wave is amplified by conventional RF amplifiers 16 and demodulated by conventional detector and modulator electronics 18. The demodulated wave, representing the intra-brain electrical activity, is amplified by amplifiers 20 and the resulting information in electronic form is stored in buffer circuitry 22. From the buffers 22 the information is fed to a suitable visual display 24, for example one employing a cathode ray tube, light emitting diodes, liquid crystals, or a mechanical plotter. The information may also be channeled to a computer 26 for further processing and analysis with the output of the computer displayed by heretofore mentioned suitable means.
In addition to channeling its information to display devices 24, the computer 26 can also produce signals to control an auxiliary transmitter 28. Transmitter 28 is used to produce a compensating signal which is transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject 8 by the antenna 4. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the compensating signal is derived as a function of the received brain wave signals, although it can be produced separately. The compensating signals affect electrical activity within the brain 10.
Various configurations of suitable apparatus and electronic circuitry may be utilized to form the system generally shown in FIG. 1 and one of the many possible configurations is illustrated in FIG. 2. In the example shown therein, two signals, one of 100 MHz and the other of 210 MHz are transmitted simultaneously and combine in the brain 10 to form a resultant wave of frequency equal to the difference in frequencies of the incident signals, i.e., 110 MHz. The sum of the two incident frequencies is also available, but is discarded in subsequent filtering. The 100 MHz signal is obtained at the output 37 of an RF power divider 34 into which a 100 MHz signal generated by an oscillator 30 is injected. The oscillator 30 is of a conventional type employing either crystals for fixed frequency circuits or a tunable circuit set to oscillate at 100 MHz. It can be a pulse generator, square wave generator or sinusoidal wave generator. The RF power divider can be any conventional VHF, UHF or SHF frequency range device constructed to provide, at each of three outputs, a signal identical in frequency to that applied to its input.
The 210 MHz signal is derived from the same 100 MHz oscillator 30 and RF power divider 34 as the 100 MHz signal, operating in concert with a frequency doubler 36 and 10 MHz oscillator 32. The frequency doubler can be any conventional device which provides at its output a signal with frequency equal to twice the frequency of a signal applied at its input. The 10 MHz oscillator can also be of conventional type similar to the 100 MHz oscillator herebefore described. A 100 MHz signal from the output 39 of the RF power divider 34 is fed through the frequency doubler 36 and the resulting 200 MHz signal is applied to a mixer 40. The mixer 40 can be any conventional VHF, UHF or SHF frequency range device capable of accepting two input signals of differing frequencies and providing two output signals with frequencies equal to the sum and difference in frequencies respectively of the input signals. A 10 MHz signal from the oscillator 32 is also applied to the mixer 40. The 200 MHz signal from the doubler 36 and the 10 MHz signal from the oscillator 32 combine in the mixer 40 to form a signal with a frequency of 210 MHz equal to the sum of the frequencies of the 200 MHz and 10 MHz signals.
The 210 MHz signal is one of the signals transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject being monitored. In the arrangement shown in FIG. 2, an antenna 41 is used to transmit the 210 MHz signal and another antenna 43 is used to transmit the 100 MHz signal. Of course, a single antenna capable of operating at 100 MHz and 210 MHz frequencies may be used to transmit both signals. The scan angle, direction and rate may be controlled mechanically, e.g., by a reversing motor, or electronically, e.g., by energizing elements in the antenna in proper synchronization. Thus, the antenna(s) can be of either fixed or rotary conventional types.
A second 100 MHz signal derived from output terminal 37 of the three-way power divider 34 is applied to a circulator 38 and emerges therefrom with a desired phase shift. The circulator 38 can be of any conventional type wherein a signal applied to an input port emerges from an output port with an appropriate phase shift. The 100 MHz signal is then transmitted to the brain 10 of the subject being monitored via the antenna 43 as the second component of the dual signal transmission. The antenna 43 can be of conventional type similar to antenna 41 herebefore described. As previously noted, these two antennas may be combined in a single unit.
The transmitted 100 and 210 MHz signal components mix within the tissue in the brain 10 and interfere with one another yielding a signal of a frequency of 110 MHz, the difference in frequencies of the two incident components, modulated by electromagnetic emissions from the brain, i.e., the brain wave activity being monitored. This modulated 110 MHz signal is radiated into space.
The 110 MHz signal, modulated by brain wave activity, is picked up by an antenna 45 and channeled back through the circulator 38 where it undergoes an appropriate phase shift. The circulator 38 isolates the transmitted signals from the received signal. Any suitable diplexer or duplexer can be used. The antenna 45 can be of conventional type similar to antennas 41 and 43. It can be combined with them in a single unit or it can be separate. The received modulated 110 MHz signal is then applied to a band pass filter 42, to eliminate undesirable harmonics and extraneous noise, and the filtered 110 MHz signal is inserted into a mixer 44 into which has also been introduced a component of the 100 MHz signal from the source 30 distributed by the RF power divider 34. The filter 42 can be any conventional band pass filter. The mixer 44 may also be of conventional type similar to the mixer 40 herebefore described.
The 100 MHz and 110 MHz signals combine in the mixer 44 to yield a signal of frequency equal to the difference in frequencies of the two component signals, i.e., 10 MHz still modulated by the monitored brain wave activity. The 10 MHz signal is amplified in an IF amplifier 46 and channeled to a demodulator 48. The IF amplifier and demodulator 48 can both be of conventional types. The type of demodulator selected will depend on the characteristics of the signals transmitted to and received from the brain, and the information desired to be obtained. The brain may modulate the amplitude, frequency and/or phase of the interference waveform. Certain of these parameters will be more sensitive to corresponding brain wave characteristics than others. Selection of amplitude, frequency or phase demodulation means is governed by the choice of brain wave characteristic to be monitored. If desired, several different types of demodulators can be provided and used alternately or at the same time.
The demodulated signal which is representative of the monitored brain wave activity is passed through audio amplifiers 50 a, b, c which may be of conventional type where it is amplified and routed to displays 58 a, b, c and a computer 60. The displays 58 a, b, c present the raw brain wave signals from the amplifiers 50 a, b, c. The computer 60 processes the amplified brain wave signals to derive information suitable for viewing, e.g., by suppressing, compressing, or expanding elements thereof, or combining them with other information-bearing signals and presents that information on a display 62. The displays can be conventional ones such as the types herebefore mentioned employing electronic visual displays or mechanical plotters 58b. The computer can also be of conventional type, either analog or digital, or a hybrid.
A profile of the entire brain wave emission pattern may be monitored or select areas of the brain may be observed in a single measurement simply by altering the scan angle and direction of the antennas. There is no physical contact between the subject and the monitoring apparatus. The computer 60 also can determine a compensating waveform for transmission to the brain 10 to alter the natural brain waves in a desired fashion. The closed loop compensating system permits instantaneous and continuous modification of the brain wave response pattern.
In performing the brain wave pattern modification function, the computer 60 can be furnished with an external standard signal from a source 70 representative of brain wave activity associated with a desired nuerological response. The region of the brain responsible for the response is monitored and the received signal, indicative of the brain wave activity therein, is compared with the standard signal. The computer 60 is programmed to determine a compensating signal, responsive to the difference between the standard signal and received signal. The compensating signal, when transmitted to the monitored region of the brain, modulates the natural brain wave activity therein toward a reproduction of the standard signal, thereby changing the neurological response of the subject.
The computer 60 controls an auxiliary transmitter 64 which transmits the compensating signal to the brain 10 of the subject via an antenna 66. The transmitter 64 is of the high frequency type commonly used in radar applications. The antenna 66 can be similar to antennas 41, 43 and 45 and can be combined with them. Through these means, brain wave activity may be altered and deviations from a desired norm may be compensated. Brain waves may be monitored and control signals transmitted to the brain from a remote station.
It is to be noted that the configuration described is one of many possibilities which may be formulated without departing from the spirit of my invention. The transmitters can be monostratic or bistatic. They also can be single, dual, or multiple frequency devices. The transmitted signal can be continuous wave, pulse, FM, or any combination of these as well as other transmission forms. Typical operating frequencies for the transmitters range from 1 MHz to 40 GHz but may be altered to suit the particular function being monitored and the characteristics of the specific subject.
The individual components of the system for monitoring and controlling brain wave activity may be of conventional type commonly employed in radar systems.
Various subassemblies of the brain wave monitoring and control apparatus may be added, substituted or combined. Thus, separate antennas or a single multi-mode antenna may be used for transmission and reception. Additional displays and computers may be added to present and analyze select components of the monitored brain waves.
Modulation of the interference signal retransmitted by the brain may be of amplitude, frequency and/or phase. Appropriate demodulators may be used to decipher the subject's brain activity and select components of his brain waves may be analyzed by computer to determine his mental state and monitor his thought processes.
As will be appreciated by those familiar with the art, apparatus and method of the subject invention has numerous uses. Persons in critical positions such as drivers and pilots can be continuously monitored with provision for activation of an emergency device in the event of human failure. Seizures, sleepiness and dreaming can be detected. Bodily functions such as pulse rate, heartbeat reqularity and others also can be monitored and occurrences of hallucinations can be detected. The system also permits medical diagnoses of patients, inaccessible to physicians, from remote stations.
http://tinyurl.com/7b6cv
Omega - 6. Jan, 00:05
5
Jan
2006
Detecting EMF Fields in Humans for Surveillance
A subject's bioelectric field can be remotely detected, so subjects can be monitored anywhere they are. With special EMF equipment NSA cryptologists can remotely read evoked potentials (from EEGs). These can be decoded into a person's brain-states and thoughts. The subject is then perfectly monitored from a distance.
NSA personnel can dial up any individual in the country on the Signals lntelligence EMF scanning network and the NSA's computers will then pinpoint and track that person 24 hours-a-day. The NSA can pick out and track anyone in the U.S.
NSA Signals Intelligence Use of EMF Brain Stimulation
NSA Signals Intelligence uses EMF Brain Stimulation for Remote Neural Monitoring (RNM) and Electronic Brain Link (EBL). EMF Brain Stimulation has been in development since the MKUltra program of the early 1950's, which included neurological research into "radiation" (non-ionizing EMF) and bioelectric research and development. The resulting secret technology is categorized at the National Security Archives as "Radiation Intelligence," defined as "information from unintentionally emanated electromagnetic waves in the environment, not including radioactivity or nuclear detonation."
Signals Intelligence implemented and kept this technology secret in the same manner as other electronic warfare programs of the U.S. government. The NSA monitors available information about this technology and withholds scientific research from the public. There are also international intelligence agency agreements to keep this technology secret.
The NSA has proprietary electronic equipment that analyzes electrical activity in humans from a distance. NSA computer- generated brain mapping can continuously monitor all the electrical activity in die brain continuously. The NSA records aid decodes individual brain maps (of hundreds of thousands of persons) for national security purposes. EMF Brain Stimulation is also secretly used by the military for Brain-to-computer link. (In military fighter aircraft, for example.)
For electronic surveillance purposes electrical activity in the speech center of the brain can be translated into the subject's verbal thoughts. RNM can send encoded signals to the brain's auditory cortex thus allowing audio communication direct to the brain (bypassing the ears). NSA operatives can use this to covertly debilitate subjects by simulating auditory hallucinations characteristic of paranoid schizophrenia.
Without any contact with the subject, Remote Neural Monitoring can map out electrical activity from the visual cortex of a subject's brain and show images from the subject's brain on a video monitor. NSA operatives see what the surveillance subject's eyes are seeing. Visual memory can also be seen. RNM can send images direct to the visual cortex. bypassing the eyes and optic nerves. NSA operatives can use this to surreptitiously put images in a surveillance subject's brain while they are in R.E.M. sleep for brain-programming purposes.
http://www.mindcontrolforums.com/akwei.htm#Detect
http://www.angelfire.com/nj/jhgraf/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/capaliwoda/mc/defenseless.htm
NSA personnel can dial up any individual in the country on the Signals lntelligence EMF scanning network and the NSA's computers will then pinpoint and track that person 24 hours-a-day. The NSA can pick out and track anyone in the U.S.
NSA Signals Intelligence Use of EMF Brain Stimulation
NSA Signals Intelligence uses EMF Brain Stimulation for Remote Neural Monitoring (RNM) and Electronic Brain Link (EBL). EMF Brain Stimulation has been in development since the MKUltra program of the early 1950's, which included neurological research into "radiation" (non-ionizing EMF) and bioelectric research and development. The resulting secret technology is categorized at the National Security Archives as "Radiation Intelligence," defined as "information from unintentionally emanated electromagnetic waves in the environment, not including radioactivity or nuclear detonation."
Signals Intelligence implemented and kept this technology secret in the same manner as other electronic warfare programs of the U.S. government. The NSA monitors available information about this technology and withholds scientific research from the public. There are also international intelligence agency agreements to keep this technology secret.
The NSA has proprietary electronic equipment that analyzes electrical activity in humans from a distance. NSA computer- generated brain mapping can continuously monitor all the electrical activity in die brain continuously. The NSA records aid decodes individual brain maps (of hundreds of thousands of persons) for national security purposes. EMF Brain Stimulation is also secretly used by the military for Brain-to-computer link. (In military fighter aircraft, for example.)
For electronic surveillance purposes electrical activity in the speech center of the brain can be translated into the subject's verbal thoughts. RNM can send encoded signals to the brain's auditory cortex thus allowing audio communication direct to the brain (bypassing the ears). NSA operatives can use this to covertly debilitate subjects by simulating auditory hallucinations characteristic of paranoid schizophrenia.
Without any contact with the subject, Remote Neural Monitoring can map out electrical activity from the visual cortex of a subject's brain and show images from the subject's brain on a video monitor. NSA operatives see what the surveillance subject's eyes are seeing. Visual memory can also be seen. RNM can send images direct to the visual cortex. bypassing the eyes and optic nerves. NSA operatives can use this to surreptitiously put images in a surveillance subject's brain while they are in R.E.M. sleep for brain-programming purposes.
http://www.mindcontrolforums.com/akwei.htm#Detect
http://www.angelfire.com/nj/jhgraf/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/capaliwoda/mc/defenseless.htm
Omega - 5. Jan, 23:58
THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM IN LOW-INTENSITY CONFLICT
By
Capt Paul E Tyler MC USN
http://homepages.tesco.net/~John.Dawes2/usaf.htm
http://www.parascope.com/articles/0797/em5.htm
http://www.parascope.com/articles/0797/em.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/or/mctrl/brainzap.html
Capt Paul E Tyler MC USN
http://homepages.tesco.net/~John.Dawes2/usaf.htm
http://www.parascope.com/articles/0797/em5.htm
http://www.parascope.com/articles/0797/em.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/or/mctrl/brainzap.html
Omega - 5. Jan, 15:32
Your brain may soon be used against you
By Faye Flam
Inquirer Staff Writer
Posted on Tue, Oct. 29, 2002
RON CORTES / Inquirer
Ruben Gur, a Penn scientist, says brain scanners could be used in criminal interrogations. He says privacy concerns should not overshadow potential benefits in understanding better how the mind works.
The last refuge of secrets and lies - the brain - may be about to reveal all.
Scientists are finding ways to use the brain's activity to expose truths a person may try to hide. The techniques could revolutionize police work, improve national security, and threaten personal privacy.
"It's the scariest thing around," said physicist Robert Park, an outspoken critic of old-fashioned, unreliable polygraph machines. "The only thing worse than a lie detector that doesn't work is one that does."
Ruben Gur, a neuropsychologist at the University of Pennsylvania, says new kinds of brain scans can reveal when a person recognizes a familiar face, no matter how hard he or she tries to conceal it.
The scanning machine, called a functional MRI, takes pictures that highlight specific parts of the brain activated during certain tasks. Telltale parts of your brain "light up," he said, when you are presented with a face you have seen before.
It is easy to imagine such scanners being used in interrogation of criminal suspects or terrorists about their associates. Gur described just such possibilities for national security experts at a recent Penn workshop. "Everything we do, and everything an enemy does, starts in the brain," he said at the Penn meeting, sponsored by the newly formed Institute for Strategic Analysis and Response, which includes Penn epidemiologists, germ-warfare specialists, political scientists, and computer experts. Such scanning could also be used to pick up brain abnormalities that he says characterize those prone to violence.
Another Penn scientist, Daniel Langleben, has found that a functional MRI can act as a lie detector. A handful of other scientists around the country are examining ways to read thoughts by examining the brain.
"In the long term, I think we will have technologies powerful enough to understand what people are thinking in ways unimaginable now," Langleben said. "I think in 50 years we will have a way to essentially read minds." He said he was not particularly happy about that. Neither are others concerned about the unprecedented threat to humanity's most private realm.
Gur acknowledges the concerns about brain scans eventually revealing private thoughts. The balance between security and privacy is something society will have to come to grips with in many areas, he said.
A long quest
To Gur and Langleben, visions of Orwellian thought police do not overshadow the potential benefits and the ever-tantalizing scientific prospect of understanding how the mind works. Gur said this work grew out of a long-standing quest to understand the nature of conscious thought. When he set out to study consciousness, in the 1970s, the concept was so hazy as to be out of the realm of scientific inquiry. With the advent of imaging machines such as MRIs, scientists found the machines were capable of witnessing the brain in action by tracing the way blood flowed to specific regions during various mental tasks. Gur got in early, testing which of the many small structures inside the brain were activated when test subjects were resting, reading words, recognizing shapes, or trying to remember facts.
The early machines used radioactive tracers that would "light up" regions where metabolism was fastest. He went on a long diversion exploring differences between the way men and women used their brains. He found, among other things, that differences in the brain endowed women with better memories and better control of emotions, while men were more likely to be hot-headed. In the last several years, he started focusing on the way the brain responds to emotion. Through a friend at the Arden Theatre Company, he brought together 140 Philadelphia-area actors.
Signs of recognition
He asked them to portray a range of emotions - happiness, sadness, fear, anger and disgust. He took pictures of the actors and showed them to volunteers whose brains were being scanned by a functional MRI, which works by monitoring the way molecules in the brain tissue respond to a magnetic field. He isolated a number of centers in the brain that were activated when the volunteers looked at the emotional faces. Then he decided to show the volunteers faces they had seen before mixed in with new faces, to see if their brains registered recognition.
The familiar faces stimulated more activity than the new ones in several areas, including the hippocampus, which regulates memory, and parts of the visual cortex. He published his findings in the May issue of the journal NeuroImaging.
Investigators have long employed numerous methods to detect lies - voice analysis, observations of body language and facial expressions, and the polygraph, which measures changes in skin conductance and pulse rate. Controversial since its invention, the polygraph fell further out of favor this month when the National Academy of Sciences deemed it too inaccurate for the government to use to screen people as potential security risks.
"The polygraph only catches people who are anxious about lying," often letting through those who lie with ease, Gur said.
Langleben said he was inspired by studying children with attention deficit disorder. He noticed that such children often had trouble telling fibs - they would just blurt out whatever came into their minds first, which was usually the truth. That led him to wonder whether the part of the brain that helps control behavior also helped people to lie.
He found himself collaborating with Gur, who shared his interest.
They started with a standard test - called the "guilty knowledge test," used in polygraph studies. Volunteers were asked to choose a playing card and put it in an envelope along with a $20 bill. The subjects were hooked up to the scanner and asked a series of yes or no questions about the identity of the card. They were told they would get the $20 if they could fool the computer.
When the subjects lied, the scanner showed increased activity in several areas, including one called the anterior cingulate region, which Gur said was activated by conflicting information or errors. Also activated more in lying was a part of the frontal cortex normally involved in making decisions. Finally, the researchers also saw more activity in the part of the brain that controls the right hand - since volunteers had to communicate their answer by pushing buttons.
The scientists still cannot tell when each individual is lying - they only get significant results when they average results from many subjects. But they say they are getting closer to the ultimate goal of lie-detecting: being able to tell individual truths from lies - and truth-tellers from liars.
http://www.prisonplanet.com/your_brain_may_soon_be_used_against_you.html
Informant: Ernie Vega
Inquirer Staff Writer
Posted on Tue, Oct. 29, 2002
RON CORTES / Inquirer
Ruben Gur, a Penn scientist, says brain scanners could be used in criminal interrogations. He says privacy concerns should not overshadow potential benefits in understanding better how the mind works.
The last refuge of secrets and lies - the brain - may be about to reveal all.
Scientists are finding ways to use the brain's activity to expose truths a person may try to hide. The techniques could revolutionize police work, improve national security, and threaten personal privacy.
"It's the scariest thing around," said physicist Robert Park, an outspoken critic of old-fashioned, unreliable polygraph machines. "The only thing worse than a lie detector that doesn't work is one that does."
Ruben Gur, a neuropsychologist at the University of Pennsylvania, says new kinds of brain scans can reveal when a person recognizes a familiar face, no matter how hard he or she tries to conceal it.
The scanning machine, called a functional MRI, takes pictures that highlight specific parts of the brain activated during certain tasks. Telltale parts of your brain "light up," he said, when you are presented with a face you have seen before.
It is easy to imagine such scanners being used in interrogation of criminal suspects or terrorists about their associates. Gur described just such possibilities for national security experts at a recent Penn workshop. "Everything we do, and everything an enemy does, starts in the brain," he said at the Penn meeting, sponsored by the newly formed Institute for Strategic Analysis and Response, which includes Penn epidemiologists, germ-warfare specialists, political scientists, and computer experts. Such scanning could also be used to pick up brain abnormalities that he says characterize those prone to violence.
Another Penn scientist, Daniel Langleben, has found that a functional MRI can act as a lie detector. A handful of other scientists around the country are examining ways to read thoughts by examining the brain.
"In the long term, I think we will have technologies powerful enough to understand what people are thinking in ways unimaginable now," Langleben said. "I think in 50 years we will have a way to essentially read minds." He said he was not particularly happy about that. Neither are others concerned about the unprecedented threat to humanity's most private realm.
Gur acknowledges the concerns about brain scans eventually revealing private thoughts. The balance between security and privacy is something society will have to come to grips with in many areas, he said.
A long quest
To Gur and Langleben, visions of Orwellian thought police do not overshadow the potential benefits and the ever-tantalizing scientific prospect of understanding how the mind works. Gur said this work grew out of a long-standing quest to understand the nature of conscious thought. When he set out to study consciousness, in the 1970s, the concept was so hazy as to be out of the realm of scientific inquiry. With the advent of imaging machines such as MRIs, scientists found the machines were capable of witnessing the brain in action by tracing the way blood flowed to specific regions during various mental tasks. Gur got in early, testing which of the many small structures inside the brain were activated when test subjects were resting, reading words, recognizing shapes, or trying to remember facts.
The early machines used radioactive tracers that would "light up" regions where metabolism was fastest. He went on a long diversion exploring differences between the way men and women used their brains. He found, among other things, that differences in the brain endowed women with better memories and better control of emotions, while men were more likely to be hot-headed. In the last several years, he started focusing on the way the brain responds to emotion. Through a friend at the Arden Theatre Company, he brought together 140 Philadelphia-area actors.
Signs of recognition
He asked them to portray a range of emotions - happiness, sadness, fear, anger and disgust. He took pictures of the actors and showed them to volunteers whose brains were being scanned by a functional MRI, which works by monitoring the way molecules in the brain tissue respond to a magnetic field. He isolated a number of centers in the brain that were activated when the volunteers looked at the emotional faces. Then he decided to show the volunteers faces they had seen before mixed in with new faces, to see if their brains registered recognition.
The familiar faces stimulated more activity than the new ones in several areas, including the hippocampus, which regulates memory, and parts of the visual cortex. He published his findings in the May issue of the journal NeuroImaging.
Investigators have long employed numerous methods to detect lies - voice analysis, observations of body language and facial expressions, and the polygraph, which measures changes in skin conductance and pulse rate. Controversial since its invention, the polygraph fell further out of favor this month when the National Academy of Sciences deemed it too inaccurate for the government to use to screen people as potential security risks.
"The polygraph only catches people who are anxious about lying," often letting through those who lie with ease, Gur said.
Langleben said he was inspired by studying children with attention deficit disorder. He noticed that such children often had trouble telling fibs - they would just blurt out whatever came into their minds first, which was usually the truth. That led him to wonder whether the part of the brain that helps control behavior also helped people to lie.
He found himself collaborating with Gur, who shared his interest.
They started with a standard test - called the "guilty knowledge test," used in polygraph studies. Volunteers were asked to choose a playing card and put it in an envelope along with a $20 bill. The subjects were hooked up to the scanner and asked a series of yes or no questions about the identity of the card. They were told they would get the $20 if they could fool the computer.
When the subjects lied, the scanner showed increased activity in several areas, including one called the anterior cingulate region, which Gur said was activated by conflicting information or errors. Also activated more in lying was a part of the frontal cortex normally involved in making decisions. Finally, the researchers also saw more activity in the part of the brain that controls the right hand - since volunteers had to communicate their answer by pushing buttons.
The scientists still cannot tell when each individual is lying - they only get significant results when they average results from many subjects. But they say they are getting closer to the ultimate goal of lie-detecting: being able to tell individual truths from lies - and truth-tellers from liars.
http://www.prisonplanet.com/your_brain_may_soon_be_used_against_you.html
Informant: Ernie Vega
Omega - 5. Jan, 14:32
3
Jan
2006
Big Brother Is Watching the Internet
Spooky AOL Ad Says Big Brother Is Watching the Internet
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/1357282/
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/1357282/
Omega - 3. Jan, 18:58
