Rewiring the Brain: Inside the New Science of Neuroengineering

This is amazing science, but kind of scary in a Dr. Frankenstien sort of way. The potential for negative apps of this are very real.

The fiber optic twist is new, but therei is already a robust technology in place to realize the potential of "negative apps".

For an overview of the "technology ready for research" check out WIMSERC or search microstimlator.

The risk has been completely ignored or repudiated on spurious grounds by the so-called "neuroethics". Hanssen page 3 first column last paragraph refers to "non-voluntary intervention" as "stock in trade conspiracy theories" and goes on to speculate about the risk that people could be manipulated by pleasure produced with implants. Ha ha. Like he never read the manual for VNS implants (produces choking, only when it's on). Choking is such a classic means of coercion, it has a special place in the criminal code (Canada).

There is not one microstimulator device that cannot produce electric shock or other unpleasant sensations (commonly "pain") at high amplitude, by every commercial manufacturer's literature and by the scientific literature more so.

Implant insertion technology is portable, "rapid" and leaving "little tissue insult" (pneumatic insertion Cyberonics). Injectable 'bion' tech is available free or for nominal cost to researchers. On review of the pages I've downloaded in looking at this issue in the last few years, I find they have been sanitized (Cyberonics). If the means of criminal/terrorist rapid in your face no trace technology is of interest to you, just ask, I will scan those printed pages and post them as images.

These are perfect means for terrorists and for organized crime.

Well that's certainly 'unnerving'.

Yes we should never do anything scary or risky, we might learn something. Besides, if we stick our heads in the sand then someone else will surely do those scary things and possibly end up using them against us because we won't know anything about them.

Basically there is no assurance of control by not doing something. If we don't play then we are out of the game. Opting out isn't a viable option. Only by stepping into the ring and showing up will we be able to be best prepared to negotiate the complex consequences that any new technology presents and play a part in attempting to sort the bad from the good.

Pandora's box was opened a long time ago. We have to deal with the good and bad in everything. Nothing we do at this point leaves no footprint.