The U.S. Department of Defense agency responsible for research and development of new technologies for military use (DARPA) is the U.S. Department of Defense. - Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) presented at the end of September in St Louis, in a show worthy of those of Steve Jobs presenting the iPhone, the projects she is currently working on. Among them the RAM, for " Restoring Active Memory "has caught our attention. The project consists of implanting a microchip in the brain to improve, stimulate or restore memory.
Ahe RAM project started last year, in February 2014. The experiment involved a dozen individuals, volunteer guinea pigs who were implanted with electronic systems in the brain by the US military research services. DARPA is not very talkative about the experiment, claiming that scientific articles validated by the scientific community will soon be published.
Electronic devices are placed in very specific areas of the brain. These include those concerned with declarative memory (which allows us to remember a list of items, for example) and spatial memory. Implants allow scientists to detect brain activity at specific times: when it learns, when it remembers, or when it makes mistakes. But these chips are not just recording tools. They can also send a small electrical shock, a kind of signal, when the brain is in a position to remember. Justin Sanchez, project manager at DARPA... says that "Preliminary results show that it is possible to capture and interpret key signals, or the 'neural code' from the human brain and improve memory by sending electrical stimulation to the brain.
DARPA swears that the number one goal of its research is to improve the lives of patients with memory impairment due to trauma or pathology. They're willing to take their word for it, but they say that improving the memory (especially visual or spatial) of soldiers can be quite useful on the battlefield.
But DARPA doesn't stop on the way. It announces, relayed in particular by the Huffington PostThe extension of its RAM project will be launched this October: RAM Replay program which could be translated as: "the RAM repeat program." What is it? Quite simply to use these technologies to improve and accelerate learning processes, especially those involving physical tasks. The Agency explains: " Complex skills can take years to master, and it's not just a matter of repeating a physical movement... ». So, a little chip, an electrical impulse in your brain and that's it: you become a piano virtuoso in a few weeks. Isn't that great?
